2024 Reflection

Here is a 2024 reflection from Ekos.

Ekos team at September team hui in Christchurch. Back row (LtoR): Guil Berringer, Narendra Chand, Ian Challenger, Emma Crane, May Chang, Josh Leenhouwers, Felicia Whiu. Front row (LtoR): Tracey Waho-Blayney, Aimee Hyland, Sean Weaver, Cristina Barraclough, and Hanna Beatriz de Moura.

Nature-Based Solutions Team Reflection

As we approach the end of 2024, we take a moment to reflect on the milestones we've achieved, the challenges we've overcome, and the opportunities that have shaped our journey. It has been a year of growth, collaboration, and innovation, and we’re excited to share some of the highlights with you.  

Carbon Forestry Conference, Rotorua, 2024  

This year our Nature-Based Solutions team attended the Carbon Forestry Conference in Rotorua. We had the pleasure of listening to many insightful presentations as well as hearing our Ekos CEO, Sean Weaver present on Integrating Voluntary and Compliance Markets for a Common Climate Action Purpose.   

Narendra, Sean and Aimee at the Carbon Forestry Conference.

Sean Weaver, Ekos CEO presenting at the Carbon Forestry Conference

Area Registered into NZ ETS in 2024  

Our team has registered a total of 316 hectares across 8 landowners into the Emissions Trading Scheme this year. A big thank you to our clients for your cooperation and effort put into these applications, as well as the good you are doing for the planet by planting and enhancing native forests in landscapes across the country.

Ekos Senior Forest Carbon Consultant, Narendra Chand in the field preparing to enter the gorse for a vegetation assessment.

Otago Regional Council Sequestration Study  

Our team worked in close partnership with Whirika Consulting and Geoid Digital Geography to deliver a contract to the Otago Regional Council and the five district councils in the Otago region comprising a carbon sequestration study for the Otago region. This included evaluating the impacts of national, regional and district on carbon sequestration, carbon sequestration from non-forestry sources such as wetlands and on-farm vegetation. We also examined the wider impacts of different sequestrations sources, assessed risks and co-benefits for current and future sequestration potential. The study also included a forecast of potential sequestration out to 2050 under different policy scenarios. 

Example of analysis provided in our 6 consulting reports for this assignment. This graph depicts modelled annual sequestration (green) annual emissions (blue) and net emissions (red line) for a hypothetical scenario for a district seeking to achieve a net zero carbon position by 2050 for the entire district.

Plan Vivo Investment Readiness

Our team has been working with the Plan Vivo Foundation on a project called ‘Scaling with Care’. Plan Vivo is the world’s leading and longest serving community-based forest carbon standard and based in Edinburgh. Our role is to help build investment readiness for the Plan Vivo Foundation and Plan Vivo projects in different countries to enable the beneficial impacts of community-based forest carbon and biodiversity projects to expand. Under this project, we and the Plan Vivo projects engage with investors in a manner that protects the core values of these community-based projects. Our work also includes developing a series of financial tools and resources in support of an investment readiness programme for prospective projects seeking to certify to the Plan Vivo Standard. This arises out of our previous work developing four projects certified to the Plan Vivo Standard (one each in New Zealand, Fiji, Vanuatu, and the Solomon Islands).

Ekos CEO Sean Weaver with Plan Vivo CEO Keith Bohannon (right) and Plan Vivo Operations Manager Carrie Kretzer (center) working together in Scotland in October 2024.

Corporate Investments in Forestry and Biodiversity (CIFB) Conference, London, 2024

Ekos CEO, Sean Weaver spoke at the CIFB conference in London in October this year, focusing on investment readiness for community-based forest carbon and biodiversity market projects. This conference was an excellent opportunity to showcase our work to this international audience and gain valuable insights from investors and buyers on their preferences for supporting nature-based solutions projects.

Networking at the CIFB Conference (London). Ekos CEO Sean Weaver with Jamie Lawrence of Xilva – a company that helps projects with investment readiness. Sean and Jamie are working on supporting the due diligence protocols for Plan Vivo projects to enable them to access commercial financing for nature-based solutions projects.

Forest Carbon Project Development

We worked with a total of 21 different clients on forest carbon project development in different parts of the country. A common denominator is the desire among these clients to maximise the biodiversity benefits arising from nature-based projects focusing on restorative forestry and indigenous reforestation.

Ekos client Kauri Trees Limited, and their recent native plantings in Otago.

Biodiversity Markets

This year was a big year for interest in biodiversity markets, which are an emerging feature of the nature-based solutions sector. We provided advice to several different clients and the Ministry for the Environment on the potential for biodiversity credits projects both domestically and internationally. This included prospective clients in Mexico, the Pacific Islands, Ireland, Sweden, and Indonesia, as well as several entities and projects based here in Aotearoa.

Partnerships

2024 has also been a year of partnerships for nature-based solutions, with several new domestic and international partnerships in development or maturing into an operational phase. This expands our reach and helps to fulfil our aspiration for teamwork with great people and wonderful organisations. We will be in a position to announce some of these in 2025.

Ekos CEO Sean Weaver with Thorkild and Annette Grothe-Moller in Copenhagen in October 2024. Thorkild and Annette are owners of an ethical blockchain development company Trusticate, that Ekos has been working with for the last two years.

Carbon Management Team Reflection

Welcome to the Carbon Management Teams’ 2024 round up. As the year comes to an end, we thought it’d be a good time to reflect on what we’ve achieved throughout the year. This covers insights and experience into the latest developments such as the Climate Related Disclosure (CRD) reporting through to our annual team hui.  

Climate Related Disclosure (CRD)- Reporting Insights  

Climate-related disclosures refer to the reporting and transparency of a company or organization’s exposure to climate-related risks and opportunities, as well as how they are managing and addressing them. These disclosures help stakeholders, including investors, regulators, customers, and employees understand how climate change might affect a company's financial performance, operations, and long-term viability. Back in October, Ekos held their first webinar of the year on Climate Related Disclosures.  

Building on this momentum, Ekos are working with a few trial clients to help prepare them for CRD reporting to stay ahead of regulations and stakeholder expectations. By beginning to look at the risks and opportunities climate change poses to their business, whether it’s disruption to their supply chain due to climate events or consumer expectations, it will help them stay ahead of the curve.   

Ekos Internal Emissions  

Ekos are trialling EcoFixa to keep track of staff commute to incentivise and gamify staff commuting behaviour to encourage better, more environmentally friendly decisions. It’s been fun and the team are showing their competitive side.  

All in all, whilst we acknowledge this year has been hard in many ways with inflation and other changes, we are super pleased to see kiwi businesses continuing to do their bit for the environment. To another year of collaboration, inspiration and sustainable choices. 

Gui Berringer, Team Leader & Senior Carbon Analyst (Left) & Cristina Barraclough, Carbon Analyst (Right).

Events

Ekos have hosted Emission Reduction workshops, