Instinet and Wildlife Conservation Society Launch REDD Positive Campaign
The WCS REDD Positive Fund will accelerate the development of REDD Positive projects worldwide
New York, September 21, 2022 – Instinet Holdings Incorporated, a wholly owned subsidiary of Nomura, today announced a project undertaken with the Wildlife Conservation Society (“WCS”) called REDD Positive, which is designed to fund and accelerate early-stage forest conservation and reforestation projects and to provide education about the critical role nature-positive solutions play in processing greenhouse gasses.
Through the implementation of UN-designed REDD Positive frameworks, governments, local communities, and other stakeholders work to protect, preserve, and expand global forests and carbon-rich ecosystems. Additionally, these REDD Positive projects will create transparent and accountable protocols for generating market-tradable carbon offsets (“verified carbon units”, or VCUs) linked to activities that protect and conserve these natural carbon sinks.
The WCS REDD Positive Fund was founded in 2021 by an initial contribution from Instinet. The fund aims to connect the worlds of business and conservation to combat deforestation in rigorous, actionable, and achievable ways. The WCS REDD Positive Fund invests charitable funds in conservation and reforestation projects worldwide.
To date, the efforts of REDD Positive continue to gain momentum, including WCS’s flagship project in Keo Seima, Cambodia, which achieved financial stability following $31 million plus in credit sales in the 2021 fiscal year and another $12 million in 2022.
Ralston Roberts, Global CEO of Instinet, said, “We’re excited to work with the Wildlife Conservation Society to combat climate change in a meaningful and actionable way. As influential global leaders gather to mark Climate Week, REDD Positive offers a powerful example of an impactful and measurable way to fund more conservation projects that are critical to the long-term health of our planet.”
Cristián Samper, President and CEO of the Wildlife Conservation Society, said, “REDD Positive will leverage decades of forest conservation research, and is backed by the rigorous scientific approach that is a hallmark of the Wildlife Conservation Society. Protecting and preserving the world’s great forests is an important component to achieving the carbon reduction goals of the Paris Agreement, conserving biodiversity, and paving the way for a more sustainable environment in the near future. With the support and collaboration of firms such as Instinet, we are excited to continue advancing and accelerating early-stage REDD+ projects worldwide and harnessing the power of nature-based solutions.”
