Where are we today? Taking stock of key integrity debates

CONVERSATIONS ON INTEGRITY IN NATURE-BASED CARBON

2026–Q1

Tim Pearson, GreenCollar

I am proud to be the first editor of Conversations on Integrity in Nature-based Carbon for the initial quarter. Our aim in this first quarter is to take a snapshot of where nature-based greenhouse gas crediting stands and a high-level overview of where we have come from. The quarter forms an introduction to the series and we hope to dive much deeper on many topics raised in these first pieces over the following quarters.

The initial pieces will be:

January 2026
The state of forest carbon greenhouse gas accounting: Where have we come from and where are we now?
David Shoch, Terracarbon and Tim Pearson, GreenCollar

February 2026
The state of safeguards in the VCM: Where have we come from and where are we now?
Linda Rivera Macedo, Calyx Global

March 2026
Finance in the VCM for NbS projects: How have demand and financing mechanisms for NbS projects changed?
Authors to be confirmed

Please join us and please participate in the discussion in the Conversations LinkedIn Group.

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About this Series

This story is part of a continuing series, Conversations on Integrity in Nature-based Carbon, inviting commentary and insights from a range of recognized experts in carbon markets and climate finance.

Nature-based solutions hold extraordinary promise for climate mitigation, ecosystem restoration, and community support – but only if we get integrity right. This series examines issues like additionality, permanence, leakage, safeguards, finance structures, and everything else that builds (or breaks) trust in NbS credits.

We publish monthly contributions from invited experts on quarterly themes, curated by rotating guest editors. We invite perspectives from all sides and wide-ranging, intellectually generous debate. You can follow the conversation live in our LinkedIn group.

Articles in this series are not intended to represent the views of Ecosystem Marketplace nor of Forest Trends.

Introduction to Conversations

Posts by theme:

Where are we today? Taking stock of key integrity debates

Introduction

Nature-based carbon accounting: How “integrity” has evolved, and what still matters