By
Grace Smoot

Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) is a United Nations-backed framework that aims to reduce global deforestation and prevent future forest degradation. REDD+ offsets are one of the leading nature-based solutions that focus on carbon avoidance. So, we had to ask: What are REDD+ carbon offsets really, and could they help us mitigate climate change?

REDD+ carbon offsets are a specific type of avoidance carbon offset that help reduce carbon emissions through a reduction in deforestation. These carbon offsets are issued for the amount of CO₂ emissions avoided, the so-called baseline emissions, if no REDD+ offset projects were in place.

Keep reading to find out all about what REDD+ carbon offsets are, how they work, what their project life-cycle is, how effective they are, their pros and cons, and how they can help mitigate climate change.

The Big Picture of REDD+ Carbon Offsets

Carbon offsets play an important role in mitigating the effects of global climate change by reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions beyond what we each can achieve through individual actions. Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) carbon offsets are a specific type of avoidance carbon offset that combat global deforestation and preserve our rainforests.

How are carbon offsets defined	Reductions in GHG emissions that are used to compensate for emissions occurring elsewhere.
What are REDD+ carbon offsets	REDD+ carbon offsets are a specific type of avoidance carbon offset that involves a United Nations-backed framework aiming to combat global deforestation via direct payments or through the use of carbon credits.
How do REDD+ projects offset CO2 emissions	The REDD+ mechanism places an economic value on the actions a country takes to reduce deforestation and preserve forests. REDD+ carbon offsets help reduce carbon emission through a reduction in deforestation.
When do REDD+ projects offset CO2 emissions	REDD+ carbon offsets reduce CO2 emissions immediately as they immediately prevent deforestation of their designated project area. They chiefly protect existing forests rather than requiring new forests to be created.
What is the project life-cycle of REDD+ carbon offsets	Evaluating: Evaluating the state of the existing forests in order to calculate their baseline carbon emissions.  Operating: Protecting forests during the REDD+ project’s lifetime via defining the causes of deforestation, the baseline emissions, and the reference emissions levels for a particular area. Then REDD+ establishes both social and environmental safeguards to combat deforestation. End-of-life: The average monitoring period of REDD+ projects is 3.5 years, which does not take into account the time needed to develop the project and compare avoided emissions to baseline emissions. Forests not protected – or not anymore protected – by REDD+ projects can be subject to deforestation activities.
How effective and efficient are REDD+ carbon offsets	Effectiveness: REDD+ carbon offsets help reduce carbon emissions through a reduction in deforestation; however, their baseline emissions calculations can have a high degree of uncertainty. The majority of REDD+ projects only protect the baseline and often lack permanence.  Efficiency: REDD+ carbon offsets chiefly preserve existing forests and are relatively cost-effective; however, they also only avoid emissions during the project’s life span and they can have a high rate of carbon re-emission.
How could you offset your carbon footprint with REDD+ carbon offsets	The best direct REDD+ carbon offsets are offered by REDD.plus, Pachama, and Wildlife Works which all combat global deforestation and preserve rainforests. In addition, InfiniteEARTH REDD+ offsets protect tropical peat forests in Asia, and Biofilica REDD+ offsets protect the Brazilian Amazon Rainforest.

What Are REDD+ Carbon Offsets

Carbon offsets are reductions in GHG emissions that are used to compensate for emissions occurring elsewhere. They are measured in tons of CO₂ equivalents and are bought and sold through international brokers, online retailers, and trading platforms.

REDD+ carbon offsets are a specific type of avoidance carbon offset that combat global deforestation and preserve rainforests. 

How Are Carbon Offsets Defined

Carbon offsets play a crucial role in reducing our carbon footprint, the amount of CO₂ emissions associated with an individual or an entity. 

“Carbon footprint: the amount of greenhouse gasses and specifically carbon dioxide emitted by something (such as a person’s activities or a product’s manufacture and transport) during a given period”

Merriam Webster

Basically, a carbon footprint is the amount of carbon emitted by an activity or an organization. This includes GHG emissions from fuel that we burn directly (e.g., heating a home, driving a car) and GHG emissions from manufacturing the products that we use (e.g., power plants, factories, and landfills). 

One way to reduce our carbon footprint is via the use of carbon offsets. These are reductions in GHG emissions that are measured in tons of CO₂ equivalents and are bought and sold through international brokers, online retailers, and trading platforms. 

