The fight against climate change is hindered by flawed carbon registry infrastructure, which makes it difficult for individual countries to meet their nationally determined contributions (NDCs). Carbon markets have been vital in reducing emissions and driving a sustainable economic transition, but there is a lack of alignment on the path, standards, and infrastructure necessary for a functional and high-integrity carbon market. The current carbon registry system suffers from double counting because public and private registries are not interoperable. This issue highlights the inadequacy of global carbon markets. To address this problem, a network of third-party meta registries has emerged, but they fail to accurately track transactions and ownership, leading to distrust and double counting.
To solve this problem, a system of structurally sound national carbon registries is needed. These registries should retain national sovereignty while allowing governments to control and manage their decarbonization efforts. Carbon credits within national registries must adhere to stringent local and international standards. Furthermore, these national registries need to be able to communicate and interoperate with one another and with existing global registries.
A hybrid registry system, supported by distributed ledger technology, would allow countries to work towards their climate goals while maintaining sovereignty. This system would provide equal treatment and rights for all countries and facilitate global cooperation and collaboration. It would also mobilize financial resources for green projects in developing countries without undermining government bodies or incurring excessive costs.
The battle against climate change requires well-designed policies and technological infrastructure to address flaws in existing systems. A system of national carbon registries supported by innovative technologies can bridge the gap between national sovereignty and global demand, enabling countries to fully realize the economic potential of carbon markets while reducing emissions and combating climate change.
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