OMG(E)! Article 6 is Going Above and Beyond Offsetting! – ECO

Acronym’s abound in the UNFCCC process, and here’s another one… O-M-G-E stands for “overall mitigation in global emissions.” Say what?! The mechanism referred to in Article 6.4(d) of the Paris Agreement: “shall aim to deliver an overall mitigation in global emissions.” Yes, it’s wonky. So, let us try again: This is a mandate to reflect on the hard lessons …

The New Article 6: We Know What We Need (ECO: UNFCCC SB48)

Market negotiations resumed at full speed in Bangkok, with new text being published after only one day of negotiations. Parties are feeling the pressure now that COP24 is looming. We’ve started the session by hearing lists of priorities for items that could not be postponed to 2019 (assuming  that not all issues could be resolved …

Sham consultations, ruthless exploitation: CDM project experience in India

Guest article by Soumya Dutta, Beyond Copenhagen collective, India India hosts a big share of climate mitigation projects under the UN’s Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). Many of these projects have blatantly violated the rights of affected communities and stakeholder consultations are carried out rarely if ever, writes Soumya Dutta. The Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) was …

Carbonkiller buys out the bubble!

Carbonkiller is an initiative by the Dutch environmental organisation WISE that allows anyone to buy and destroy emission permits from the massively oversupplied European carbon market with the aim to raise the price and to increase public engagement in one of Europe’s key climate tools. The EU’s Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) is Europe’s key …

‘Sharing experiences helps solve problems’ – Two days of intense climate action talks with Southern European NGOs

Guest article by Susana Pinto from Quercus About 25 non-governmental organisations from Southern Europe, including Portuguese Quercus, gathered in Madrid on 5 and 6 April to exchange experiences and to explore ways to collaborate on European climate policies. While Portugal is on the right track when it comes to areas such as renewable energy, more …

WATCH THIS! NGO Newsletter #7: Voluntary carbon market approves wind farm project on occupied land previously turned down by CDM

The Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) has just registered a wind farm project in the occupied territory of Western Sahara. Earlier attempts by the project proponent to have the farm registered at the UN Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) had backfired precisely because of its location in a politically controversial area.