Land-based Carbon Offsetting: Green Grabbing or Just Transition

Programme

12:00 noon–1:00 p.m.

GIGA Talk "Land-based Carbon Offsetting: Green Grabbing or Just Transition" Findings from a Land Matrix analytical report - Presentation of the main results of the report and short discussion 

Global carbon markets, especially the Voluntary Carbon Market (VCM), have largely relied on land-based projects in the Global South. While these initiatives channel finance into nature-based solutions, evidence shows that emissions reductions have been overstated and serious land conflicts have arisen. The combination of limited climate gains and harmful social impacts has led to concerns that land-based offsets may become a dead end. 

The Land Matrix Initiative (LMI) has documented carbon projects spanning an estimated nine million hectares – comparable in size to Austria or Jordan. Its recent report, Carbon Offsets in the Global South: Green Grabbing or Just Transition?, underscores the risks these projects pose to land tenure, rights, and livelihoods of smallholders, pastoralists, and Indigenous Peoples due to their size, location, and governance challenges.  

The main results of the report will be presented and discussed in this GIGA Talk as part of the workshop (see below) that includes a subsequent “deep dive” into the topic. The whole workshop brings together various stakeholders to examine the feasibility and risks of land-based offsets and explores pathways to align them with the SDGs, human rights, and local livelihoods.

Introduction:  Prof. Dr. Christian von Soest is Head of Policy Exchange and a Lead Research Fellow at the GIGA. 

Speaker:  Dr. Christoph Kubitza is a Research Fellow at the GIGA Institute for Asian Studies. 

Discussants:  Dr. Raymond Samndong is Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) Manager at the Tenure Facility. 

Dr. Ingrid Jacobsen is Policy Advisor for Food Security, Climate and Agriculture at Brot für die Welt. 

Felix Fallasch is Senior Researcher in the Energy & Climate Division at the Öko-Institut e.V. 

Moderator:  Prof. Dr. Jann Lay is a Lead Research Fellow at the GIGA Institute for African Affairs and Head of the GIGA Research Programme “Globalisation and Development.” 

1:00–1:45 p.m.

Light lunch 

1:45–3:15 p.m.

Workshop: Practical “deep dive” including perspectives from various stakeholders  Discussion with participants on necessary social safeguards and pathways to improve current practices in land-based climate mitigation with the goal of creating pathways to strengthen social safeguards for land-based climate mitigation 

Global carbon markets, especially the Voluntary Carbon Market (VCM), have largely relied on land-based projects in the Global South. Despite these initiatives channelling finance into nature-based solutions, emissions reductions have been overstated and serious land conflicts have emerged. This evidence of limited climate gains and harmful social impacts has raised concerns that land-based offsets may soon become a dead end. Nevertheless, new efforts to design and implement high-integrity carbon markets could improve the current track record, leading to tangible climate and social benefits. 

Contributing to this ongoing debate, the Land Matrix Initiative (LMI) documents land acquisitions in the Global South tied to carbon offset projects. Concluded projects span an estimated nine million hectares – an area comparable in size to Austria or Jordan. Based on these data and additional research, the LMI has produced an analytical report entitled Large-Scale Land Acquisitions for Carbon Offsetting: Green Grabbing or Just Transition? The findings highlight that due to their size, location, and governance frameworks, current investments carry significant risks to the land tenure, rights, and livelihoods of smallholders, pastoralists, and Indigenous Peoples and local communities in the Global South. 

Building on these insights and incorporating diverse viewpoints, this workshop brings together stakeholders, including from the Global South, to critically examine the feasibility, challenges, and pathways forward vis-à-vis land-based carbon offsetting in the Global South via both the volatile VCM and emerging regulatory mechanisms under UN frameworks. The goal is to foster dialogue around whether and how land-based carbon offsetting can be better aligned with principles of the Sustainable Development Goals, human rights frameworks, and the realities of local livelihoods.

Registration Please do not forget to register. You can register for the workshop or the different parts of the programme via the button.