CarbonoVivo: Countdown to VCS Certification

Climate project in the final stages of the certification process / First issuance of carbon credits available starting in Q3 2025

In collaboration with farmers and ranchers, the CarbonoVivo project is driving a sustainable transformation in Colombia through regenerative soil management. Since June 2024, First Climate has been supporting the project developer, Carbono Local+, on the path to project certification by the highly respected Verified Carbon Standard (VCS). Barely a year later, the project initiative, envisioned by sisters Laura and Nataly Cubillos Ordóñez, co-founders and managing directors of Carbono Local+, is now in the final stages of the validation and verification process and is headed towards the first issuance of high-integrity carbon credits, expected to take place in the third quarter of this year.

©Carbono Local+

As part of the validation process, independent third-party auditors have spent the past few weeks carrying out extensive measurements and assessments of the grazing areas that have been converted to sustainable ones as part of the project. Throughout Colombia, auditors from TÜV Süd conducted site visits at randomly selected partner farms to document the activities firsthand, including the related data collection methods, the progress of the project, the climate benefits achieved, as well as the direct added value for the participating farms and the local population at large. An additional independent expert auditor was onsite to verify the soil organic carbon calculations as well. Both the validation and verification processes were successful, fulfilling all the quality criteria required by the VCS. The positive outcome shows that the CarbonoVivo project generates measurable climate benefits accordingly.

The technical audit report to validate and verify the actual emission reductions and carbon removal performance achieved will now be submitted to VERRA for final approval. The CarbonoVivo project is therefore well on track and is expected to be able to issue verified carbon credits for the first time in the third quarter of 2025.

“With the submission of the final report, we are getting closer to VCS certification one step at a time. The upcoming issuance of the first carbon credits later this year sets the stage for us to be able to further scale our project and the associated impact - and thus also contribute to Colombia's rapidly growing sustainable development. We are pleased to have the continued support of our partner First Climate, who will be exclusively handling the future marketing of the carbon credits generated by the project, ” explains Nataly Cubillos Ordóñez, CEO and Lead of CDR Carbon Projects at Carbono Local+.

©Carbono Local+

New name, even more impact

Since its founding, the climate project has recently been rebranded as “(Proyecto) CarbonoVivo” in a collective decision with participating farmers. This roughly translates as “living soil”. Fittingly, the Spanish tagline is “El suelo es vida”, which means “soil is life”. A name that speaks for itself and aptly reflects the project's mission: to restore soil health and fertility on the project's sustainably managed pastures.

To that end, the mainly family-run farms participating in the CarbonoVivo project have agreed to switch to rotational grazing. Rotational grazing involves driving the cattle to newly grown grazing paddocks according to a methodically defined plan. This prevents individual paddocks from being overgrazed and gives the previously grazed soil resting time for recovery. The microbiome remains intact, and roots are preserved so that grass and other forage grow back faster and lusher, which in turn leads to increased wellbeing for the livestock. Another consequence: healthier soil can absorb and store carbon from the atmosphere much better than non-sustainably used areas. This makes CarbonoVivo an innovative carbon removal project with huge climate action potential. Over the total crediting period, around 33,000,000 metric tons of carbon will be sequestered and permanently removed from the atmosphere.

Video shoot captures project benefits up close

The filming of personal interviews with farmers and other stakeholders is currently underway for a new project film, which will highlight the visible impact of CarbonoVivo and its local initiatives. Among other aspects, the production team will shoot interviews with actual participating farmers representing various farms in Colombia over the coming weeks.

The film will give viewers an exciting glimpse into project activities and show how local farms and ranches are adopting sustainable practices and helping to revolutionize the future of agriculture in Colombia. How have Colombian farmlands and the quality of life of the participating farming families developed? The film will also explore this question.

Meet Nataly and Vincent at the Colombia Carbon Forum 2025

From April 23 to 24, Nataly Cubillos Ordóñez from Carbono Local+ and Vincent Erasmy, Carbon Competence Lead at First Climate, will be attending the Colombia Carbon Forum 2025 in Bogotá, the capital of Colombia. The conference is one of the most important events in the field of corporate climate action in South America and brings together representatives of certification standards, government organizations and committed companies, among others. The main topic on the conference agenda is how the transition to a low-carbon economy can succeed in Latin America. As one of the first projects of its kind in the world, CarbonoVivo will make an important contribution to these efforts.

Nataly is scheduled to present at one of the expert discussions. As part of Panel II on April 24, she and her co-panelists will explore the potential of carbon projects in Colombia's agricultural sector, focusing on the opportunities and challenges of project development.

Don't want to miss the event? Visit colombiacarbon.com to find out more about the agenda, speakers and how to register for the event.

If you would like to learn more about the CarbonoVivo project and how you can support it, please visit the project website: https://www.carbonovivo.co/en