On the Frontier of Carbon Markets
This is a published version of our On the Frontier (OtF) newsletter series. Every month we take one global critical challenge and explore what’s at the cutting edge of it, together. Click here to join the FT Network and receive our newsletter directly.
How to bridge the climate finance gap
"COP29 ends with compromise on climate financing," reads the World Meteorological Organization headline following the summit nicknamed the 'climate finance COP'.
Although wealthier nations agreed to pay $300 billion per year to LMICs to support climate adaptation efforts, this is far from the $1.3 trillion sought by emerging economies with the most urgent needs.
And while many countries in the Global South offer significant potential for climate mitigation through their ecosystems, this potential is untapped. Today, Africa receives just 3% of global climate finance.
So we're stepping up to the challenge.
We see a future where climate finance promotes carbon sequestration and delivers a wide array of mitigation and adaptation solutions that support livelihoods, biodiversity, climate resilience, and ecosystem health. We want to create a cohesive system in which finance, policy, technology, and local engagement work together to support resilient, scalable, and community-centred climate solutions.
👀 Read more about our upcoming journey, and get in touch to join the conversation.
Supercharging a fairer Voluntary Carbon Market
The Voluntary Carbon Market is a vital mechanism for supporting the transition to Net Zero and generating funding for more nature-based solutions in the Global South. But once again, this enormous potential remains untapped.
The clip above shows insights from our latest report, which dives into the transformative role that frontier technologies can play in unlocking that potential and nurturing a more inclusive and equitable carbon market.
Satellite and AI-enabled solutions can support more accurate and efficient project monitoring, while other technologies can support improved data integrity, transparency and access to participate.
However, systemic challenges demand collaborative effort across key levers, such as agreeing on common data standards, ethical use of monitoring technologies and capacity building to ensure equitable and inclusive participation across market actors.
Crucially, we need to support the localisation of solutions to sustain them in underserved communities.
🎧 Download the full report here, or listen to an AI podcast about it.
Here's one solution that's ready for lift-off: Connecting smallholder farmers in Senegal to the VCM
COP16 in Riyadh was focused on desertification, something Saudi Arabia and its communities are experiencing first-hand. Globally, 13 million hectares of land are lost annually, equivalent to one football field per minute.
But the vast swathe of solutions showcased on soil health, land regeneration and more was reassuring. One of the solutions presented was FT Pilot Drylands, who launched their playbook to rehabilitate degraded lands in Senegal through connecting rural communities to the VCM.
Today, around 80% of the Sahel's land is degraded, and an estimated 50 million farmers are directly impacted by soil degradation. They are stuck in a critical balance, facing pressures to restore degraded lands and maintain sufficient agricultural output to survive.
However, there's a connected solution here: agroforestry approaches can significantly increase crop yields, sequester up to 7 tonnes of CO₂ per hectare per year, and open doors to the carbon market to earn additional revenue.
Their vision is to restore ecosystems while improving the livelihoods of millions of farmers, bringing a new value to Sahelian lands. The key to success will be trust-based relationships, reliable data, and embracing innovative and agile business models.
📚 Click to download the Drylands Playbook
"I was able to talk with other attendees about some of the challenges facing the African continent right now: land and water rights structures that complicate programmes, a lack of transparency about how much climate finance is actually reaching the ground and the time burdens placed on implementers of carbon sequestration projects who try to access the carbon market. Our conversations demonstrated that technology itself is not always the solution but perhaps an enabler to solutions - something for us to keep in mind in our work."
Emma Catalfamo, Frontier Tech Coach
Still curious? Here's three more for you
Watch a 5 minute video about one of our Climate Finance pilots: Project Sapling in Sierra Leone
Beating the Heat: can AI supercharge school retrofit projects in Tanzania? Find out here.
We've said it once, and we'll say it again: someone needs to take this hydroponics evidence and turn it into a viable carbon credit for herding communities.
Ps. Have you heard about our Helpdesk offer? 🧑💻
The Frontier Tech Helpdesk supports members of the FCDO to explore how emerging technology and innovations can shape their work by providing tailored research, evidence, and advisory support. In fact, the AI for Education topic brief mentioned above was produced in response to a Helpesk request by an FCDO colleague. Click here to learn more and submit a request!
Thanks for exploring with us. We’ll be back next to explore what's On the Frontier of Distributed Manufacturing 🤖
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