What if carbon was much more than just a funding mechanism?

Abstract

What we agree by common consent to call ‘carbon funding’ is seen primarily by many agencies and NGOs as providing the opportunity to leverage new financial resources at a time when development aid is increasingly scarce or difficult to secure. But over and above the financial dimension, the methods applied in the context of ‘carbon’ projects lead project developers to work in new ways, take a long-term view of the work they do, and put in place systems to ensure detailed measurement of project impacts. To what degree can the carbon approach contribute to changing the beliefs and practices of development organisations? In respect of which outcomes, and with which limitations? Bernard Giraud, co-founder of the Livelihoods Carbon Investment Fund, and Rémi Hemerick, Chief Executive of the NGO SOS Sahel, expand on their viewpoints as investor and project developer.

Keywords

• agroforestry
• carbon finance
• climate change
• corporate responsibility
• development
• food security