OPINION: Carbon Paradox, a climate action parable

Charles Bedford is Chief Impact Officer at Carbon Growth Partners, based in Hong Kong. The Carbon Paradox will be presented at the Quick Eternity bookstore, located in New York, from 5-8pm EST on Monday 22 September. To register, click on the link.

In the new novel, The Carbon Paradox, some of the OG* carbon market experts, Renat Heuberger, Steve Zwick, and Marco Hirsbrunner, deliver a compelling journey into the contradictions and opportunities inherent in addressing global climate change.

The Carbon Paradox takes readers deep into the intricate world of environmental markets and carbon finance, blending storytelling with economic concepts like Pigovian principles, the pricing of externalities, and the "polluter pays" principle.

These tools, central to incentivising climate action, are unpacked with clarity and depth, making even difficult economic theories accessible and relevant to the pressing realities of our time.

The story is told well enough to be a beach read, but accurate and insightful enough to be prescribed reading for grad students.

The authors' long experience in environmental markets and sustainable development shines through.

Their psychic scars, earned from years of navigating the halting progress on climate solutions, are tempered by the wisdom and tolerance they've retained.

This balance is what makes the book stand out: it doesn't shy away from the imperfections of market mechanisms but instead embraces their potential to drive real, impactful action.

Tackling paradoxes

At the heart of the book are the paradoxes that often arise in carbon finance and sustainable development, explored with nuance and sensitivity.

For example, the "Offset Paradox" questions whether corporate buying of carbon credits delays meaningful emissions reductions or complements them by funding critical climate projects.

The "Quality Paradox" highlights the tension between ensuring rigour in carbon standards and scaling markets efficiently.

These dilemmas, while daunting, are framed as challenges that can be addressed through robust governance, transparency, and collaboration.

The authors remind us that addressing these paradoxes requires using every tool in the toolbox — a portfolio approach where deep emissions cuts, rapid removals, and scaled finance all move together.

High-integrity markets, nature credits, and results-based finance are crucial components of this toolkit, and delay is the biggest risk to achieving meaningful progress.

The book also draws a parallel to nascent biodiversity compensation markets, such as habitat banking, which face similar paradoxes.

Just as carbon credits aim to internalise the environmental costs of emissions, biodiversity credits seek to address habitat loss through measurable offsets that lead to nature positive outcomes.

By addressing these complexities, the authors provide valuable insights not only for carbon finance but for the broader field of environmental markets.

Collaboration

Through the journey of Ella, Robin, and Andy, the young protagonists, the authors underscore the necessity of collaboration across governments, corporations, Indigenous communities, and civil society.

Climate action, they argue, requires a shared narrative and a commitment to addressing paradoxes head-on.

The introduction of the Five Elements framework — sky, animals, forests, mountains, and ocean — offers a fresh perspective that moves beyond polarised debates.

This framework is not just a poetic metaphor but a pragmatic call for action and resilience in climate solutions.

The authors emphasise that collaboration is essential to align and harmonise the diverse tools in our climate action portfolio.

High-integrity markets and results-based finance must complement deep emissions cuts and rapid removals.

Together, these integrated approaches can drive the scale and speed required to meet global climate goals.

Call to action

The Carbon Paradox is a vital read for anyone engaged in environmental markets, climate finance, or sustainable development.

Its exploration of market mechanisms, the mitigation hierarchy, and the complexities of financing nature and climate is both illuminating and urgent.

The authors' ability to weave technical insights into a narrative that resonates with the human condition makes this book not just informative but inspiring.

By the end of the book, we are left with more than just an understanding of the challenges; we are given a hopeful vision for addressing climate change through imperfect but impactful solutions.

As the authors remind us, the cooperation and collaboration needed to solve these challenges are not optional — they are essential.

We do not have time to wait for perfect solutions. Deploying available tools now, even as we improve them, is essential.

Delay is the biggest risk; using every viable tool in parallel is our best hedge against climate failure.

And with every tool in the toolbox operational, we still have a chance to get there. Let's hope we do!

*OG means "Original Gangster," which is slang for the people who started the process.