ARLINGTON, VA – June 12, 2025 – The Secretariat for the Architecture for REDD+ Transactions (ART) has launched a public comment period for its new “Beyond Carbon Benefits” certification standard. This optional certification enables participating ART jurisdictions to consistently and transparently report a wide range of positive social and environmental impacts of their REDD+ programs, bringing additional value to their TREES Credits.

Developed to be paired with The REDD+ Environmental Excellence Standard (TREES), Beyond Carbon Benefits builds upon ART’s commitment to broadening jurisdictional REDD+ access to high-integrity markets and expanding the benefits derived from them. It is comprised of three distinct benefit certification modules: social-cultural, biodiversity, and forest services.

In response to interest from Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLC) organizations, supply jurisdictions, and market stakeholders, ART developed Beyond Carbon Benefits to fill a critical gap in carbon market standards by enabling the recognition and valuation of the many impacts of jurisdictional REDD+ programs beyond carbon mitigation and sequestration.

The version of the certification released for public comment represents the work of the ART Secretariat, the ART Board and three expert committees that have met remotely and in-person over the last eighteen months.

ART partnered directly with IPLC organizations in the drafting of the certification to ensure their voices were authentically represented in the process. The expert committee for the Social-Cultural Module was entirely comprised of IPLC representatives, and an IPLC representative also served on the Biodiversity Committee.

The Beyond Carbon Benefits certification empowers ART Participants to highlight the additional environmental and social-cultural benefits generated by their REDD+ programs beyond greenhouse gas emission reductions and removals. All impact claims under the certification will undergo rigorous independent verification, ensuring market confidence and credibility in the reported outcomes.

“Forests provide many intrinsically valuable biodiversity, climate, social and cultural benefits that have gone unrecognized in carbon market structures. The Beyond Carbon Benefits certification will enable governments and all stakeholders involved in the protection and restoration of forests to be rewarded for the many positive impacts of their jurisdictional REDD+ programs by incorporating biodiversity benefits, non-CO2 climate effects, and social-cultural impacts, all while maintaining TREES’ high-bar for carbon integrity and safeguards,” said Mary Grady, Executive Director, ART Secretariat.

“ART is deeply appreciative of the time and contributions of all of the committee members and experts, demonstrating the types of partnerships possible to ensure inclusivity in the process to develop and implement new global standards,” Grady added.

“This co-design process between a Carbon Standard and a Committee of IPLC representatives sets a very important precedent, as it addresses the aspiration that markets should not only see carbon in Indigenous and Community territories, but also consider the full richness of social, economic, and biodiversity aspects. On the other hand, the co-design is also a recognition that the knowledge of IPLC organizations is as valuable as that of carbon standards. Beyond the narrative, in practice this is a way of decolonizing markets with the full and effective participation of IPLCs from the design stage of these instruments,” said Gustavo Sanchez, President of the Red Mexicana de Organizaciones Forestales Campesinas (Red MOCAF).

The public comment period is open until August 11, 2025, and ART encourages all stakeholders to provide feedback. The draft Certification is available in multiple languages on the Beyond Carbon Benefits webpage which also includes instructions on submitting comments.

Key Features of Beyond Carbon certification
The certification framework comprises three distinct modules:

  • Social-Cultural Benefits: Recognizes the importance of securing territorial rights, supporting sustainable indigenous and local communities’ economies, recognizing and recovering ancestral knowledge and cultural identity, ensuring enabling conditions, and enhancing governance
  • Biodiversity Benefits: Recognizes the protection and enhancement of vital ecosystems
  • Forest Services: Recognizes the broader environmental services provided by forests, beyond carbon storage

To achieve Beyond Carbon Benefits certification, jurisdictions will have to complete certification in all three modules, underscoring a holistic approach to REDD+ program impacts.

About ART
The Architecture for REDD+ Transactions (ART) is a global carbon crediting program that certifies high-integrity emission reductions and removals from protecting and restoring forests at scale. ART operates at a jurisdictional scale to align with Paris Agreement requirements for REDD+ and to help finally decouple economic development from forest loss. As the leading global expert on jurisdictional REDD+, ART is led by a dedicated, independent secretariat that is governed by a Board of globally recognized experts. ART engages with key stakeholders to ensure different perspectives are represented in the design and implementation of its program. To ensure social integrity, ART directly aligns with the UN-defined Cancún Safeguards. As a result of its comprehensive efforts, ART serves as a global quality benchmark for jurisdictional REDD+. This role advances ART’s mission, which is to provide the confidence in the environmental and social integrity of emission reductions and removals from forest protection and restoration to unlock finance at scale for ambitious climate action and to incentivize governments to achieve those results. Learn more at ARTredd.org.