UN special rapporteur warns carbon markets fail climate and human rights obligations

Elisa Morgera, UN special rapporteur, released a report titled 'Rethinking carbon credits according to international climate and human rights obligations', identifying structural misalignments between carbon markets and states' international obligations. The report calls for an urgent reassessment of carbon markets, citing growing evidence that credits fail to support cost-effective climate mitigation or mobilise additional finance. Morgera's analysis, which builds on earlier human rights studies, highlights persistent challenges leading to low-quality credits, overcrediting, greenwashing, and fraud. It also raises concerns about carbon credits enabling continued fossil fuel dependence and perpetuating human rights harms, particularly for Indigenous Peoples and rural communities. The report argues that carbon credits may not effectively contribute to states' obligations to prevent climate harm and protect the human right to a healthy environment.

This summary was written by carbon.fyi from the reporting linked above. It is not a quotation; cite the original source.