Foresight Group’s Post

📄Verra's Statement on the New CCQI Scores for REDD Credits By Naomi Swickard, senior director, REDD+ program development and innovation Today, the Carbon Credit Quality Initiative (CCQI) released its latest forestry scores that evaluate the quality risks associated with avoided planned and unplanned deforestation projects. 🌳 Keeping forests standing, in the face of overwhelming global pressure to cut them down, is one of the great challenges of our time. We stand behind some of the choices that CCQI flags as needing further refinement, and we hope this assessment sparks the kind of vigorous discussion necessary on our collective journey toward impact. Notably, CCQI calls for changes to two key elements of Verra’s new REDD methodology that are its key features, not bugs: 🌳 Verra’s methodology was explicitly designed to ensure projects align and are consistent with the global accounting approaches. ➡ The methodology uses a top-down, risk-based allocation approach that is consistent with the latest methods for national accounting and inventories. Any path to protecting forests at scale must be able to align with host country reporting to the UNFCCC. 🌳 Verra’s methodology assumes it will take hard work, and investment, to reduce deforestation rates worldwide. ➡ The CCQI report claims that the approach used by the new methodology will lead to overestimation of emission reductions by asserting that countries are on a trajectory to reduce deforestation to zero, apparently without investment. Verra believes that this assumption is misguided and that there is no declining trend in deforestation without investment to deliver it. More, where there are (most welcome!) declining deforestation trends, the baseline will also become more conservative through the regular updates included in the methodology – as is consistent with national approaches. 📝 Read our complete response: https://bit.ly/3XMejwy 🌱 We look forward to continuing this discussion with stakeholders across the voluntary carbon market. As Verra’s new methodology comes fully online and baselines are set for key jurisdictions this quarter, we believe we have charted a critical path to unlocking impact at scale. #Verra #StandardsMatter #ClimateAction #CarbonMarkets

Looking forward to the discussion on Circular food systems

We are buzzing! More events to immerse yourself into the circular economy! While this may be an #African event, these issues are global. We are connecting the sector dots (as it should be!). #circularity #JustTransition #circulareconomy CircularVision African Circular Economy Network (ACEN) Circular South Africa (CSA)

'Check-the-box' approach to EUDR fails the fight against deforestation Euronews, Rainforest Alliance While the EUDR aims to combat deforestation linked to agriculture and logging, there is the chance that companies will focus solely on compliance rather than supporting sustainable practices among producers, particularly smallholders. There is a pressing need for holistic solutions that include better economic incentives, long-term contracts, and investments in climate-smart agriculture. These measures can promote sustainability and resilience in supply chains. Ultimately, a shift towards addressing the economic and social factors driving deforestation is essential to ensure both environmental protection and the livelihoods of farmers. Read more here: https://bit.ly/4dMSIJz #eudr #smallholders #foodsupplychain #deforestation

Join us in supporting the unlocking of the #circulareconomy. A national circular economy stakeholder dialogue will be held to foster cross-sectorial discussions and knowledge exchange about the circular economy. The circular economy is a holistic concept for re-thinking, re-developing and (re-) informing a country’s economy. South Africa is demonstrating different policy interventions and initiatives that facilitate a circular economy transition. However, the benefits of a circular economy are not fully unlocked. The dialogue series will be facilitated on four of the seven identified priority economic sectors: #Agriculture, #Mining, #Manufacturing #Energy. Don’t miss out, register today! 29 August – Agriculture: https://lnkd.in/dmfyK6Pg 5 September – Mining: https://lnkd.in/d5WZq9ER 11 October – Manufacturing: https://lnkd.in/dqpb_w_i 24 October – Energy: https://lnkd.in/dFwmJbNG This series is proudly brought to you by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH on behalf of the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection as part of the International Climate Initiative and implemented in cooperation with the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE).