“Carbon offset: a way for a company or person to reduce the level of carbon dioxide for which they are responsible by paying money to a company that works to reduce the total amount produced in the world, for example by planting trees”

Oxford Dictionary

When you hear the words “carbon offset”, think about the term “compensation”. Essentially, carbon offsets are reductions in GHG emissions that are used to compensate for emissions occurring elsewhere. Carbon offsets can range anywhere from a couple of hundred tons of CO₂ per program per year to thousands of tons of CO₂ per program per year. 

How Are REDD+ Carbon Offsets Defined

Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) carbon offsets are a type of avoidance carbon offset, which involve measures aimed at preventing carbon from being released into the atmosphere. 

“Avoidance: not doing something; preventing something from existing or happening”

Oxford Dictionary

REDD+ is a United Nations-backed framework that aims to combat global deforestation and preserve rainforests. It was launched in 2005 and now encompasses 90% of our planet’s rainforests and over 65 rainforest countries.

“REDD+: a framework created by the UNFCCC Conference of the Parties (COP) to guide activities in the forest sector that reduces emissions from deforestation and forest degradation, as well as the sustainable management of forests and the conservation and enhancement of forest carbon stocks in developing countries.”

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change

The REDD+ mechanism places economic value on the actions a country takes to reduce deforestation and preserve forests. It is the only emissions reduction program and standard that is included in the Paris Climate Agreement and is approved by over 190 countries.

In short, REDD+ is the framework through which we can pay countries to NOT cut down forests. This is done either through direct payments or through the use of REDD+ Result Units (RRUs). 100% of the sale of RRUs go back to the countries that are actively protecting rainforests. 

RRUs are a specific type of carbon credit. Carbon credits are tradable certificates or permits that give companies, industries, or countries the right to emit 1 tonne (1,000kg) of CO₂ or the equivalent amount of a different greenhouse gas (GHG). 

“Carbon Credit: a unit used in carbon trading that represents the right of a business, factory, etc. to release 1000 kilograms of carbon dioxide into the environment”

Cambridge Dictionary

Carbon credits are a form of climate currency, meaning they are subject to supply and demand and can be bought and sold through a cap-and-trade market. This market limits how much total CO₂ can be emitted. 

How Do REDD+ Carbon Offsets Work

REDD+ carbon offsets are a specific type of avoidance carbon offset that involves a United Nations-backed framework aiming to combat global deforestation via direct payments or through the use of carbon credits.

CO₂ reduction occurs immediately upon a forest being protected, but limitations involving additionality and permanence can make REDD+ less effective than other methods of carbon reduction.

How and When Do REDD+ Carbon Offset Projects Reduce CO₂ Emissions

REDD+ refers to verified carbon emissions reductions resulting from efforts taken to reduce deforestation and prevent forest degradation in a designated area over a period of time. It is a method of carbon avoidance, where we seek to prevent carbon emissions from entering our atmosphere. 

How Do REDD+ Carbon Offsets Reduce Your Carbon Footprint

In general, REDD+ is a mechanism by which countries are financially incentivized to generate measured, reported, and verified emissions reductions.

REDD+ is used to refer to the following 5 activities:

1. Reducing emissions from deforestation
2. Reducing emissions from forest degradation
3. Conservation of forest carbon stocks
4. Sustainable management of forests
5. Enhancement of forest carbon stocks

REDD+ is often referred to as a payment-for-performance system because countries receive financial compensation (payment) when they successfully reduce carbon emissions resulting from deforestation (performance).

REDD+ carbon offsets help reduce carbon emissions through a reduction in deforestation. Efforts to preserve forests and prevent deforestation are measured and reported to the UNFCCC, which verifies and publishes the emissions reductions on an online registry so individuals and businesses can then purchase carbon credits to offset their own emissions.

When Do REDD+ Carbon Offsets Reduce CO₂ Emissions

Because REDD+ offsets chiefly protect existing forests rather than creating new ones, carbon emissions reductions can occur immediately.

Protecting existing forests rather than creating new ones is more time effective because finding suitable land and physically planting the trees to create a new forest takes time. 

Carbon emissions can also be reduced immediately when you protect existing forests, whereas creating new forests requires waiting for the trees to first reach maturity before they can begin to reduce carbon emissions.

What Could Prevent REDD+ Carbon Offsets From Being Realized

REDD+ offsets often lack additionality and permanence, face difficulties when it comes to calculating baseline emissions, and do not reduce your own carbon emissions. This could prevent REDD+ offsets from being realized.

