Our Vision: Every Carbon Credit 100% Equivalent to the Emissions It Offsets

We recently shared our mission—Why Sky Harvest Exists. Today, we want to talk about our vision for the carbon market and the path to realize that vision. 

Our vision is simple to state, but radical in impact: 

A world where every carbon credit is 100% equivalent to the emissions it claims to offset. 

We’re not there yet. Far from it. Nearly every credit sold today falls short in one or more ways. And every gap matters—because every percentage point of incompleteness represents unmitigated warming. 

What do we mean by 100% emissions equivalence? 

The warming effect of greenhouse gases is three-dimensional: mass, duration, and timing. Think of it like the volume of a cube—you can’t measure a cube with just the width. Yet today’s market only looks at one dimension: mass. That’s why most credits only ever offset a fraction of what was emitted. Discovering this gap was a shock—and ultimately the reason Sky Harvest was founded. 

Another way to picture it: imagine a 1,000-piece puzzle. True equivalence means every piece is in place. Today’s market is closer to opening the box and finding 200 pieces, plus an IOU for most of the remaining pieces— delivered over the coming decades. Even if those pieces arrive, which is a big “if”, the puzzle still won’t be complete. 

We’re not saying existing credits have no value—they do. But they’re fractional. That is, they offset a fraction of emissions. And if we want real climate impact, fractions aren’t enough. 

So how do we get to 100% equivalence? 

We measure emissions and removals in all three dimensions, not just one. 

When a tonne of CO2 is released, its warming effect stretches hundreds of thousands of years. Mass, duration, and timing together define that impact. And thanks to the work of many pioneering scientists, that impact is precisely defined today. 

The same applies when CO2 is stored, for example, in a forest. For an offset to be truly equivalent, the positive effect of storage must fully match the negative effect of the emission. Sometimes that means a credit needs to contain multiple tonnes of CO2. Think of it as two prisms with different shapes but identical volume: what matters is that the total effect balances precisely. 

Why does this matter? 

A market based on true equivalence would be transformative. It would: 

Deliver real, scalable climate impact. If the whole system worked this way, the system would actually work. 

Eliminate needless complexity. Buffer pools, exotic insurance products, and debates over “durability” would be obsolete. By using verified storage and adjusting for duration through mass, every credit would remain whole. 

Unlock new supply. Landowners wary of restrictive multi-generational contracts could finally participate, opening vast untapped mitigation potential. 

Restore trust. Higher standards and measurable integrity would reduce skepticism and attract more capital. 

This shift won’t happen overnight. It requires educating stakeholders on what true equivalence is—using the True Credit Framework. It requires offering standard-setters and registries a clear alternative to “permanence.” And it requires persistence in the face of pushback from those invested in the status quo. 

Looking ahead 

Sky Harvest is already applying the True Credit Framework in our projects, but we don’t intend to act alone. We invite buyers, registries, and project developers to join us in shaping a marketplace where every credit is 100% emissions equivalent. 

We’re not here just to win in today’s market. Today’s market is built on one-dimensional measurements, IOUs, and missing puzzle pieces. We’re here to make sure tomorrow’s market wins for everyone—for buyers, for landowners, and for the climate. Because when buyers demand 100% equivalence, the market will deliver. And when that happens, carbon credits will finally fulfill their promise: to balance, fully and verifiably, what we emit with what we remove. 

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Whether you’re ready to purchase True Credits or just have a question, we’d love to hear from you.

General Inquiries

Email: info@skyharvest.com

Phone: +1 (919) 306-1883