Voluntary Carbon Markets: Building Trust, Scaling Impact, and Shaping the Next Decade

Scaling Climate Impact: Building the Future of Carbon Markets

The carbon markets have been subject to increased attention and significant enhancement in terms of quality, transparency and robustness over the past couple of years. To name a few milestones and interesting initiatives:

(i) following their development by the Integrity Council on Voluntary Carbon Market and their adoption in 2023, the Core Carbon principles have validated 35 carbon standard’s methodologies; (ii) the operationalization of the Article 6.4 of the Paris Agreement, known as the Paris Agreement Crediting Mechanism (or PACM) has progressed significantly with the issuance of carbon credits directly by the United Nations; and (iii) the Symbiosis Coalition, gathering big tech companies such as Microsoft, Meta and Amazon, has issued in 2024 a request for proposal to purchase carbon credits massively.

We believe carbon markets are at a turning point and this paper outlines Mirova’s vision for strengthening them, with three key messages:

First, for carbon credit markets to become efficient, we must structure the market as an investable asset class, treating it not as an afterthought to corporate climate strategy, but as a structured economic sector with the same rigor that has powered the rise of renewables for the past 20 years:

Clear and robust value chains, with well-defined roles and accountability for each actor;
Standardized contracts and methodologies, which have reduced costs and increased investor confidence;
Bankable structures like long-term offtake agreements and SPVs, providing visibility and effective risk allocation;
Independent ratings, audits, and insurance, ensuring quality and transparency, supported by digital measurement and verification;
Strong policy support and regulatory clarity, which have catalyzed demand and unlocked private capital.

Together, these elements have transformed renewables from a niche sector into a mainstream, investable asset class. Applying these proven tools and lessons— while adapting them to the specificities of the voluntary carbon market—can accelerate its maturation, attract institutional capital, and deliver measurable climate impact at scale.

Second, we must integrate the use of carbon credits into a holistic corporate approach to climate, where credits complement — not replace — direct decarbonization, with a clear framework. For us, that means adopting a “contribution” logic and using transparent, science-based metrics to benchmark progress across sectors.

Third, we must encourage convergence over polarization: avoidance and removals, nature-based and technology-based solutions, voluntary standards and Article 6.4 can and should work together through interoperability, shared guardrails, and coherent conceptual frameworks.

Mirova has been building and financing environmental markets for one decade. We have witnessed the carbon markets mature, from the Kyoto Protocol to the emergence of nature-based standards and of the Paris Agreement aligned mechanisms. As COP30 begins and the 10^th Anniversary of the Paris Agreement approaches, this momentum is a chance to anchor scalability, integrity and inclusion at the core of the market’s operating system.

Our thesis is straightforward: structure, integrate, converge. If we do, voluntary carbon markets can become a sustainable channel for mobilizing capital towards high-integrity mitigation and nature protection — a channel that complements public policy, accelerates corporate transition plans, and delivers measurable climate benefits for the decades to come.