REDD+ carbon offsets often lack additionality and permanence:

• The additionality of REDD+ projects cannot be measured exactly, because assessing what would have happened (but did not happen), cannot be measured exactly. 
• And nature-based solutions, like REDD+, lack permanence because they are reversible. Rather than storing the carbon in permanent reservoirs (i.e., underground in rock formations), carbon is stored in biomass (trees) which can be wiped out by environmental disasters.

To identify the baseline emissions of the forested area being protected, you look at the deforestation rate in a nearby area over the past 10 years.

• However, because we cannot know exactly what would happen to a specific forest in the absence of a REDD+ project, calculating the baseline has a high degree of uncertainty.
• And an inaccurate baseline could lead to overestimating carbon emissions reductions and subsequently over-issuing carbon credits. 

Lastly, purchasing a carbon offset does not directly reduce your carbon footprint. It only makes others reduce their carbon footprint to compensate for your carbon footprint. 

If emissions are only offset and not reduced from the source, this could lead to greenwashing, when the consumer is deceived into thinking they are offsetting their emissions but in reality, they are not.

The Kasigau Corridor REDD+ Project: An Example Project of REDD+ Carbon Offsets

The Kasigau Corridor is 500,000+ acres of land between the Tsavo East and Tsavo West National parks in Kenya. Wildlife Works established the Kasigau Corridor REDD+ project in 1998 with the goal of protecting biodiversity, saving forests, and repairing the relationship between community and wildlife. The project employs local peoples, protects the land, and funds educational, health, and economic development projects. 

In 2011, the Kasigau project was verified under the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) and became the world’s first REDD+ project to receive the issuance of carbon credits. 

• Wildlife Works has since launched the Mai Ndombe REDD+ Project in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (D.R.C.) and The Southern Cardamom REDD+ Project in Southwest Cambodia.
• These projects protect over 700,000 and 1.2 million acres of rainforest, respectively.

The Kasigau project will contribute to the avoidance of 1.5 million tons of CO₂ per year for the next 30 years. You can contribute to the project by purchasing carbon offsets at a price of $20 per 1 ton of prevented CO₂. 

What Is the Project Life-Cycle of REDD+ Carbon Offsets

To fully understand REDD+ carbon offsets, we must assess each stage of its life-cycle. This life-cycle assessment (LCA) is a method to evaluate the environmental impacts of products and materials. Over the years, companies have strategically used LCA to research and create more sustainable products. So, we had a look at the LCA for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) carbon offsets! 

Evaluating REDD+ Carbon Offsets

The evaluation of REDD+ offsets involves first evaluating the state of the existing forests in order to calculate their baseline carbon emissions. 

The baseline is defined as the business-as-usual carbon emissions resulting from deforestation and forest degradation in the absence of any efforts to reduce those emissions. 

To identify the baseline of the forest you want to protect, you look at the deforestation rate in a nearby area over the past 10 years. After the baseline is determined, you can calculate the amount of carbon emissions avoided by a certain project, and subsequently issue an equivalent number of carbon credits.

Operating and Maintaining REDD+ Carbon Offsets

The operating stage of REDD+ offsets involves protecting forests during the REDD+ project’s lifetime. The REDD+ framework defines the causes of deforestation, the baseline emissions, and the reference emissions levels for a particular area. It then establishes both social and environmental safeguards, such as zoning regulations, to combat deforestation and subsequently reduce carbon emissions.

REDD+ payments are then made based on measured, reported, and verified carbon emissions reductions relative to the calculated baseline emissions.

For example, Verified Carbon Standard issued REDD+ projects over the past 10 years had an average monitoring period ranging from 1-10 years, with an average of 3.5 years. But this doesn’t include the time needed to develop the project and compare avoided emissions to baseline emissions.

However, REDD+ projects tend to have longer lifespans because it takes time to develop projects, monitor project impacts, and report verified emissions reductions.

End-of-Life of REDD+ Carbon Offsets

The end-of-life of REDD+ offset projects involves what happens when the protection period is over. Forests that are not protected by the REDD+ framework can be subject to deforestation. 

How Effective and Efficient Are REDD+ Carbon Offsets

In terms of effectiveness, REDD+ carbon offsets help reduce carbon emissions through a reduction in deforestation; however, baseline emissions calculations can have a high degree of uncertainty. The majority of REDD+ projects only protect the baseline and often lack permanence. 

