| |
Social Carbon™ is a national and international registered trade mark and has the objective of guaranteeing that the projects developed for the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions significantly contribute to sustainable development, incorporating transparent and participative methods of access and measurement of the benefits that are returned to the parties involved and to the environment.
The Ecological Institute has been developing over several years the concept of Social Carbon, since the pilot carbon capture projects in the Tocantins State, where carbon reduction or absorption is the consequence of the execution of projects promoting an improvement in the quality of life of the local communities through the interaction of these people with the project activities.
THE SOCIAL CARBON METHODOLOGY (SCM):
The expression “Social Carbon” can be understood as all the carbon absorbed/reduced considering the actions that financially benefit and improve the conditions of life of the communities involved in the emission reduction/climate change projects, aimed at guaranteeing the welfare and citizenship, without degrading the resource base. In this sense the Methodology is being used to analyze the reality and orientate sustainable development initiatives associated with climate change.
In Tocantins the SCM is being applied in two pioneering projects in the state, one of Carbon Capture in the areas surrounding the Island of Bananal and the other in the carbon reduction of ceramic companies. In both cases, the Ecological Institute (IE) used the concept of Social Carbon, transforming the carbon projects in sustainable regional development processes. In this sense in recent years the Ecological Institute has been working to use the methodology on behalf of the local communities, respecting their concerns, necessities and supporting them in the quest for socioeconomic, environmental and sustainable improvements.
OBJECTIVES OF THE SOCIAL CARBON METHODOLOGY:
The main objective of the Social Carbon Methodology is to contribute to sustainable development, permitting the increase in sustainable resources, that are the Carbon, Biodiversity, Natural, Financial, Human and Social resources. Therefore, with the increase in the sustainable resources, the community or company involved in the carbon emission reduction processes make the process sustainable, with carbon credits in addition to social, environmental and financial gains.
Some specific objectives of SCM:
▪ Give importance to the potential and concerns of the communities using a community vision;
▪ Identify the global change impacts on the local scenario and promote the analysis of the local actors;
▪ Identify the ecosystems and the potential biodiversity, determine the possible ecological tension areas, promote and give value to the use of traditional knowledge.
▪ Seek the social inclusion and recognize issues of this type, promoting the improvement in the quality of life of the less fortunate, by means of reducing the social inequalities.
FOLLOW-UP MECHANISMS:
The Social Carbon Methodology has a visual representation in the form of a hexagon where each vertices corresponds to a sustainable resource. The central point of the hexagon represents the Zero Mark, which is the zero access of the resources; from this point is a scale of access to the resources where the maximum denomination is Mark 06, which represents the ideal sustainable scenario of the available resources.
In the Hexagon, the closer the resource is to the vertices (Mark 06), the better the sustainability of the resource in the community or company. The Methodology gives preference to the effective participation of the community in all the processes, becoming as such susceptible to a social control. Participating workshops are used to monitor the project making interviews and visits to the location. The figure below represents the hexagon for the Araguaia settlement community, in the Caseara municipal region, in Tocantins State.
Representation of the Social Carbon Methodology for the Araguaia Settlement community
Due to its flexible and holistic dynamics, the Social Carbon Methodology can be applied to different types of projects whether they are connected to energetic efficiency, renewable energy or in the forestation area, through the use and monitoring of the six Methodology Resources: carbon, financial, human, social, biodiversity and natural:
1. Social Resource: covers the social responsibility actions, in addition to relations and integration between associations and non governmental organizations and relationship with the local community.
2. Human Resource: directed at the analysis of abilities, knowledge and capacity to work, including health and safety issues of the workers.
3. Financial Resource: is the basic capital that is available for the companies, as well as the forms of investments and financial barriers to projects.
4. Natural Resource: analyses the existing relationship between the company and the environment considering impacts on the natural resources, actions that contribute to the conservation of the environment and maintains environmental services.
5. Carbon Resource: this refers to the type of carbon management developed, and characteristics regarding the capture or emission reduction projects.
6. Biodiversity Resource: evaluates if the project is in important conservation areas and/or biodiversity, the presence of animals in extinction in the region and economically important ecosystems with a strong anthropic activity.
In order to conceptualize the Social Carbon™ Methodology a visual representation was created in the form of a hexagon. The center of the hexagon (value 0) represents zero access to the goods, whereas at the external border (value 6), the access to the resource is maximum. Each of the indicators can present values in a scale of 0 to 6, with a base in the variables and scenarios defined in the methodology.
The evaluation of the evolution of the indicators over the yr=ears, is made through annual diagnoses of the activities of the project. According to the changes that happen in the company and community’s activities around the project, the lines move, modifying the polygon formed over the period of time.
INFORMATION
55 (63) 3215.1279 | leal@ecologica.org.br
RELATED LINKS
www.socialcarbon.com
▪ Click here to know more about Sustainability and Social Carbon
|
|
