Glossary | Climate Lexicon V

VERRA / VCS (Verfified Carbon Standard)

VERRA / VCS is the world's largest standard in the market for voluntary carbon offsetting and is managed today by VERRA. VERRA stands for "Verified Carbon Standard" (VCS) and is an international standard for the certification of emission reduction projects that quantifies and verifies the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. The standard applies to projects implemented in agriculture, forestry, energy production, industrial production and other sectors. Certification is done by independent third parties and successfully certified projects receive "VERRA certificates" that can then be sold to carbon trading markets. The goal is to help companies and governments reduce their greenhouse gas emissions while encouraging investment in sustainable projects.

VERs / Verified Emission Reductions

Verified Emission Reductions (VERs) are certificates that serve as proof of successfully reduced greenhouse gas emissions. They are often generated as part of climate change mitigation projects (climate protection projects) in developing countries or emerging economies and can be purchased by companies or governments to meet their own emissions targets or demonstrate their commitment to climate change mitigation.

VERs are similar to Certified Emission Reductions (CERs), but there are some important differences in terms of monitoring and verification. While CERs are issued under the Kyoto Protocol, there is no uniform regulation for VERs and they are often verified by private standard-setting bodies such as the Climate, Community & Biodiversity Standards (CCBS) or the Voluntary Carbon Standard (VERRA, VCS).

The goal of VERs is to promote emissions reductions in emerging or developing countries and to help companies and governments achieve their climate change mitigation goals.