Raising the bar
on carbon project integrity
About us
What are Nature Based solutions?
Our focus at Southridge is to enhance the role of nature in tackling climate change – so-called Nature Based Solutions, or NBS – by reducing forest loss, regenerating ecosystems and improving land management practices.
Research shows that these solutions can provide up to one-third of the climate mitigation needed to limit global warming to 1.5°C by 2030. While the transition to low carbon energy takes place, natural climate solutions can provide a biological bridge to a low-carbon future in the near-term. Despite this potential, current levels of investment into NBS would need to triple by 2030 and increase four-fold by 2050 to meet global climate targets.
Another reason we focus on NBS at Southridge is their potential to deliver benefits for local people and achievement of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), protect endangered biodiversity and ecosystems, and support efforts to adapt to the impacts of climate change.
Increased interest in emissions offsetting has led to increased scrutiny of how offset projects are designed and implemented. We at Southridge welcome this scrutiny. Transparency and accountability must be the foundations for scaling offset markets. The current adolescent phase of this sector presents an opportunity to learn from early movers – Southridge brings to the market an experienced team who have been through the ups and downs of the market, and that is laser-focused on project quality.
Our framework for project quality is underpinned by seven pillars:
1. Environmental integrity
2. Full and effective local consultation
3. Equitable and transparent benefit sharing
4. Co-benefit delivery
5. Business ethics
6. Operational safety
7. Government support
Despite the increasingly severe impacts of climate change being felt around the world – with the impacts most severely experienced by poor and vulnerable communities – each year emissions continue to rise.
Responding to this crisis requires the deployment of all available tools – finance, technology, policy and local action among them.
Our focus at Southridge is to enhance the role of nature in tackling climate change – so-called Nature Based Solutions, or NBS – by reducing forest loss, regenerating ecosystems and improving land management practices.
Research shows that these solutions can provide up to one-third of the climate mitigation needed to limit global warming to 1.5°C by 2030. While the transition to low carbon energy will take decades, natural climate solutions could provide a biological bridge to a low-carbon future in the near-term. Despite this massive potential, current levels of investment into NBS would need to triple by 2030 and increase four-fold by 2050 to meet global climate targets.
Another reason we focus on NBS at Southridge is their potential to deliver benefits for local people and achievement of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), protect endangered biodiversity and ecosystems, and support efforts to adapt to the impacts of climate change
Increased interest in emissions offsetting has led to increased scrutiny of how offset projects are designed and implemented. We at Southridge welcome this scrutiny. Transparency and accountability must be the foundations for scaling offset markets. The current adolescent phase of this sector presents an opportunity to learn from early movers – Southridge brings to the market an experienced team who have been through the ups and downs of the market, and that is laser-focused on project quality.
Our framework for project quality is underpinned by seven pillars:
1. Environmental integrity
2. Full and effective local consultation
3. Equitable and transparent benefit sharing
4. Co-benefit delivery
5. Business ethics
6. Operational safety
7. Government support
What we do
Passion for integrity
Leadership team
Our team is passionate about what they do and is driven by the company’s laser focus on high quality carbon projects. With over 40 years’ collective experience in climate policy and carbon projects, the team has learned from direct experience in projects, the ups and downs of the carbon markets, and working with diverse stakeholders around the world.
Joel Scriven
Co-Founder
John Cole
Co-Founder
John has over 30 years’ experience with environmental projects, including 20 years of experience with carbon reduction projects generating both regulated and voluntary credits deploying a variety of industrial, NBS and carbon sequestration methodologies. He holds an MSc and a PhD from Oxford and an MBA from the University of Michigan.