In terms of efficiency, REDD+ carbon offsets chiefly preserve existing forests and are relatively cost-effective; however, they also only avoid emissions during the project’s life span and they can have a high rate of carbon re-emission.

REDD+ carbon offsets are effective at mitigating climate change because they:

• Place a financial value on the carbon stored within our rainforests to incentivize against deforestation and future forest degradation

However, REDD+ carbon offsets can also lack effectiveness because they:

• Face difficulties when establishing the baseline emissions is difficult
• Only protect the baseline, which can cause you to still be a net carbon emitter even after offsetting
• And lack permanence because they are nature-based, reversible solutions

REDD+ carbon offsets are efficient at reducing CO₂ emissions because they:

• Chiefly protect existing forests from deforestation, which is more time and cost-effective than creating new forests
• Are relatively cost-effective when compared to other methods of carbon reduction

However, REDD+ carbon offsets can also lack efficiency because they: 

• Only avoid carbon emissions during project durations
• Can have a high rate of carbon re-emission due to a lack of additionality and permanence

REDD+ carbon offsets also do not reduce your own carbon emissions, which can lead to greenwashing. This occurs when emissions are only offset and not reduced from the source, and the consumer is deceived into thinking they are offsetting their emissions but in reality, they are not. This is why we should first reduce our emissions before relying on offsets.

How Could you Offset Your Own Carbon Footprint With REDD+ Carbon Offsets

The market for carbon offsets was small in the year 2000, but by 2010 it had already grown to represent nearly $10 billion worldwide. The Ecosystem Marketplace predicts the VCM can grow to $50B by the year 2050. The voluntary carbon offset market (VCM) is where everyday consumers can purchase carbon offsets to offset their carbon emissions. 

On the VCM, REDD.plus provides carbon credits that are verified by the UNFCCC and registered under the Paris Agreement. But there are others protecting rainforests and preventing further deforestation across the globe. Below are our favorite REDD+ offsets.

REDD+ Carbon Offset Company	Quick Facts
REDD.plus	Carbon offset purchases support UNFCCC-verified REDD+ projects around the globe. REDD.plus is a central registry and exchange for REDD+ Result Units, a type of carbon credit.
Pachama	Carbon offset purchases support third-party certified carbon offset projects including the Manoa, Pancajá Pará, and Chocó-Darién Bioregion REDD+ projects in Brazil and Colombia.
Wildlife Works	Carbon offset purchases support third-party certified carbon offset projects including The Kasigau Corridor, Mai Ndombe, and Southern Cardamom REDD+ projects in Kenya, Cambodia, and Colombia respectively.
InfinteEARTH	Carbon offset purchases support the third-party certified Rimba Raya Biodiversity Reserve REDD+ project in Borneo.
Biofilica	Carbon offset purchases support third-party certified REDD+ projects that protect six areas of the Brazilian Amazon rainforest.
World Land Trust	Carbon offset purchases from their Carbon Balanced Programme supports REDD+ projects in Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, and Vietnam. World Land Trust protects threatened habitats by creating nature reserves on land they purchase.
Terrapass	Carbon offset purchases support the third-party certified Cordillera Azul National Park REDD+ project in Peru.
Carbonfund	Carbon offset purchases support third-party certified carbon offset projects including the Purus, Russas-Valparaiso, and Envira Amazonia REDD+ projects in Brazil.
Clear	Carbon offset purchases support Quality Assurance Standard certified carbon offset projects including the Brazilian Amazon Forest and Lower Zambezi Forest REDD+ projects in Brazil and Zambia.

How Can REDD+ Carbon Offsets Help Mitigate Climate Change

Climate change is a severe and long-term consequence of fossil fuel combustion. REDD+ carbon offsets can help mitigate climate change because they protect rainforests, which sequester millions of tons of CO₂ every year and prevent it from entering our atmosphere. Atmospheric carbon can remain in circulation for tens of thousands of years and exacerbate the negative effects of climate change.

How is Climate Change Defined

Climate change is arguably the most severe, long-term global impact of fossil fuel combustion. Every year, approximately 33 billion tons of CO₂ are emitted from burning fossil fuels. The carbon found in fossil fuels reacts with oxygen in the air to produce CO₂. 

“Climate change: changes in the earth’s weather, including changes in temperature, wind patterns and rainfall, especially the increase in the temperature of the earth’s atmosphere that is caused by the increase of particular gasses, especially carbon dioxide.”