Urgent call for transparency in the timber and pulp sector 🔍 This year, ZSL marks a decade of SPOTT assessments in the soft commodity sector. The latest assessment on the top 100 timber and pulp companies reveals that progress in transparency remains critically low, with the average score increasing only slightly from 20.4% in 2019 to 24.1% in 2024. This reflects ongoing inaction on critical ESG issues like deforestation, biodiversity loss and Indigenous Peoples’ and local communities’ rights. "We have seen small signs of progress, but the overwhelming story has been one of inertia. Despite years of pressure and attempted engagement, many tropical forestry companies continue to fail in reporting even basic ESG data." — Samuel Ross, ZSL’s Sustainable Business Project Analyst There is an urgent need for companies to enhance their ESG disclosures, especially given their significant environmental and social impact. ZSL urges both companies and their buyers to demand and demonstrate greater accountability to safeguard our tropical forests and the communities dependent on them. Read the full story here: https://lnkd.in/daCVKahw #Timber #Pulp #ESG #Transparency #Deforestation #BiodiversityLoss #IPLC

Join us in supporting the unlocking of the #circulareconomy. A national circular economy stakeholder dialogue will be held to foster cross-sectorial discussions and knowledge exchange about the circular economy. The circular economy is a holistic concept for re-thinking, re-developing and (re-) informing a country’s economy. South Africa is demonstrating different policy interventions and initiatives that facilitate a circular economy transition. However, the benefits of a circular economy are not fully unlocked. The dialogue series will be facilitated on four of the seven identified priority economic sectors: #Agriculture, #Mining, #Manufacturing and #Energy. Don’t miss out, register today! 29 August – Agriculture: https://lnkd.in/dmfyK6Pg 5 September – Mining: https://lnkd.in/d5WZq9ER 11 October – Manufacturing: https://lnkd.in/dqpb_w_i 24 October – Energy: https://lnkd.in/dFwmJbNG This series is proudly brought to you by the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH on behalf of the Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation, Nuclear Safety and Consumer Protection as part of the International Climate Initiative and implemented in cooperation with the Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment (DFFE). 

Pledges and voluntary action alone are not enough to tackle global deforestation. The EU is taking a historic step with EUDR to verify that certain products are not sourced from recently converted forest land, a move essential to curb deforestation driven by agriculture. According to the World Resources Institute (WRI), only seven commodities, including wood, rubber, cattle, coffee, cocoa, palm oil, and soy, contributed to 57% of tree cover loss linked to agriculture from 2001 to 2015. This loss replaced forests equivalent to more than twice the size of Germany. The EU, as the second-largest market for these commodities after China, is witnessing a rise in demand. The requirement for manufacturers to demonstrate that their products are not linked to recent deforestation is a crucial step towards preserving global forests. Read more about this significant initiative here: https://lnkd.in/dr_Jwiw9

Improving the #sustainability profile of #farming is central to meeting global sustainability goals on #climate and #biodiversity. The #agriculture sector is responsible for around a third of global greenhouse gas emissions, and it’s also linked to at least 90% of deforestation. It is therefore understandable that some regions are beginning to regulate this sector to bring it in line with sustainability goals, such as the EU’s new regulations to promote climate-smart and nature-positive farming—often labelled “regenerative agriculture.” However, today a tradeoff exists between the industry’s environmental and financial sustainability, which needs to be carefully navigated by new policies. Read the article by Eric Wilburn for the UBS Sustainability and Impact Institute: https://from.ubs/6047YCzZT #shareUBS #TheInstitute #ESG

“Profitability and environmental responsibility are not mutually exclusive.” - Tina Morris, CEO of FLINTpro In a recent interview with Climate Action, Tina shared insights on how financial institutions can tackle nature-related risks like deforestation, biodiversity loss, and emissions in forestry, land-use, and agriculture (#FLAG) sectors. FLINTpro empowers institutions to move beyond compliance, mitigate portfolio risks, and lead in sustainable finance, from aligning with the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (#CSRD) and European Sustainability Reporting Standards (#ESRS) to leveraging data-driven tools. Read more about the steps needed to balance profitability with environmental responsibility and drive meaningful impact: https://lnkd.in/ekFCYe2y #SustainableFinance #ClimateAction #NaturePositive #Investors #SustainableInvesting