Why should I support Carbon Securities projects? Humans emit carbon just by living. The average American, simply by going about his or her daily life—breathing, blow-drying hair, cooking dinner—emits 17 tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere per year. While it’s important to do what we can to reduce our impact, it’s impossible for most people to reduce down to zero. Right now, we can all take a step toward cooling the planet by supporting entrepreneurs around the world who, using technology and common sense, are cutting emissions on a larger scale. Help support these entrepreneurs to not only reduce your own impact on the Earth, but also to scale that impact so we can maintain a healthy planet for future generations.
What is a carbon credit? A carbon credit is a unit of currency. When a carbon project proves to a group of scientists that they are keeping harmful gas from entering the atmosphere, they are rewarded with a carbon credit: 1 tonne = 1 credit. The project can then sell that credit to fund their project. In other words, credits make the carbon-project world go ’round.
How does carbon actually get reduced by donating to a project? Projects reduce greenhouse gases in many different ways: for example, burning less fuel, substituting clean energy for coal, preventing the escape of methane into the atmosphere, and creating mechanisms (forests, grasslands) to take up CO₂ all work to reduce the amount of CO₂ emitted into the atmosphere.
How much does a carbon credit cost and why is each project priced differently? The cost of a carbon credit depends on the project, but most costs are under $13 per tonne. That means an average American emitting 17 tonnes per year could pay approximately $200 or less to remove their negative impact on the planet. Each project will naturally have different costs due to its location, what it’s trying to do, and what other benefits it offers.
Why and by how much do we have to reduce our emissions? We all need to come together—urgently—and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The world’s top scientists agree that if we don’t curb emissions significantly, we’ll be hit with the most dangerous impacts of global climatic disruption. The goal is to keep the temperature of the Earth from exceeding 2.0 degrees Celsius or 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit above preindustrial levels, although some groups are calling for even greater reductions.
How do I know these carbon reductions wouldn’t have happened anyway? Carbon Securities ensures that each greenhouse gas reduction we offer on our site is fully “additional.” That means that the reduction would not have happened under any other circumstances. For example, if a project does something it’s required to do by the local government, then those reductions would have happened anyway and are not additional. Additionality is a way of ensuring that carbon is actually and verifiably removed from the atmosphere. If we are going to reduce carbon overall, this is extremely important!
Who cares about this? Over 130 million Americans are worried about the environment and want to do something to help, according to Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies research. These Americans come from all age groups and all parts of the country and support different political parties, but they all want to come together to save the planet.
What is Carbon Securities mission? We accelerate the most impactful planet-saving projects through cumulative actions by individuals and organizations.
Who verifies ours projects? Carbon Securities projects are triple verified and audited. All our projects meet the requirements of two major standards—Verified Carbon Standard and Climate Community and Biodiversity Standard. Each project is then independently verified by a third-party verifier that must also meet a set of standards. Carbon Securities completes its own extensive verification on each project after it has undergone these three steps. Each step is then repeated periodically to ensure continued excellence.
Are all carbon pollution reduction projects created equal? There are over 10,000 projects around the world today and they vary in their positive impact on the Earth. As firm believers in “carbon done correctly,” we have handpicked only a small group of projects that meet the highest standards in terms of additionality, permanence, and accountability.
Why are you listing the challenges for every project? Every project, no matter how good it is, has challenges. Cool Effect is the first and only platform to present the full details on each project, even if those details include what the project is working to make better. We do this so supporters can see and understand what they are supporting and make informed choices about how to best protect the environment.
Why don’t you offer refunds? When you support a project, we send the money to the project and retire the carbon credits associated with your support. Once these credits are retired, they cannot be unretired.
How can my organization partner with Carbon Securities? Want to create a Carbon Neutral environment at your organization? Contact us at info@carbonsecurities.org and learn more about the CASE carbon neutral seal.