CIVIL SOCIETY LETTER TO THE CDM POLICY DIALOGUE PANEL

The document argues that the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) has failed its dual goals of reducing emissions and promoting sustainable development. It highlights that 40-70% of projects are non-additional, meaning they would have occurred without CDM registration, and that many projects cause social and environmental harm. The signatories call for the exclusion of fossil fuel and large hydro projects, the implementation of 'do no harm' assessments, and the creation of meaningful public participation and grievance mechanisms.

• The Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) has failed to meet its goals of reducing global emissions and achieving sustainable development, with a large portion of credits coming from industrial projects that provide no social or environmental benefits and may cause harm.
• Additionality rules are viewed as ineffective formalities, with an estimated 40-70% of CDM projects being non-additional (business-as-usual). The authors argue that large infrastructure projects, specifically coal and large hydro-power, should be excluded.
• The CDM currently allows project types that promote fossil fuels and cause technological lock-in of emissions or loss of biodiversity, such as incinerators and monoculture plantations.
• Sustainable development assessments are currently left to host country governments without supervision from the CDM Executive Board, leading to a lack of transparency and reported human rights abuses.
• Public participation in the CDM process is described as a mere formality, with inadequate communication with impacted communities and a restrictive 30-day public commenting period limited to English.

APA

Dupuis, J., & Patel, V. V. (2012). CIVIL SOCIETY LETTER TO THE CDM POLICY DIALOGUE PANEL. Carbon Market Watch. https://carbonmarketwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/Civil-Society-Letter-to-the-CDM-Policy-Dialogue-Panel.pdf

Chicago

Dupuis, Johann, and Viresh V Patel. CIVIL SOCIETY LETTER TO THE CDM POLICY DIALOGUE PANEL. Carbon Market Watch, 2012. https://carbonmarketwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/Civil-Society-Letter-to-the-CDM-Policy-Dialogue-Panel.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Dupuis |first1=Johann |last2=Patel |first2=Viresh V |title=CIVIL SOCIETY LETTER TO THE CDM POLICY DIALOGUE PANEL |publisher=Carbon Market Watch |date=21 May 2012 |url=https://carbonmarketwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/Civil-Society-Letter-to-the-CDM-Policy-Dialogue-Panel.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{dupuis2012civil, author = {Dupuis, Johann and Patel, Viresh V}, title = {{CIVIL SOCIETY LETTER TO THE CDM POLICY DIALOGUE PANEL}}, publisher = {Carbon Market Watch}, year = {2012}, month = may, url = {https://carbonmarketwatch.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/Civil-Society-Letter-to-the-CDM-Policy-Dialogue-Panel.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }