Background and Objective
In recent times, there has been an emergence of new regulations or frameworks governing carbon market activities in multiple jurisdictions. Furthermore, several governments have explored the development of national crediting frameworks, either to complement or replace established international standards. It is expected that more governments will introduce regulations over the coming years, both to underpin their use of Article 6 of the Paris Agreement, or simply to monitor or regulate carbon market activities within their jurisdiction. Through this initiative, Gold Standard is seeking to respond to and support the growing involvement of governments across the world in the regulation of voluntary carbon market activities. The program focuses on enhancing public awareness regarding the implementation of new regulations, providing best practice models, and deepening the alignment between international standards and emerging national frameworks to maximise the benefits of this transition for local communities, governments, and project developers.
Implementation
The programme will run for 18 months, from November 2023 to April 2025, encompassing the following activities:
Smooth Transition to a Regulated Carbon Market: Technical assistance, guidance and information-sharing on the introduction of new market regulations globally, with solutions for project developers, governments and other actors.
Framework Design Aligning National with International Standards: Development and piloting of a new framework to enable labelling and alignment between national crediting programmes and Gold Standard, intended to allow governments to draw and build on Gold Standard’s twenty years of experience in standard-setting, while providing flexibility for project developers.
Cultivating Local Market Experts: Capacity development assistance in at least two countries to foster the development of skills and expertise amongst a new generation of market experts.
Results and Outlook
The programme is going to support the scaling of a high-integrity global carbon market with a fair share of benefits in a period of evolution, by enabling local ownership, robust crediting approaches and a smooth market transition as governments become increasingly involved in the management of carbon market activities. Three major outcomes are expected as a result:
- Greater understanding amongst public and private sector actors of new developments in market regulation and best practice approaches to deliver shared benefits and greater impact.
- Demonstration of a workable framework for aligning national crediting mechanisms with international best practice, enabling high-integrity and optionality for project developers.
- Greater capacity for market implementation amongst local actors in at least two countries, with approaches implemented to build skills amongst new prospective market actors.