Carbon Trust

The Carbon Trust is a U.K.-based climate consultancy that assists organizations, businesses and governments in their efforts to decarbonize.

The trust was set up in 2000 as part of the Climate Change Levy on business energy use. It helped businesses reduce energy use and therefore their CCL tax burden. The Carbon Trust has a presence the U.K.’s four regional capitals, Beijing, Mexico City, Amsterdam, Pretoria, Singapore and Washington D.C.

The Carbon Trust offers a number of services, including: 

  • Calculating carbon footprints, data verification and standard setting. The Carbon Trust provides a number of environmental standards that certify measurement and reduction, which currently cover carbon, water and waste.
  • Voluntary carbon certification services. In February, the Carbon Trust launched a new certification to verify business’ net-zero targets and strategies, called the Route to Net Zero Standard.
  • Carbon labelling schemes. The label show the product owner’s commitment to reduce that footprint every two years. The Carbon Reduction Label was introduced in March 2007.
  • Advisory and assurance for green financing.
  • Developing clean technology in partnership with governments, innovators and corporates,
  • Accelerating commercialisation of low-carbon technologies, and leads projects to deliver commercial partnerships and develop low carbon technologies.
  • Analysis of sustainability issues to help businesses, investors and policymakers in reducing carbon and saving energy.

In early 2022, the Carbon Trust launched a net zero certification to verify business’ net-zero targets and strategies. Called the Route to Net Zero Standard, the scheme will be open to businesses of all sizes and sectors and in all geographies.

Businesses will be able to propose emissions reductions goals and plans for achieving them and have them badged as either “taking action”, “advancing” or “leading”. They will then be supported to increase commitments and move up these tiers. Applications and engagement will be delivered using a bespoke digital platform.

On a LinkedIn post announcing the launch of the standard, the Carbon Trust was asked why only the “leading” level of verification would require targets of the level required by the Science-Based Targets Initiative’s net-zero standard. Launched last year, the SBTI’s standard was the first of its kind globally and requires decarbonisation along a 1.5 degree Celsius aligned temperature pathway in the short-term and the long-term.