Oxford Dictionary

Atmospheric CO₂ fuels climate change, which results in global warming. When CO₂ and other air pollutants absorb sunlight and solar radiation in the atmosphere, it traps the heat and acts as an insulator for the planet. Since the Industrial Revolution, Earth’s temperature has risen a little more than 1 degree Celsius (C), or 2 degrees Fahrenheit (F). Between 1880-1980 the global temperature rose by 0.07C every 10 years. This rate has more than doubled since 1981, with a current global annual temperature rise of 0.18C, or 0.32F, for every 10 years. 

As outlined in the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, we must cut current GHG emissions by 50% by 2030 and reach net zero by 2050. 

How Do Carbon Offsets Generally Help Mitigate Climate Change

Levels of carbon in our atmosphere that cause climate change have increased as a result of human emissions since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution in 1750. The global average concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere today registers at over 400 parts per million. Carbon offsets can help prevent these levels from increasing even more.

When you hear the words “carbon offset”, think about the term “compensation”. Essentially, carbon offsets are reductions in GHG emissions that are used to compensate for emissions occurring elsewhere. 

Carbon offsets that meet key criteria and verified project standards, are additional and permanent, and are a part of projects that are carried out until the end of their lifespan have the best chance of reducing carbon emissions and therefore reducing climate change. 

When we offset CO₂ we also slow the rate of global temperature rise, which in turn minimizes the effects of climate change. 

How Do REDD+ Carbon Offsets Specifically Help Mitigate Climate Change

REDD+ offsets specifically help mitigate climate change because they create a financial incentive for protecting rainforests by placing value on their carbon sequestration and storage abilities. REDD+ carbon offsets help reduce carbon emissions through a reduction in deforestation.

By protecting rainforests, we increase the amount of carbon they are capable of storing. The more carbon our rainforests can sequester, the less carbon there is in our atmosphere. And because higher levels of carbon exacerbate global warming, less is better.

What Are The 5 Pros and 4 Cons of REDD+ Carbon Offsets

Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) carbon offsets reduce deforestation and forest degradation, mitigate climate change, preserve biodiversity, help maintain the water cycle, and contribute to the advancement of modern medicine. They also allow us to reduce carbon emissions in ways we wouldn’t be able to accomplish individually.

However, REDD+ offsets often lack additionality and permanence, and determining baseline carbon emissions is difficult. They also do not reduce your own carbon emissions.

What Are the 5 Pros of REDD+ Carbon Offsets

REDD+ offsets have various pros that make them effective at reducing deforestation, preserving rainforests, and preventing carbon stored in trees from entering our atmosphere.

5 Pros of REDD+ Carbon Offsets	Quick Facts
#1: REDD+ offsets reduce deforestation and forest degradation	REDD+ refers to the following 5 activities: Reducing emissions from deforestation Reducing emissions from forest degradation Conservation of forest carbon stocks Sustainable management of forests Enhancement of forest carbon stocks
#2: REDD+ offsets protect our natural carbon sinks	Rainforests act like a giant carbon sink, capable of absorbing 2.4 billion tons of CO2 every year and producing approximately 20% of our oxygen. REDD+ offsets put financial value on rainforests and the carbon stored within them, incentivizing their protection.
#3: REDD+ offsets preserve biodiversity	REDD+ offsets protect rainforests and the biodiversity contained within them, which in turn maintains healthy ecosystems.
#4: REDD+ offsets help maintain the water cycle	REDD+ offsets help maintain the water cycle because they are capable of storing large amounts of water. Clouds created via evapotranspiration also provide precipitation for regions across the globe.
#5: REDD+ offsets help advance modern medicine	REDD+ offsets protect rainforests, from which over 25% of our modern medicines are derived and where there are thousands of plants yet to be studied.

What Are the 4 Cons of REDD+ Carbon Offsets

Understanding the drawbacks of REDD+ offsets is important when implementing this strategy on a large scale in order to mitigate climate change.

