VCM Day: How global climate leaders came together to unlock the potential of a reformed voluntary carbon market
VCMI was delighted to co-host Accelerating Climate Action: Delivering High Integrity Carbon Markets, also known as ‘VCM Day’, together with the Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market (ICVCM) and the Global Carbon Market Utility (GCMU) at New York Climate Week.
With nearly 40 countries and 150 corporations represented, including 12 national governments, the message was clear: the building blocks of reform are in place, and we must now remove barriers to scale high-integrity voluntary carbon markets as a critical tool for climate action.
As co-convening organizations, we are working to deliver essential market integrity and infrastructure initiatives.
VCMI’s Claims Code of Practice ensures integrity on the demand side of the market, providing essential guidance meaning that companies use carbon credits in addition to – not instead of – decarbonization and can make credible claims.
ICVCM’s Core Carbon Principles ensure integrity on the supply side of the market, meaning that carbon credits represent real, verified GHG reductions and removals, and apply robust environmental and social safeguards.
GCMU is establishing the infrastructure required to scale a trustworthy carbon market — including data transparency and management, contracts, audits, verification, and dispute resolution, enabling financial intermediaries to enter the market, provide finance to projects, and take on potential risk.
Throughout VCM Day, sessions spanned topics from the role of market-based instruments in addressing Scope 3 emissions, to how carbon finance can accelerate a just energy transition, to the role of Indigenous People in the reform of the voluntary carbon market.
The participation of governments, businesses, Indigenous Peoples, NGOs, academics, buyers, sellers and market makers underscored a shared commitment to delivering a high-integrity market as a critical tool to drive real-world climate action.
The day also spotlighted several new developments for VCMs, including:
- VCMI’s partnership with Africa Carbon Markets Initiative (ACMI) to transform and scale up carbon markets across Africa
- The LEAF Coalition’s $180 million agreement to protect Amazonian rainforest in the Brazilian state of Pará
- The UK Government’s announcement that it will consult on reforms designed to strengthen the market
As VCMI Steering Committe Chair Usha Rao-Monari pointed out, a well-functioning market can channel climate funds that would otherwise remain untapped; a growing market could channel an additional $50 billion in finance by 2030. Delivering this market is necessary “for the people and planet to have a future.”
Jennifer Morris, CEO of The Nature Conservancy, added: “The VCM is not just for conservation, or for communities — it’s also because we truly believe it’s a critical tool in the toolbox to achieve global climate goals.”
To mobilize this finance, we heard how governments can promote market growth by aligning with standard setters to give consistent direction and support to companies so that they can use carbon credits with integrity. We heard how Indigenous leadership must be central to ensuring markets are fair and just, as key stakeholders who preserve 80% of the world’s biodiversity. We also heard how novel technologies, data, and modelling are being used to enhance market transparency at scale – providing buyers of credits with the reassurance that their investments are sound.
Sam Israelit, Chief Sustainability Officer at Bain & Co., said VCMI’s Carbon Integrity Claims and ICVCM’s Core Carbon Principles “provide independent, external validation that what [Bain & Co.] is doing is consistent with best practice,” which “helps us build credibility.” He continued, “that’s a critical part of any company’s carbon credit strategy: trust and validation.”
In a conversation with former VCMI Steering Committee Co-Chair and newly appointed UK Special Representative for Climate Rachel Kyte, Tariye Gbadegesin, CEO of Climate Investment Funds, emphasized that integrity is “fundamental” to a functioning market – and with the building blocks of reform underway, what she hopes for at next year’s Climate Week is “carbon markets back in play – big time.”
We at VCMI are committed to building this market – one that is locally anchored, globally connected, and operates with the utmost integrity – and look forward to continuing this vital work together.
For updates, you can sign up to our newsletter, follow us on LinkedIn, and check our website frequently for ways to get involved with our Scope 3 Claim, Access Strategies Program, and other market integrity initiatives.
Read our VCM Day report for an inside look at the event:
