?? Apps for NbS and editorial complaints

Hi there,

Thank you for clicking on our newsletter today. In this edition, you can expect to learn how our CEO, Ana Haurie, complained to The Guardian over its coverage of carbon credits (see company news) and how one of our flagship portfolio projects, Ntakata Mountains, is using an app to monitor its forests (see project news).?

But before you start scrolling, we're excited to share that we're breaking our bi-weekly schedule to send you a special edition next Friday! Please keep an eye out for that and share it with your network if you find it helpful. Right, that's all from us??– on with the newsletter!

• Carbon Pulse covers the World Bank’s call for progress on Article 6 of the Paris Agreement.
• Associated Press covers a study that found the most successful climate policies are those in which polluters pay.
• Forbes carries an op ed arguing for high-quality carbon credit supply to be a top priority at COP29.
• World Economic Forum argues that the VCM is key to scaling carbon removals but that we need to increase trust.
• Carbon Pulse reports that the Sindh province in Pakistan plans to generate millions of carbon credits through reforestation.
• Microsoft announces it has purchased?234,000 nature-based carbon credits from Toroto, a project developer in Mexico.
• AlliedOffsets shares a chart on LinkedIn that shows how much companies are likely to be willing to pay for different types of carbon credit in the future.
• edie wonders if some FTSE 100 companies will be ineligible for the Climate Pledge – a commitment for net zero funded by Bezos – without SBTi targets.
• Valitera considers trends in the carbon removal space.
• Business Green reports that UNEP and ShareAction have published guidelines for nature investment.
• Financial Times questions the level of influence the Bezos Earth Fund has on carbon credit markets.
• John Mwakima shares his conversation with Mike Korchinsky. As the Founder of Wildlife Works, Mike discusses the Kasigau Corridor REDD+ project following criticism.
• A new paper has found that 80% of the world's remaining biodiversity may not be inside Indigenous territories as is frequently claimed. This does not diminish the extremely important part IPs play in conserving the natural world.
• Reuters Maria Mendiluce celebrates 10 years of climate action in an enjoyably positive article.
• Independent reports that African nations are losing up to 5% of GBP a year due to the climate crisis.
• Verra rejects 37 rice cultivation projects in China and imposed sanctions against the verification bodies involved in the projects.
• Carbon Pulse covers news that Puro.earth has had its issuances approved by a large carbon removal buyers’ club.
• Carbon Pulse finds that Brazil is the country most affected by Verra’s new consolidated REDD+ methodology.
• The Guardian predicts the UK may announce tougher emission reduction targets at COP29.
• Science Based Targets Initiative releases specific guidance for the building sector and financial institutions to set net-zero targets.
• Carbon Pulse covers Paraguay’s move to put carbon market law into regulation.
• Carbon Herald reports that Nori, the carbon marketplace, has closed down.
• Gold Standard shares a new blue carbon methodology which uses remote sensing.
• Verra pilots its Scope 3 standard program.

Climate Focus 2024 H1 carbon market review

What's new? Having crossed the halfway mark of 2024, Climate Focus considers how the year is playing out for carbon markets.

What does it include? Set within the context of the SBTi debate and COP29, this report considers issuance, retirements, pricing and by project type.

What can I expect about issuances??Interestingly it reported a stabilisation of issuances in the first half of 2024 following the retreat of year-on-year issuances in 2023. Issuances from new vintages increased by 13% in the first half of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023.

What about pricing??Notably, it found that buyers are increasingly prepared to pay more for higher-quality carbon credits.

What's said about retirements? Climate Focus found retirements have so far remained steady during the first half of this year. In 2023, retirements for the same period were only slightly lower.

Any final takeaways? We read that retirements from cookstove projects have increased by more than 80% compared to this time in 2023.

Ntakata Mountains

Village Game Scouts working for Carbon Tanzania’s Ntakata Mountains project have received refresher training for the Sensing Clues' 'Cluey' app. The course revised the most efficient ways to monitor forests using the app. It streamlines data collection, making it a valuable, personalisable tool for tracking forests and biodiodiversity in nature-based projects. In Tanzania, the app is used to track free, prior, informed consent and community activities. Read more about Carbon Tanzania's use of Cluey on p.74 of?this report and learn more about the recent refresher training?here.

Gola Rainforest Conservation

The RSPB has published a blog about studying primates in the Gola Rainforest. The forest is home to 12 different species of primate including Colobus, Diana Monkey and Western chimpanzee. However, with six of these species critically endangered, it can be challenging to track them down. Read more for a day in the life of a biologist.

Carbon Tanzania

Carbon Tanzania has built a new eco office to accommodate its growing team. They committed to using no indigenous wood in the construction, minimising cement and importantly avoiding cutting down existing trees. It uses steel frames and is shaded during the hottest part of the day to adapt to warming weather. Read more here.

Our CEO complains to The Guardian

Our CEO, Ana Haurie, has contacted the Guardian after it called carbon credits 'junk' based on research that had not yet been peer-reviewed. She was quoted extensively in Carbon Pulse when it reported the news. She said: "While I agree that it is not unusual for organisations to publish research that has not undergone peer review, good practice dictates that this research is made publicly available for others to scrutinise.”

• On September 17 Trellis (formerly GreenBix) is hosting a webinar: Carbon Credit Confidence - Mastering Impact, Quality and Price in Procurement. Join the Webinar at 6 pm BST.
• Another on the the 17th. IETA LIVE is hosting 'Carbon Markets - State of Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) Report: Presentation & Discussion with Market Experts and Practitioners'. The?Webinar begins at 5 pm BST
• Between the 24th and 26th of September, IETA is holding the North America Climate Summit (NACS) in New York.
• At 9.20 am on September 26, our CEO, Ana Haurie, is joining a?panel organised by ICE at CWNYC. Join for 'Carbonomics: the antidote to climate risk?' ICE, New York (Ana on panel).

Enjoyed this newsletter? Why not follow us on LinkedIn where we share our insights on voluntary carbon market news; summarise reports and post beautiful pictures from our flagship portfolio projects.

Respira is an impact-driven carbon finance business. We channel private capital into the world’s best carbon projects to scale natural and technological climate solutions through high-quality carbon credits. The majority of these investments are directed to the global south to tackle the climate crisis, prevent biodiversity loss and empower the communities where climate change hits hardest.