What types of carbon offsets count toward achieving climate neutrality?
Generally speaking, there are two categories of offsets: those generated from projects that reduce or avoid GHG emissions at another site, and those from projects that remove or sequester carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. While some technical means of removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere are under development, at the moment, the only feasible way to do so is to preserve and enhance the ability of natural systems (e.g. soils, trees, and plants) to do so. Under the ACUPCC, offsets from both categories count toward achieving climate neutrality. The market for carbon offsets is rapidly evolving and often confusing. Representatives from the ACUPCC network have developed the ACUPCC Voluntary Carbon Offset Protocol to provide guidance to colleges and universities, and engage the higher education sector in the development of these markets.
