In January 2025, AlliedOffsets reviewed the trends observed in the voluntary carbon market over the past twelve months. It reported rising interest in engineered removal credits and more offtakes of nature-based solutions. It also found there has been a 33% drop in low-quality credit retirements since 2020.
Pachama published a review of the carbon markets in December 2024. Looking back at the previous 12 months, this report discusses the debate over using carbon credits for Scope 3 emission mitigation, the scientific evidence on the importance of conserving forests, the rush for removals and the emergence of tech for risk mitigation.
This website, Carbon Paradox, launched in December 2024. It addresses 24 paradoxes of carbon markets and considers the nuanced issues that could prevent or enable its scaling. Making interesting reading for all market stakeholders, the website covers topics including baselines, additionality, perfection and standards.
We Mean Business released a toolkit to aid understanding of nature-based solutions and voluntary carbon markets in 2024. It answers FAQs on nature-based solutions, voluntary carbon markets and the importance of these solutions. There’s a timeline for Article 6, as well as case studies for nature-based solution projects. It emphasises that we can only achieve global climate goals by harnessing nature-based solutions for both climate mitigation and adaptation.
In this report, David Antonioli, the founding CEO of Verra, sets out his alternative vision for the voluntary carbon market. Published by Transition Finance in July 2024, he argues that carbon finance could be a transition tool. If projects rethought the concept of additionality, they could set a point at which carbon revenue is no longer needed for their project the sustain itself. This, he suggests, is needed to catalyse a just transition to a low-carbon economy.
This paper from BeZero explains the benefits of a $100bn carbon market for people and the planet. Published in June 2024, it says that the carbon markets could be facing their own ‘ChatGPT moment’ with huge potential for expansion. It explains there are more than 50 different activities from which carbon credits can be generated and that between 2014 and 2024, the market issued 1.8 billion credits.
This report from Calyx Global considers whether the VCM is ‘on track’ to raise quality and looks at the state of beyond-carbon benefits (co-benefits) for people and biodiversity. Published in June 2024, it finds that the market values beyond carbon benefits, with projects contributing to the UN SDGs capturing a significant proportion of retirements. While it concludes the market is entering its VCM 2.0 era, it recommends a stronger emphasis on the principle ‘do no harm’.
Published by the Biden-Harris Administration in May 2024, this factsheet accompanies the White House’s ‘Joint Statement of Policy and New Principles for Responsible Participation in VCMs’ that confirmed the U.S. government’s approach to advancing high-integrity VCMs. It examples the steps needed to strengthen the VCM to support corporate decarbonisation.
In May 2024, the Biden-Harris administration recognised the potential of carbon credits to support decarbonization efforts, both within the US and globally. This includes emission reduction and removal as well as delivering co-benefits for people and biodiversity. This 12-page statement shares a series of principles for voluntary carbon markets and provides an overview of the state of the market until 2024.
Published in May 2024, Ecosystem Marketplace’s annual state of the voluntary carbon report provides an overview of dynamics in the voluntary carbon market. Drawing on interviews with project developers and credit resellers, it is relevant to those operating in both the supply and the demand sides of the market.