The Climate, Community & Biodiversity Alliance The Climate, Community & Biodiversity Alliance

The Climate, Community & Biodiversity Alliance

CCB Standards

The Climate, Community and Biodiversity Standards (CCB Standards) evaluate land management projects from the early stages of development through implementation. The CCB Standards were developed by the CCBA and have been managed by the Verra since November 2014. The CCB Standards foster the integration of best-practice and multiple-benefit approaches into project design and implementation. The CCB Standards:

  • Identify projects that simultaneously address climate change, support local communities and smallholders, and conserve biodiversity.
  • Promote excellence and innovation in project design and implementation.
  • Mitigate risk for investors and offset buyers and increase funding opportunities for project developers.

The CCB Standards identify land management projects that deliver net positive benefits for climate change mitigation, for local communities and for biodiversity. The CCB Standards can be applied to any land management project, including projects that reduce greenhouse gas emissions from deforestation and forest degradation or from avoided degradation of other ecosystems, and projects that remove carbon dioxide by sequestering carbon (e.g., reforestation, afforestation, revegetation, forest restoration, agroforestry and sustainable agriculture) or other land management, from design through implementation and monitoring.

For more information about using the CCB Standards and their current governance, please visit the Verra website.

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Rules, requirements and guidance

CCB Standards Supporting Documents

All current CCB program documents can be found on the Verra website. The resources listed below were developed by CCBA members and partners to support the use of the CCB Standards.

Guidance for the Use of the CCB Standards

Developed in partnership with Rainforest Alliance, the Guidance for the Use of the CCB Standards is designed to provide a detailed explanation of key concepts and requirements of the CCB Standards Third Edition which may be helpful for project proponents, auditors and any users of the CCB Standards. In particular, the Guidance document aims to cover aspects relevant to smallholder- and community-led projects.

Social and Biodiversity Impact Assessment Manual for REDD+ Projects

CCB Standards Second Edition Training Materials

Rainforest Alliance, in collaboration with the Climate, Community and Biodiversity Alliance (CCBA), developed the following training modules to assist carbon project developers and project proponents in interpreting and implementing the criteria of the Climate, Community & Biodiversity (CCB) Standards Second Edition. These materials can be used in a workshop setting or for individual self-guided use and provide both an introduction to the CCB Standards Second Edition and in-depth guidance on each of the major sections of the standard — climate, community and biodiversity. They are designed to highlight commonalities amongst these sections, as well as to drill-down into addressing obstacles that a project may face in meeting specific criteria.

Provides an overview of the CCBA and the CCB standards, a basic review of the validation and verification process, as well as guidance on how to best navigate Modules 2-5.

Provides an introduction to the requirements of the General Criteria of the CCB standards, which includes criteria regarding baseline projections; project design and goals; and management capacity and best practices. This module provides an in-depth look at some of these key criteria and promotes analysis through detailed case studies.

This module provides an introduction to the CCB standard climate impact requirements; an overview of techniques and tools for implementing climate impact assessments; and a review of the 4 key stages to climate impact assessment for project development.

This module provides an introduction to the CCB Standards social impact requirements; and overview of techniques and tools for implementing social impact assessments; and a review of the 4 key stages of community impact assessment and monitoring in the CCB Standards.

This module provides an introduction to the CCB Standards biodiversity impact requirements; an overview of techniques and tools for implementing a biodiversity impact assessment; and review of the 4 stages of biodiversity impact assessment and monitoring in the CCB Standards.

Please note that these materials are best utilized when downloaded as PowerPoint presentations as there are guidance notes and interactive slides that cannot be captured in PDF format.