Sustainable development is not an ancillary benefit of Article 6 cooperation but a core requirement. Under the Paris Agreement Crediting Mechanism (PACM), every mitigation activity must apply the Article 6.4 Sustainable Development Tool, which covers both the environmental and social safeguards that operationalize the ‘do no harm’ principle and the assessment of contributions to the Sustainable Development Goals.
While the Tool is completed by activity participants, its value depends heavily on the national framework around it. Designated National Authorities (DNAs) make sovereign policy judgements at approval, authorization and issuance, and the quality of those judgements rests on how clearly host Parties have set out their sustainable development priorities and safeguard expectations in advance.
A new guide produced under the Supporting Preparedness for Article 6 Cooperation (SPAR6C) programme sets out four practical options for host Parties to use the SD Tool across the activity cycle, from articulating national priorities to using monitored results for oversight and policy learning. The guide covers both mandatory use under Article 6.4 and voluntary use in Article 6.2 cooperative approaches and draws on Zambia’s carbon market framework and the Kafue Sugar pilot.
This webinar launches the guide and brings together host Party representatives, carbon market practitioners and Article 6 negotiators to discuss what practical use of the SD Tool looks like in a national context.
Objectives
- Clarify the distinct roles of the DNA and the Designated Operational Entity across the PACM activity cycle.
- Demonstrate how host Parties can translate national sustainable development priorities and safeguard expectations into activity-level guidance.
- Share early country experience from Zambia, including lessons from piloting the SD Tool.
- Discuss how host Parties can build sustainable development governance progressively as capacity and Article 6 experience grow
List of Speakers
- Brian Oronoz, Advisor – Carbon Markets, UNEP Copenhagen Climate Centre
- Marshall Brown, Head of Carbon Readiness Unit, Global Green Growth Institute
- Andi Sanusi, Carbon Market Programme Officer, UNEP Copenhagen Climate Centre
- Dr. Alick Muvundika, Deputy Director, National Institute for Scientific and Industrial Research (NISIR) – Zambia
- Julia Madariaga, GESI Senior Associate, Global Green Growth Institute, Colombia