Carbon offsets are a practical and effective way to address climate change and encourage the growth of renewable energy. With them, you can counteract your personal carbon emissions—your “carbon footprint”—while contributing to a more sustainable future.

Do carbon offsets make a difference?

Carbon offsets play a crucial role. As Peter Miller, an expert on the topic at the National Resource Defense Council, told AFAR last year: “By investing in credible, verified offsets, everyone can help compensate for the pollution associated with their travel and contribute to solutions to the climate crisis.

Do carbon offsets really help?

But offsets can play an important role in fighting warming, Ebert said, particularly when they fund initiatives that are important but not cost-effective. The market for blocks of captured carbon is probably never going to be large, but a company trying to offset its own emissions can help make sequestration viable.