4 Cons of REDD+ Carbon Offsets	Quick Facts
#1: REDD+ offsets often lack additionality	REDD+ offsets often lack additionality because what would have happened without REDD+ intervention cannot be measured exactly
#2: REDD+ offsets lack permanence	REDD+ offsets lack permanence because they are reversible. Trees die naturally, and environmental disasters such as floods, fires, changes in land use, and climate change itself can negate any permanence.
#3: Identifying the baseline for REDD+ projects is not accurate	We cannot know exactly what would happen to a specific forest in the absence of a REDD+ project, so it is impossible to calculate the baseline emissions with absolute certainty. This can lead to an overestimation of carbon emissions reductions and an over-issuance of carbon credits.
#4: REDD+ offsets do not reduce your own carbon emissions, which can lead to greenwashing	If emissions are only offset and not reduced from the source, this could lead to greenwashing, when the consumer is deceived into thinking they are offsetting their emissions but in reality, they are not.

What Are Better Alternatives to REDD+ Carbon Offsets

If used correctly, Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD+) carbon offsets can provide environmental, economic, and social benefits beyond reducing carbon emissions. They have the potential to instigate meaningful environmental change and protect our rainforest communities. 

However, we can’t let this method be a guilt-free way to reduce carbon emissions. REDD+ carbon offsets help avoid carbon emissions from entering the atmosphere, but they do not help remove what is already there. REDD+ must be used in conjunction with direct carbon reduction measures until the industry has time to develop accurate baseline identification methods and can ensure additionality and permanence. 

These direct reduction measures don’t have to involve drastic changes either. Actions that may seem small can have a big impact because those small changes add up! You can reduce your carbon footprint in three main areas of your life: household, travel, and lifestyle. 

Reduce your household carbon footprint:

• Wash with cold water: Washing clothes in cold water could reduce carbon emissions by up to 11 million tons. Approximately 90% of the energy is used to heat the water, so switching to cold saves also saves energy.

• Replace incandescent bulbs with fluorescent bulbs: Fluorescent bulbs use 75% less energy than incandescent ones, saving energy and thus reducing electricity demand and GHG emissions.

Reduce your travel carbon footprint:

• Fly less: Aviation accounts for around 1.9% of global carbon emissions and 2.5% of CO₂. Air crafts run on jet gasoline, which is converted to CO₂ when burned.

• Walk or bike when possible: The most efficient ways of traveling are walking, bicycling, or taking the train. Using a bike instead of a car can reduce carbon emissions by 75%. These forms of transportation also provide lower levels of air pollution.

Reduce your lifestyle carbon footprint:

• Switch to renewable energy sources: The six most common types of renewable energy are solar, wind, hydro, tidal, geothermal, and biomass energy. They are a substitute for fossil fuels that can reduce the effects of global warming by limiting global carbon emissions and other pollutants.

• Recycle: Recycling uses less energy and deposits less waste in landfills. Less manufacturing and transportation energy costs means fewer carbon emissions generated. Less waste in landfills means less CH₄ is generated.

• Switch from single-use to sustainable products: Reusing products avoids resource extraction, reduces energy use, reduces waste generation, and can prevent littering.

• Eat less meat and dairy: Meat and dairy account for 14.5% of global GHG emissions, with beef and lamb being the most carbon-intensive. Globally, we consume much more meat than is considered sustainable, and switching to a vegan or vegetarian diet could reduce emissions. 

• Take shorter showers: Approximately 1.2 trillion gallons of water are used each year in the United States just for showering purposes, and showering takes up about 17% of residential water usage. The amount of water consumed and the energy cost of that consumption are directly related. The less water we use the less energy we use. And the less energy we use, the less of a negative impact we have on the environment.

Because REDD+ offsets are an indirect way and not a direct way of reducing emissions, they alone will not be enough to reduce global carbon emissions significantly. Direct measures of emission reductions, such as reducing individual energy use and consumption, are better alternatives to REDD+ offsets.

Final Thoughts

REDD+ carbon offsets are a specific type of avoidance carbon offset that involves a United Nations-backed framework aiming to combat global deforestation via direct payments or through the use of carbon credits. REDD+ carbon offsets help reduce carbon emission through a reduction in deforestation. The REDD+ mechanism places economic value on the actions a country takes to reduce deforestation and preserve forests. 

Although REDD+ offsets can instigate meaningful change, they should not be seen as the only solution to climate change. They are effective at reducing CO₂ in the short-term, but in the long term they fail to reduce CO₂ enough. REDD+ offsets also do not reduce your own carbon emissions, which can lead to greenwashing.

When used in conjunction with direct CO₂ reduction measures, carbon offsetting can be much more effective. We should reduce our own carbon footprint as much as possible first, and only then choose the most effective carbon offsets.

Stay impactful,

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