Carbon camouflaging: How corporations are misusing carbon removals to mask their climate inaction

Carbon removals are not meant as a tool for corporate greenwashing or climate inaction. They should only be used to reduce the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. The 2023 edition of the Corporate Climate Responsibility Monitor (CCRM) ​assesses the transparency and quality of the climate strategies of 24 major global corporations. Only one …

December editorial: Greenwashing fossil fuels in Sharm el-Sheikh and Brussels

At a time when we need to shift our collective climate action up a gear, the influence of the fossil fuels lobby is succeeding in slowing down ambition both at COP27 and in the EU. COP27 produced one significant breakthrough – the agreement on a fund to compensate vulnerable and poorer countries for the loss …

Lacklustre COP27 fails to bring clarity to carbon markets

The Sharm el-Sheikh climate conference’s final deal on Article 6 opens the door to secret carbon market deals between countries with little oversight. On a positive note, a new type of carbon credit could help spell the end of offsetting, but the agreement falls far short of what is needed.

Sunset over peatland

EU’s Carbon Removals Certification Framework is certifiably problematic

Alarm bells for the climate were set off last week by a leak of the European Commission’s proposal for a Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF). The draft leaves many important questions unanswered and vital issues unaddressed, and could usher in an era of greenwashed and money-wasting carbon removals.  On 30 November, the European Commission is …

EU member states’ haphazard approach to carbon removals puts climate goals and nature at risk

National governments in the European Union are botching their planning of carbon removals. This lack of strategic thinking and focus on false solutions threatens the climate and biodiversity, a new study reveals. To avoid this, they must develop a clear vision of what carbon removals can achieve and focus primarily on lowering emissions. While carbon …

July newsletter editorial: Keeping hope alive for 1.5

The EU’s recent failure to rise to the unprecedented challenge presented by the climate emergency should not lead us down the path to cynicism but must prod us to redouble our efforts to bring about meaningful change, writes Sabine Frank. “So, how do you know Y (the host)?” I asked at a recent party.  “We …