The Integrity Council in Carbon Voluntary Markets (ICVCM), is a governing body established to uphold the pillars of integrity in the carbon credit space. Their mission is to outline what makes a carbon credit sustainable, genuinely beneficial to the planet and ensure it fulfills its carbon removal obligation. The council advises and verifies carbon credit projects in accordance with the Core Carbon Principles (CCP). A benchmark appraisal system that outlines the rigorous disclosure threshold projects must meet to realize their sustainability claim in the eyes of ICVCM.

The Core Carbon Principles (CCPs) are not just a set of guidelines, but a robust framework that sets rigorous benchmarks for carbon credits. These principles cover various aspects such as effective governance, transparent tracking of credits, robust third-party validation and verification, and the requirement that emissions reductions be additional, permanent, and not double-counted. The CCPs also emphasize sustainable development benefits and contributions towards the net-zero transition​. By adhering to these principles, the ICVCM aims to enhance transparency, reduce market fragmentation, and provide buyers with confidence that the carbon credits they purchase are making a real impact on climate change. The ICVCM's work is crucial in addressing issues of greenwashing and ensuring that the voluntary carbon market can effectively support global efforts to limit temperature rise and achieve net-zero emissions​.

As the carbon market grows in reach and scale, becoming more accessible to more consumers, it's crucial that the products being sold and traded are in line with standards designed to help the climate, not corporations. The role of third-party verification in this process cannot be overstated. Third party verification from both government and NGO are incredibly relevant to sustaining the growing interest in the carbon market. The current lack of harmonized data across registries is causing issues with double counting. To address this, Climate Action Data Trust is developing a global public data layer using public and permissionless blockchain technology. This global initiative, based in Singapore, will serve as a gateway for private-public sector partnerships and foster broader collaboration within the carbon market ecosystem. Third party verification would help open up the voluntary carbon market to more transparent financing through viable and verifiable data collection. All stakeholders involved believed this will be a crucial tool in the fight against the rise of emissions for years to come.

After being recognized for the outsized role in reviewing and scrutinizing carbon credit projects, the ICVCM released its own legal stamp of approval. Recognized by most US carbon regulative bodies, the CCP tag is attached to a carbon credit that meets the council's predetermined requirements. Per ICVCM, in order to receive this coveted tag, a credit must pass the "two-tick process; carbon credits can only be tagged with the CCP label if the carbon-crediting program is approved as "CCP-Eligible" and the projects that generate the credits use methodologies that are also "CCP-Approved". ACR, Climate Action Reserve (CAR), Gold Standard, and Verra (VCS) are all CCP-Eligible and will now be able to apply the CCP label to carbon credits generated by projects that are issued under the` Integrity Council-approved methodology, (IC spokesperson). While not directly affiliated with Gold Standard or Verra verification processes the IC has established it will recognize the aforementioned companies validation when doing their own evaluations. 

While ICVCM is an avid collaborator in the carbon credit space, priding itself on attempting to unify creditting standards in the market, it also wants to innovate in sustainable financing. The goal of the CCP tag is to create a trust symbol that project organizers can strive for. Forcing creditors to push sustainability standards, innovate carbon removal strategies, and open project leaders to cheaper finance. Regulation throughout most industries helps introduce new participants across the entire stakeholder chain, only contributing to further growth. Hopefully, adopting the new CCP tag will bring new light and exposure to an already burgeoning market. 

If you'd like to learn more about technological innovation and regulatory legislation pushing the boundaries in the carbon credit space, check out more articles on our insights tab. If you'd like to learn more about how Fairatmos's projects are innovating the voluntary carbon market, follow our LinkedIn page or see the About Us tab.

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About Fairatmos

Fairatmos is a climate technology company that helps you to discover, develop and deliver high quality carbon offset projects at scale. We believe in the power of nature to heal and remove greenhouse gasses from our atmosphere with the help of technology.

Our technology leverages remote sensing and satellite images to help communities and companies to discover their forest carbon credit potential, converting them from logging the forest to preserving and rehabilitating the forest confidently. 

With high precision monitoring technology, we help to track carbon project performance and integrity, ensuring the social impact and biodiversity preservation. With confidence in integrity, we connect carbon offsetting companies to quality projects. 

Today we have worked with more than 200 asset owners, processing more than 18M hectares of forest carbon potential across South East Asia to deliver the promise of inclusivity.

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