New Oxford Principles to guide responsible carbon trading under the Paris Agreement
Article 6 allows countries and corporations to engage in carbon trading to meet climate targets as part of the Paris Agreement, and provides one of the greatest opportunities to drive additional climate mitigation and resilience. However, evidence so far shows that this potential is at risk, and it could instead enable the greenwashing of climate commitments by countries and corporate entities alike.
Today, a University of Oxford-led team of researchers have published a set of principles which could help countries and corporates engage with Article 6 in a way that results in genuine climate action.
The Oxford Principles for Responsible Engagement with Article 6 have been published just days ahead of the 2025 Bonn Climate Conference, at which policymakers will further discuss the implementation of Article 6.
If followed, the authors say these principles could enable countries to meet and enhance their Nationally Determined Contributions, as well as public and private entities to work together to mobilise much-needed finance for climate mitigation and sustainable development.
Lead author Dr Injy Johnstone, an expert in net zero aligned offsetting at the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment, University of Oxford, comments:
“Our aim with the Oxford Principles for Article 6 is to foster international carbon markets that drive genuine climate action and provide incentives to enhance ambition, as opposed to serving as a smokescreen for inaction.”
“The principles complement the internationally agreed rules under the Paris Agreement and provide concrete guidance to countries and carbon market actors on how to engage with international credits,” explains co-author Lambert Schneider, Research Coordinator for International Climate Policy at Oeko-Institut.
The principles focus on three areas: Paris-aligned use of mitigation outcomes; generation of high-quality mitigation outcomes and robust accounting and transparency. “We wanted to recognise from the outset the fact that all actors within the ecosystem play a crucial role in upholding integrity–not only of the units traded but of the system altogether,” explains Dr Johnstone.
Sindi Kuci, Researcher at the Smith School of Enterprise and the Environment, says: "Article 6 market-based mechanisms, similarly to other international carbon markets, are flexible in nature, significantly shaped by the decisions of actors engaging with them, from suppliers to buyers, and intermediaries in between. This flexibility comes with responsibility from market participants to ramp up rather than hinder the ambition of these mechanisms. The Oxford Principles provide clear actor-tailored guidance on how market participants can utilise Article 6 to the full breadth of its potential, taking us closer to a Paris-aligned future."
Juliette de Grandpré, from the NewClimate Institute comments:
“The original intent of Article 6 – to enable higher climate ambition – was diluted during the negotiations of the Rulebook. The Oxford Principles for Article 6 now seek to restore that ambition by calling for stronger standards and to help ensure that the mechanism does not create incentives to reduce overall climate action. In particular, they emphasise that buyer countries must first take robust domestic action before relying on Article 6 credits to avoid deterring mitigation efforts.”
Hanna-Mari Ahonen, Senior Consultant at the Perspectives Climate Group, concludes:
“It is crucial that market-based cooperation under the Paris Agreement enables, and does not undermine, ambitious mitigation action. Robust benchmarks, such as these principles, empower actors across the world to align their carbon market cooperation efforts and contribute to driving climate ambition and meeting our global goals.”
