Carbon Connection

The intersection of carbon markets and agriculture is evolving, with the Reserve’s U.S. Soil Enrichment Protocol (SEP) leading the way in incentivizing greenhouse gas reductions and enhancing carbon storage in soils. Currently undergoing an update, the SEP will soon feature improvements designed to encourage broader adoption and advance climate-positive agricultural practices. In this episode, McKenzie Smith, Associate Director, and Alison Nord, Manager at the Climate Action Reserve, share insights into these updates and their potential impact. Discover how the updated SEP is setting the stage for a more sustainable future in carbon markets and the agricultural sector.

The Climate Action Reserve’s Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) program has experienced significant growth and development over the past years. In this episode, we sit down with Amy Kessler, the Reserve’s Director of Latin America, to explore key updates on this expansion, including new partnerships and emerging opportunities in the region. We’ll delve into what makes a carbon project successful in LAC, discuss the positive impacts these initiatives are having on local communities and ecosystems, and look ahead to what’s next for the program.

Welcome to Season 3 of Carbon Connection! Join us as we kick off with an insightful conversation with Craig Ebert, President of the Climate Action Reserve, and take stock of the past year’s achievements for the Reserve and evolution of the carbon market. In this special year-in-review episode, Craig shares his reflections on the progress made in 2024 for carbon markets, the impact of key initiatives, and the future direction of the Reserve. From policy shifts to innovative partnerships, we explore the milestones that have shaped the organization and what lies ahead in the fight against climate change.

Initiatives are underway to address integrity and scale in the voluntary carbon market (VCM). These international efforts to establish high-quality carbon market standards need to succeed to build confidence and move the market forward. In this special episode, President of the Climate Action Reserve Craig Ebert will discuss the work of these initiatives and how the Reserve continues to support scale and integrity by developing GHG accounting standards that achieve real emissions reductions, benefit communities, and support sustainable development goals (SDGs).

You may have heard the term 'biochar' thrown around in recent climate conversations but may not know the carbon in biochar resists degradation and can hold carbon in soils for hundreds to thousands of years. In this episode, our Reserve in-house expert and Director of Nature-Based Solutions Jon Remucal, and CEO of Pacific Biochar Josiah Hunt will explore the potential uses of biochar, its ability to bring co-benefits to communities, and what a biochar project may look like under Climate Action Reserve's upcoming U.S. and Canada Biochar Protocol.

The benefits of offsets go beyond emissions reductions and have historically provided new environmental, social, and economic opportunities for local and rural communities. These co-benefits can touch on many aspects of community livelihoods: biodiversity conservation, sustainable agriculture, water conservation and management, and social equity and justice. In this episode, Ana Moreno, Coordinator of Climate Change at MiAMBIENTE, will share experiences from Panama on how carbon project design and evaluation can support the inclusion of locally impacted communities and provide greater co-benefits.

In just over a month, leaders from countries around the world will be heading to Dubai for the 28th Conference of Parties (COP28) where carbon markets will take a front seat in conversations. COP28 has the opportunity to make further progress on solidifying the rules governing Article 6 of the Paris Agreement and the role of the carbon market in delivering significant global emissions reductions. In this episode, Lisa DeMarco, Senior Partner and CEO at Resilient LLP, will review what to expect at COP28, including the status of operationalizing Article 6, finalizing the world's first global stocktake of climate actions, and much more.

The Reserve is excited to launch its first-ever U.S. Low-Carbon Cement (LCC) Protocol, but what exactly is low-carbon cement? Join McKenzie Smith, our Reserve in-house expert and Associate Director, and Danny Gray, Executive Vice President of Strategy & Business Ops at Eco Material as they provide valuable insights into the significance of LCC in addressing market demands and realizing emission reduction goals via carbon projects utilizing the Reserve’s new LCC Protocol.

As global interest in carbon markets has exploded, the financial industry has increased its focus on potential investment opportunities and the necessity for investments to drive climate action. How have capital flows into carbon markets changed in recent years? What is the significance of these developments? What are the implications of these developments for mitigation? Tune in to hear from Luke Oliver, Managing Director, Head of Climate Investments, and Head of Strategy at KraneShares as we discuss the critical role financial institutions play in solving the climate crisis and maximizing the impact of the carbon market.

Latin America is a critical region for the global carbon market as one of the largest suppliers of voluntary credits. At the same time, a number of countries are forging ahead with government-backed offset protocols, national ETS, or other carbon pricing schemes. Hear from Eduardo Piquero, CEO of MexiCO2, on the advances of carbon markets across the region.