Bringing Trust to Carbon Credits Through Computer Science

Carbon credits—especially those derived from nature-based solutions such as reforestation or averted deforestation—are deservedly viewed as being untrustworthy and their use by airlines and oil companies a barely-concealed form of greenwashing. In this talk, I will present a solution to these issues that leverages advances in earth observation, AI, cloud storage, and blockchain. This solution is being prototyped by the Cambridge Center for Carbon Credits (https://4c.cst.cam.ac.uk ) and I will discuss the current status and our vision for the future.