A platform to enable individuals to offset their carbon footprint will soon be launched in Qatar. The Arab Youth Climate Change Movement Qatar (AYCMQ) initiative, supported by the United States Embassy in Qatar grant funding, would be available on the AYCMQ app.
Offsetting is a way of paying for others to reduce emissions or absorb CO2 to compensate for one’s own emissions. In theory, carbon offsets help balance carbon footprint by funding environmental projects that reduce greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. One carbon offset credit supposedly equals one metric tonne of carbon dioxide, or a comparable amount of other greenhouse gases, removed from the air.
The programme will enable people to contribute in their own way through credit or cash.
“Our footprint initiative will be made for the easiest, most accurate way to manage household carbon footprint and sustainable lifestyle,”
Neeshad Shafi, Executive Director of AYCMQ, told The Peninsula. “We can track emissions, give people an effortless way to offset them, and offer exclusive insights into how you can live sustainably. Using our app, you can calculate how much carbon you emit from flights, lifestyle, food, etc.”
Shafi added that offsetting emissions with climate initiatives approved by United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and other accredited bodies and contributing to verified forest conservation projects and innovative carbon capture initiatives can help balance emissions.
Shafi also stressed that people feel guilty about their roles in carbon emissions and their carbon footprint. He noted that it is significant for such a platform to be available in Qatar, considering the country has one of the highest carbon footprints in the world despite its small population.
Meanwhile, according to Ecosystem Marketplace, the market for voluntary offsets came close to $300m and traded almost 100 million metric tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent in 2018, the latest year for which data is available.
Estimates of the global carbon compliance size offset market range between $40bn and $120bn.
Besides, AYCMQ is also conducting a survey to track Qatar’s resource consumption and carbon footprint through its ‘Household Carbon Footprint Initiative.’ It has trained 650 school teachers in Qatar to carry out the survey, which the organization plans to spread across the GCC region soon.
