The year 2020 started with high levels of climate action, and despite COVID-19, we are grateful to see that this action continued throughout the year.
Within environmental markets, the COVID crisis introduced new challenges, specifically on the carbon credit supply side, as the certification process required in-person consultations and often travel – both made impossible by the pandemic. Gold Standard responded by introducing flexibility measures that allowed projects to continue with alternative means to engage stakeholders, monitor progress, and verify results.
Thus, despite an unprecedented global pandemic, we saw a record year of credit issuances, thanks to our project developers and auditors who adapted and continued delivering impact to communities and ecosystems worldwide.
On the demand side, concerns that the economic slowdown would damper climate commitments were proven unfounded. Gold Standard recorded another record year of retirements. We also saw work under our Value Change Initiative gather pace, with corporations coming together remotely to resolve issues on approaches for scope 3 market-based accounting through to what can be credibly claimed up and down the value chain. We applaud companies who continued to take responsibility for their climate impact, even in the face of business disruption.
Efforts to catalyse broader climate finance also charged ahead with the establishment of the Subnational Climate Finance Initiative (SCF) that provides an innovative global blended finance scheme to scale mid-sized infrastructure, energy transition and nature-based solutions. With an initial commitment of USD 150 million from the Green Climate Fund already secured, the scheme is set to start supporting projects that historically have had limited access to traditional investors.
We thank all those that have shown true resilience over this past year, with your unwavering commitment to the climate cause, projects and programmes have been able to continue delivering impact towards climate security and sustainable development – helping us all on the path to net-zero.
Margaret Kim
Gold Standard CEO
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