Since their inception more than 30 years ago, carbon offsets have provided false comfort to those seeking easy solutions to the climate crisis. Encouraging one party to continue pumping greenhouse gases into the atmosphere while paying the other to do the opposite has been a huge departure from the decarbonisation of our economies and lives. One scandal after another has engulfed carbon offset schemes. Their credibility has been dented as evidence mounts that offset projects are not delivering the climate gains they promise. An investigation earlier this year found that 90 % rainforest protection schemes approved by the world’s largest carbon offset standards agency, Verra, were “worthless” from a climate perspective . This point was reinforced by a new study from UC Berkeley, which found that companies significantly overestimated the emissions their projects saved. (Kathleen McAfee, Kate Dooley).