Audience Presses Panel on Carbon Offsets Amid $216B Forest Finance Gap
COP 31 Side Events • United NationsNovember 13, 2026
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A COP31 side event on Nov. 13, 2026, set out to chart how countries can carry out the COP30 Forest Roadmap. Instead, it turned into a pointed debate over whether forest carbon offsets actually help the climate. No votes were taken. The concrete news was Brazil's plan for twice-yearly follow-up meetings, set against a forest finance shortfall of roughly $216B a year.
- Carbon offsets challenged: Audience members questioned whether forest credits deliver real climate benefit.
- $216B annual gap: Developing countries need $300B a year for forests but received $84B in 2023.
- Brazil sets follow-up: The country plans meetings every six months and wants the roadmap to inform the second Global Stocktake.
- Community money lags: A practitioner said funding barely reaches community forest concessions.
- Procurement push: A Ugandan official urged countries to add sustainable purchasing rules to their national roadmaps.
The basics: Forest carbon offsets let a buyer claim credit for carbon stored or emissions avoided elsewhere. Critics test them on two points. "Additionality" asks whether the benefit would have happened anyway. "Permanence" asks whether the stored carbon stays stored.
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