Dear all
 
A new year is always a time for reflection and renewal. As CEO of Gold Standard I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your trust, support and advice over the last year and to update you on our plans for the future.

Reflecting on a successful year

We are pleased to celebrate growth and innovation across our areas of work in ensuring climate security and sustainable development.

• We issued 43 million credits and retired 36 million credits in 2022. This is more than we ever have before. 

The Gold Standard Impact

• We expanded the reach of the standard through revising and adding new innovative methodologies.
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• We launched new Impact Fund Requirements which is already supporting funds and portfolio managers to measure, manage and maximise the sustainable development impact of their investments – keep an eye on our Fund Requirements Registry to see when others sign up during 2023.
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• We have developed a first draft of the requirements for the IUCN Nature Based Solutions Standard. We are looking forward to piloting this year. 
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• We launched a new Adaptation Framework, partnering with Resilient Cities Catalyst (RCC), to develop standard requirements to design and develop adaptation projects – and piloted this new approach in Pittsburgh, USA and in the Galapagos.
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• We worked with our Open Collaboration Partners, The IOTA Foundation and ClimateCHECK, and with funding from Google.org we started working groups aimed at defining the digital future of the carbon market and have since launched consultations.

• We have worked to keep the Gold Standard for the Global Goals up to date by:
• • streamlining key processes, particularly in the beginning of the certification cycle (stakeholder consultation, preliminary review, programmes of activities),
  • rolling out the Sustainable Development Goals tool to standardise the reporting on certified impact towards the SDGs, catering for the needs of project developers, auditors, and governments alike. We are working on the digitisation of the tool in 2023
  • provided more comprehensive Claims Guidelines for navigating the complex and dynamic voluntary carbon market.
     
• We have doubled the size of the standard management and assurance team, and established dedicated stakeholder liaison positions to provide better and faster support to all stakeholders.
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• We have provided a pathway for many CDM-certified projects to transition to Gold Standard for the Global Goals and continue issuing vital carbon credits despite regulatory uncertainty.
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• We have ensured the credits we issue are recognised by CORSIA and numerous and rating agencies.
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• We held a series of roundtables, and met with our stakeholders at COP to hear how we should shape our future work and address the challenges in the market.

• The ECCC-PA programme, which aims to support nationally determined contribution (NDC) implementation and climate governance in the Pacific Alliance, began. Gold Standard has already conducted several capacity-building activities, including practical workshops on Art. 6.
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• We signed MOUs with a number of governments, including Singapore meaning that Singapore-based companies will be able to use eligible Gold Standard carbon credits to meet part of their carbon tax obligations. We are working towards agreements with several other countries, details of which will be announced in the coming months.  

A vision for renewal

2022 marked the halfway point through our “Strategy 2025” . Our overall objective remains to accelerate progress towards climate security and sustainable development for all. Yet the pace of change in the world has also accelerated, prompting a refinement of our strategy to ensure that we remain positions to achieve our vision and help our stakeholders achieve their aims.
 

A new board member

I am delighted to announce that we have recruited a new member for our board.
 
Manuel Pulgar-Vidal is a global leader in climate and energy, serving as the head of Climate & Energy at WWF and as the interim chair of the IUCN Climate Crisis Commission. He has over 35 years of experience in environmental law and policy, including serving as the Minister of the Environment of Peru and as the President of the 20th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change – COP20 in 2014.
 
He is a professor at the Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú and is a member of multiple environmental organisations and initiatives including recently being appointed chairman of the newly created IUCN Climate Crisis Commission. He has received numerous awards for his contributions to the environment, including the Légion d'Honneur by the French Government, the Grand Officer's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany, the Cross of the Civil Order of Environmental Merit of the Spanish Government, the Order of Merit for distinguished Services of the Peruvian Government and the Shackleton Medal by the Royal Scottish Geographical Society for his contribution to the Paris Agreement and has been inducted into the Earth Hall of Fame of Kyoto.
 
We look forward to working with him, and learning from his experience in the years to come.


Best regards,

Hear from our team