Communities around the world are being threatened by, and are resisting carbon markets – a false climate solution. These schemes are often promoted without revealing their corporate origins and interests when communities sign a deal for a carbon credit project.

Carbon markets, offsets and credits appear complicated and technical, but they’re simply a continuation of the systems that have long harmed communities who are experiencing the climate crisis today. It’s the same systems – capitalism, neocolonialism, extractivism – that, for example, allow for land to be polluted by coal, oil and gas extraction, or stolen for monoculture plantations or so-called nature conservation projects such as REDD/+. These systems facilitate a process by which a price tag is put on nature and sold to the highest bidder, at the expense of our ecosystems and the communities that live harmoniously with them.

Indigenous Peoples and local communities have protected ecosystems for generations. Many carbon offsetting projects and carbon credit projects violate their rights, steal their land, fail to consult them, and cause serious harm.

Whether you’re part of a community rooted in climate justice or fighting a carbon offset project, or someone who wants to understand the very basics of what these schemes are, this guide is here to help. This guide aims to simplify what “carbon markets” are and what projects are related to them, their dangers and risks to communities, and to provide some advice and cautions.

This guide aims to support communities that may face the threat of carbon markets and projects by providing clear explanations, technical information and answers to common questions – so you can protect and care for:

  • Community and rights
  • Land and land rights
  • Livelihoods and environment

This publication is available in portuguese on the spanish page.