Safeguards in Jurisdictional REDD+: the role of carbon market standards

At COP30 in Belém, the Rainforest Foundation Norway convened a discussion focused on the role of carbon market standards in ensuring high social integrity of jurisdictional REDD+ programs.

The event in Belém emphasized the importance of aligning climate and carbon finance with high social integrity.

Why This Conversation Matters

In September 2025, 30 signatories submitted joint recommendations to the ART Secretariat and Board regarding the draft of the TREES 3.0 REDD+ carbon market standard.

The joint recommendations aim to strengthen safeguards for Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities, ensuring their rights and voices are central to jurisdictional REDD+ programs certified by ART TREES. The key recommendations focused on three priority areas:

1. Early and Inclusive Consultation: Engage rightsholders at an early stage, in culturally appropriate ways.
2. Effective Participation in Decision-Making: Ensure IPs and LCs shape the governance, benefit-sharing arrangements, and monitoring systems of REDD+ programs.
3. Robust Quality Controls: Align national policies with international best practices and improve validation and verification processes.

The conversation during the side event explored how these recommendations—anchored in Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC)—can guarantee transparency, equity, and trust while delivering climate benefits. It brought together the voices from rightsholders, including Pablo Mis (Maya Leaders Association, Belize), Alma Marshall (Amerindian Peoples Association, Guyana), Jamer López (ORAU, Peru) and Diel Mochire (IP and LC VCM Engagement Forum), as well as from carbon market actors, with interventions from Carol Burga (Director of IP and LC Engagement at Emergent), and Carmen Alvarez (Jurisdictional Policy Lead, Sylvera).

Voices from the Ground: Indigenous Perspectives

Pablo Mis shared how the Maya people of Southern Belize developed their own FPIC protocol after years of litigation and negotiation. His message: “International principles must fit local realities, and it is important that we define our own engagement procedures and make FPIC fit into our processes. FPIC is a collective endeavor, and FPIC protocols should cover all topics - they are anchored in human rights and UNDRIP”.

Alma Marshall, from the Upper Mazaruni District in Guyana, highlighted gaps in current validation and verification processes of REDD+ programs: consultations are rushed, technical documents are inaccessible, and language barriers persist. “FPIC means time to understand and be understood,” she stressed, calling for genuine dialogue rather than token participation.

Jamer López, from Peru, emphasized that safeguards must be practical and affordable. ORAU’s experience shows that Indigenous-led consultation should guide the work in REDD+ programs— technology can help but never replace human engagement. His closing remark resonated: “When safeguards are created by and with Indigenous peoples, integrity is not only technical, it is also human.”

Market Perspectives: Building Trust and Integrity

Carol Burga, from Emergent, explained why strong safeguards are required by LEAF Coalition buyers. The LEAF Coalition purchases credits verified under the ART-TREES standard, and credits are not issued unless they meet TREES requirements in line with the Cancun Safeguards. Every LEAF ERPA includes compliance with ART-TREES safeguards as a condition for payment. “Safeguards de-risk transactions and build trust,” she noted.

Diel Mochire Mwenge introduced the new Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities VCM Engagement Forum, which aims to increase Indigenous Peoples’ and local communities’ ability to engage on their own terms with the carbon markets. Its priorities include removing barriers for market participation, build capacity, and defining best practices for fair benefit-sharing.

Carmen Alvarez, from Sylvera, reminded participants that standards alone don’t guarantee quality. Local context matters. Sylvera’s independent evaluations of REDD+ projects and programs show that what’s on paper often differs from reality. “High social integrity is becoming a market expectation, not an add-on,” she said.

Why It Matters for COP30 and Beyond

Jurisdictional REDD+ programs hold promise—but only if they embed rights, transparency, and trust at their core. Safeguards aren’t bureaucratic hurdles; they are the foundation for climate justice and lasting impact. As carbon markets evolve, the voices from Belém send a clear message: Climate policies must be co-created with those who live in and protect the forests.

See the full summary of the event with detailed speakers’ interventions.