[Coral-List] Carbon offseting - Plan Vivo

[Debbie Winton]

In response to the recent thread about carbon offsetting and how difficult it is to know if your money is going to a good place, I wanted to introduce an organisation that ensures just that.

Plan Vivo is a framework for supporting communities to manage their natural resources more sustainably, with a view to generating climate, livelihood and ecosystem benefits - and they use a carbon credit system to fund their projects. You can purchase Plan Vivo certificates to offset your carbon costs - One Plan Vivo Certificate represents the long-term sequestration or reduction of one tonne CO2e, plus a host of other benefits:
.. Poverty reduction and livelihood development
.. Restoration of degraded ecosystems and biodiversity conservation
.. Adaptation of communities and natural and managed ecosystems to climate change (e.g. via watershed protection, soil stabilization)
More info here http://www.planvivo.org/plan-vivo-certificates/ 

I came across them through Earthwatch, as one of our projects, coordinated by Dr Mark Huxham at Napier University, has recently helped the local community to gain Plan Vivo certification - Mikoko Pamoja http://www.planvivo.org/projects/registeredprojects/mikoko-pamoja-kenya/ - and Earthwatch has since purchased Plan Vivo certificates as part of their carbon offset policy. 


Debbie Winton
Programme Manager, Oman and Middle East
Earthwatch Institute | Mayfield House | 256 Banbury Road | Oxford | OX2 7DE | UK
Tel: +44 (0)1865 318298