The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has announced a new partnership with the AirCarbon Exchange (ACX) to promote carbon offsetting through emission reductions certified by the secretariat of the UNFCCC.
The partnership will allow ACX, which is the world’s first fully digital carbon exchange client representing 30 different countries, to purchase and retire emission credits known as “Certified Emission Reductions” (CERs) for their carbon offsetting purposes.
This will be the second exchange in the world and the first in Asia to list CERs held in the UNFCCC Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) registry, the database that holds and tracks CERs, including their retirement.
Read also: Studies link global heat to early birth, damage to babies’ health
It will be recalled that in the UN Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow in 2021, governments agreed on guidelines for how the Paris Climate Change Agreement is to be delivered, including Article 6 that establishes a framework for countries to exchange carbon credits through the United Nations and will give market access to all countries that want to attract green investment through the global carbon market.
Director Mitigation Division at UNFCCC, James Grabert, said that the partnership comes at a time of growing commitment to climate action in line with the strong agreements made by countries at the Glasgow climate conference last year.
This arrangement is expected to enable early movers to reward projects already underway with the United Nations Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) as countries embark on implementing the Paris Agreement carbon markets.
CEO and Co-Co-Founder of AirCarbon Exchange, Thomas McMahon was quoted as saying “We are honoured to partner with the UNFCCC to promote and facilitate the use of CERs for voluntary offsetting”.
Speaking further, he said, “we look forward to working with the UNFCCC to direct much-needed finance to a wide range of carbon projects under the UN Clean Development Mechanism.”
Through the partnership, ACX will also work closely with the UN Climate Change secretariat to raise awareness about carbon offsetting and facilitate the use of CERs in the carbon markets by connecting UN-vetted climate-friendly projects in need of revenue with investors seeking quality units to meet their climate action objectives.
