By Kirsten Love, Director of Market Development
When exploring various pathways to fighting climate change – especially given recent news about how dangerously close we are to hitting the 1.5 degree climate threshold – it can be challenging to know how to make the most impactful contributions to the collective effort. Luckily, people and companies alike now have access to trusted resources that can support their decision-making. Nonprofit research group Giving Green has been providing individuals and organizations with meaningful and tangible ways to address climate change since 2019. Their approach is rooted in rigorous, evidence-based research and transparency at the highest levels while they continually evaluate the best ways to make the greatest impact on preventing catastrophic climate change. This is a reality that has caused many to criticize companies trying to do their best, as well as the systems they utilize—like the carbon markets that are providing real impact every day.
It should be acknowledged that there is still room for improvement in the carbon market, but that does not mean the work should not stop or be halted by an unproductive focus on criticisms that offer no solutions.
To combat this, Giving Green has outlined “four evidence-backed, actionable climate strategies that go beyond immediate neutrality to maximize climate impact.” These strategies include: Engage in policy, Support technological innovation, Contribute to or create a climate action fund, and Improve conventional offsetting.
As a carbon offset project developer, their perspective on how to improve conventional offsetting is of particular interest to us here at Tradewater. They challenge the market to think about avoided emissions projects not only as a means to offset and mitigate your own emissions, but as projects that we should be donating to beyond just our need to mitigate. These projects are necessary in preventing warming and should be considered a sound pro-climate investment. We believe that our avoidance projects, strategically focused on non-CO2 gases that are ozone depleting substances and short-lived climate pollutants, are necessary investments, because they buy us time to develop the technologies and strategies necessary for decarbonization. For this reason, we should prioritize including projects like ours in broader sustainability strategies.
In the white paper, Giving Green asserts that if offsets are being utilized to mitigate emissions, it is critical that they are of high quality and credibility.
We have been honored to be listed as a recommended offset credit provider by Giving Green in this white paper, as well as on their official list of recommendations for three years running, because our credits meet the permanency, additionality and accuracy criteria that constitute high-quality offset credits. As a third party rooted in evidence-based research, Giving Green’s recommendation has provided validation of Tradewater’s work and has given our buyers confidence in the projects that they support through us. Giving Green’s holistic approach to how we address climate change is needed now more than ever. We are running out of time and need to bring all possible solutions to the table. We need a tangible, trustworthy roadmap and actionable recommendations for meaningful climate action—and this white paper provides that. We hope that you will take a moment to download it, read it, and share it. Learn more about our work to collect, control, and destroy the world's most potent greenhouse gases before they reach our atmosphere at tradewater.us. 
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46 w
@ Tradewater, your input towards carbon off-setting is playing a great role. Well done.
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46 w
@tabitha_kimani Thank you so much!
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46 w
This puts it into perspective on offsetting and what had to be done
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46 w
Thanks for update
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46 w
Congrats on being listed as a recommended offset provider! Also, I love the image that you used in this article.
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44 w
@ford_brodeur_ Thank you!
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46 w
Very insightful, thanks for sharing!