NCX was energized to participate in COP27 this year in the green city of Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt, marking 30 years since the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change had been established. While there, CEO Zack Parisa and Head of Science Spencer Meyer met with Dr. Sweta Chakraborty of We Don’t Have Time. The conversation was in the hustle and bustle of the Green Zone at COP27, where Sweta, Zack, and Spencer dove into the carbon market’s need for accessibility and transparency, as well as the value of learning that came with NCX’s work to build a robust forest dataset.

The central theme was, of course, addressing whether carbon offsetting is enough. NCX firmly believes that increasing carbon storage in nature and specifically forests is an essential bridge to a net-zero future, but must be combined with a responsible, long-term, decarbonization strategy. Zack describes carbon offsets as the necessary “ambulance ride to the hospital.” As part of a long-term sustainable decarbonization strategy, carbon credits made possible by short-term carbon storage in nature represent the quickest, most economically friendly and way to make near-term progress on our climate goals. 

COP27 brings together leaders across the climate community, from technology solutions, NGOs, scientists, policymakers, corporate investors, and activists. These conversations are a crucial component of progress and NCX is honored to be part of them. But now it’s time for more than talk– it’s time to get to work. If you’re interested in joining the climate community, check out our careers page, find a job board, invest, become a climate activist, or work with your local environmental organizations. If we’re going to make the kind of progress we need, it is going to take all of us.