Carbon Credits - green philanthropy

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 7:12 pm

Carbon Fund.Org

I've worked with various philanthropies over the past decade, and was beginning to wonder when using carbon credits would come into play. Personally, I think this is a great idea; not only are you helping the environment, but you're also supporting a great cause *. My hope is that more NPOs catch onto the idea.

Sites like CarbonFund.org will calculate the amount of carbon generated during a trip and provide an appropriate donation level. I encourage anyone who's thinking of donating this year to consider using these sites.

(* The fiscal conservative in me would be remiss if I didn't mention the tax-deductible benefit )

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 7:47 pm

Well, I can't access that site from my dial up at work. Must have a ton of visitors or maybe a lot of flash programming.

The problem that I see with carbon offsets is the potential for exploitation.

Verify that whatever company you buy offsets from are truly using that money to reduce greenhouse gases
This allows the ultra-rich to grossly abuse the system while proclaiming themselves to be "carbon-neutral."

What is the point of offsets if it doesn't change the behavior of individuals. The ultra-poor can't afford it, so ignore the offsets (not generally a problem as it is unlikely they have a substantial carbon footprint) while the ultr-rich continue hopping into their private jets and spewing out more greenhouse gases in one hour than a car uses in a year. Oh, but they changed to more efficient lightbulbs which is thimble of reduction compared to the swimming pool of waste still being generated.

If the organization contributes a portion of the money on global warming research, then I'll be somewhat happier. But I'm going to guess that isn't in their agenda. Further, assuming that this is a non-profit organization, a substantial portion of the money will still be spent on wages and advertisement (like the website itself).

As long as you realize that offsets aren't a solution, I won't argue the point. I just think that this system will be used as a "feel good" tool for people that will exploit it.

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 8:19 pm

I encourage anyone who donates to a charity to ask for an Accountability Statement, which provides how donations were spent.

Carbon credits are a step in the right direction. Not everyone can afford to purchase a hybrid (or wants to) or has access to mass transit, and people do have to travel. If you're in a position to give to a charity, I'm suggesting this may be an alternative to traditional donations.

I'm not interested in debating class issues; simply promoting a new trend in giving.

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 8:46 pm

I'd say that carbon credits are not a step in the right direction. They are more of a step to the side, as they don't do anything to reduce carbon emmissions and instead are designed to make people feel less guilty for not taking the step to reduce their emissions.

As in your example, not everyone can afford a hybrid. However, instead of buying credits I'd encourage people to save their money and buy a more efficient vehicle as that will help even more in the long run. If you are truly concerned, then put your money towards more efficient vehicles, lightbulbs, appliances, solar panels, insulation, etc. You don't have to do it all at once, but it is better to reduce your carbon footprint instead of planting a tree to offset it.

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 8:57 pm

Lol, you can do both and support a good cause at the same time. To clarify, and please let me know if I'm failing to do so, my point is that if you're in a position to give to a charity, consider carbon credits as an alternative to traditional donation methods. Otherwise, we'll have to agree to disagree here. : )

Posted: Tue Jul 24, 2007 9:08 pm

Ico wrote:

Lol, you can do both and support a good cause at the same time. To clarify, and please let me know if I'm failing to do so, my point is that if you're in a position to give to a charity, consider carbon credits as an alternative to traditional donation methods. Otherwise, we'll have to agree to disagree here. : )

Heh. We might have to agree to disagree then, as I can think of many other charities that will spend the money more effectively.

I'm sorry that I'm so agressive on this issue, but (as if you couldn't tell) I see no purpose for carbon offsets. I'll leave it at that.