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For far too long, MRV— Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification — has focused narrowly on tonnes of carbon. As the CEO of EcoforestCO2, I believe it’s time we evolve from compliance-driven accounting to a new paradigm, one that goes further and recognizes carbon as a byproduct of both ecological and social integrity.

In Mexico, where we work alongside indigenous and communal landowners across thousands of hectares of biodiverse forests every day, this shift isn’t just conceptual — it’s operational. 

Here, our long-standing ecologically rich landscape has created a tradition of deep respect for the environment that’s been passed down from generation to generation. This inherent orientation towards respecting and preserving nature has not only lent itself to the very practices that we honor within our nature-based carbon credit projects today, but also makes our projects stronger.

The process is a simple and straightforward one, but it moves us toward substantially. Our carbon credit projects are designed and measured on what matters most to the local communities. That means our Improved Forest Management (IFM) projects don’t just focus on soil management techniques, but also on efforts that bolster gender equality in leadership and cultural preservation for stronger, more sustainable projects. 

Instead of these co-benefits being viewed as an add-on, they should be woven into every carbon credit project and considered central to their success because of the way that they strengthen a project’s permanence and overall impact.

It’s all about measuring what truly matters: resilience, equity, and regeneration. Looking for signals on how we are preserving the local way of life, fauna and flora, and wildlife. About ensuring carbon credit projects consistently go beyond carbon.

The Problem: Carbon-Only Accounting Misses the Point

Traditional MRV systems often overlook the full value that nature-based solutions can deliver. A project that reduces emissions but fails to preserve species, excludes women from decision-making, or degrades local water sources may still be "verifiable" — but is it valuable?

Of course, estimating the amount of tonnes of carbon dioxide being removed or offset is critical to battling climate change and is at the heart of carbon credit projects. However, if we reduce projects to these numbers alone, we lose sight of crafting solutions for the real-time obstacles that local communities and ecosystems are facing as a result of negative climate activities like deforestation. 

Carbon project developers are selling themselves short when they only focus on the carbon piece of the puzzle. Carbon credit projects aren’t the place to cut corners across other social initiatives, but are exactly the avenue that communities and environments need to receive benefits that tackle the wide range of damage brought on by climate change.

At EcoforestCO2, we believe that carbon integrity must go hand-in-hand with social and ecological integrity. That’s why we’re building a multi-dimensional MRV framework that captures not just carbon flows, but human well-being, biodiversity, and long-term ecosystem functionality.

Reimagining MRV: Our Approach

In our IFM (Improved Forest Management) and ARR (Afforestation, Reforestation, and Revegetation) projects, we go beyond standard MRV protocols. We track more than 30 Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Here are just a few ways that we measure our impact:

• SDG 15 – Life on Land:
  
  • Number of hectares reforested
  • Number of endemic or endangered species monitored
  • Health of critical habitats

• SDG 6 - Clean Water and Sanitation:
  
  • Water retention improvements through restored micro-basins
  • Access to potable water in ejidos and indigenous communities

• SDG 5 - Gender Equality
  
  • Women’s participation in governance assemblies
  • % of technical and field roles occupied by women

• SDG 13 - Climate Action:
  
  • Early fire detection response time
  • Community-based climate adaptation training delivered

You’ll notice how it’s not all about hectares, but also about community training that can last for generations. It’s not just about improving water quality, but also about paying attention to easy access to drinkable water in the ejidos and indigenous communities we work with. 

We focus on these outcome indicators holistically because engaged, healthy communities shouldn’t be considered as beneficial spin-offs of carbon projects, but the very makeup of what makes these projects resilient.

This belief translates into everything we do — even down to how we communicate these projects.

Our reports aren’t written for auditors— they’re written for people. But they’re not written for just anyone either. They’re dedicated to the groups that we serve. Community leaders receive them in their own language, with visuals and contexts that are worthwhile to them, not just academic journals. Because what’s measurable must also be meaningful.

After all, if we’re only writing for VVBs and buyers, we’re missing perhaps the most crucial participants in the voluntary carbon market: the communities whose land and livelihoods will be disproportionately affected by climate change. 

Why This Matters for Carbon Markets

Markets are evolving. Buyers, ratings agencies, and platforms are beginning to demand more than just verified tons—they want verified value. Now, they’re looking for well-rounded projects demonstrating co-benefits around initiatives like community leadership, policy reform, and more. 

MRV processes are meant to lead by example, and there’s currently a large gap in how they account for co-benefits like these. We need to see MRV systems adapt accordingly to this change in the market. 

Why?

When MRV systems incorporate community and ecosystem-focused co-benefits, they:

• Differentiate their high-integrity credits
• Protect against reversals by investing in community stewardship
• Support long-term project viability through social license and trust

At EcoforestCO2, we’ve seen this firsthand. For example, we have closely tied our project in the San Bernardino de Milpillas, Chico ejido, to the Tepehuan (O'dam) indigenous community’s traditions. Incorporating their ways of sustainable land management makes this deeply personal and effective work for their ejido. This way, community buy-in is straightforward, and everyone is invested in the project’s success, which is critical to lowering the risk of reversal.

Projects that integrate co-benefits not only retain support, but they also expand. In that same ejido, community income from carbon has funded education centers, water infrastructure, and trout farms, which in turn reinforce forest protection. It’s a positive feedback loop rooted in visibility and accountability.

As it stands, nature-based project developers aren’t required to highlight co-benefits and work collaboratively with local and indigenous communities, but we consider it paramount to a project’s success and integral to stand out in the market. 

A Call to the Sector: Make MRV Human-Centered

MRV is not just a box to check — it’s a window into the true impact of a project. Let’s open that window wider.

Let’s move from compliance to confidence. From extraction to co-creation. From measuring tons to measuring transformation.

At EcoforestCO2, we’re proud to be part of this evolution. Because the future of carbon must be more than clean—it must be just.