Fair Finance Colombia member - Censat Agua Viva - launches website on carbon markets
Under the lens of the green economy multiple mechanisms have been proposed to address the climate crisis, one of which is carbon markets. However, access to clear and detailed information on the issue is limited, making it difficult for various actors, especially local communities and grassroots organizations, to understand. This lack of transparency and accessibility prevents an informed and equitable debate and can lead to decisions that do not adequately reflect the interests and needs of those most directly affected.
In response to this problem, and with the support of Oxfam Colombia through the Fair Finance Colombia coalition and the Heinrich Böll Foundation (Bogotá Office, Colombia) Censat Agua Viva’s Forests and Biodiversity Area has created the microsite ‘Geo-graphing Carbon Markets in Colombia’. The purpose of the site is to socialize and make available, in a broad and accessible way, the information gathered in the framework of the research on carbon markets and REDD+ projects in Colombia. The microsite offers a variety of resources, including articles, case studies, and infographics, which allows visitors to explore different aspects of this relevant topic. Our aim is to encourage critical and constructive reflection on carbon markets, promoting an informed and equitable debate.
Are carbon markets a green solution, or are they really a license to pollute? The green economy, far from being a real solution, reproduces traditional economic logic with a ‘green twist’, transforming nature into a market good. Financialization transforms nature and its functions into a sellable commodity, a logic that confronts communities with a paradox: restricting the use of their territories while granting permits to pollute.
The website provides an overview of information about REDD+ projects in Colombia, including the names registered on the registration platforms and brief descriptions. In some cases, these descriptions reflect the social, environmental, cultural, economic, and political problems that have been created as a result of their implementation in the territory.
In addition, documents collected by Censat Agua Viva through the registration platforms of the certifying companies are included.
‘We want to promote an informed debate, based on evidence and putting the experience of the communities directly involved in the issue at the centre, so that we can build, as a society, an informed opinion that feeds into decision-making’ said Johana Peña, Principal Investigator of this Censat Agua Viva project.
