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Cambridge Centre for Carbon Credits (4C)

We launched the Cambridge Centre for Carbon Credits (4C) in early November 2021.  Our first goal is to scale up the supply of deforestation avoidance carbon credits in order to halt tropical deforestation as soon as possible. We are currently working on a prototype of a trusted nature based marketplace.

Our Approach

The Cambridge Centre for Carbon Credits (4C) is creating digital tools and a trusted, decentralized platform to help purchasers of carbon credits to confidently and directly fund trusted deforestation avoidance projects, bringing together corporate funders and conservationists via automated and transparent smart contracting tools.

  » Learn about our research

If you're a conservation organisation interested in using our digital carbon credits calculation platform to issue robust credits, please get in touch. We are currently operating on moist tropical forests, with a view to expanding out to other forests (seasonal dry, temperate, and coastal mangroves) in 2023.

If you're a Web3 developer who wants to help with the development or integration of our Tezos smart contracts, then please also get in touch. We will be deploying on the Tezos ghostnet in Summer 2022, with wider availability later in the year. Now is the best time to tell us about your carbon credit needs.

Latest news

4C in the University annual sustainability report

26 March 2024

The University of Cambridge's annual sustainability report for last year is now available online here , and provides details of the University's efforts towards reducing our collective impact on the planet. 4C has been working closely with the University towards a common understanding of when and where offsets should be...

LIFE: a metric for quantitively mapping the impact of land-cover change on global extinctions

12 December 2023

LIFE is a new metric that's like a crystal ball for global biodiversity. A big challenge facing the world today is global consumption causing land cover changes like deforestation, which reduces habitat for wildlife and makes them more vulnerable to extinction. Now, picture a policymaker anywhere in the world using the new...

Offset markets: new approach could help save tropical forests by restoring faith in carbon credits

30 October 2023

A new way to price carbon credits could encourage desperately needed investment in forest preservation and boost vital progress towards net-zero. Research published today in Nature Climate Change by the Cambridge Centre for Carbon Credits.

The Global Challenge

The world is facing simultaneous biodiversity and climate crises. Pressure is mounting from governments and the general public to rapidly roll out a global programme of well-executed nature-based solutions to sequester several giga-tons of carbon each year and protect biodiversity.

Over 100 world leaders at COP26 pledged to end deforestation by 2030. Our urgent challenge is figuring out how to verify that deforestation solutions are working, and tracking the associated carbon credits used to offset necessary emissions.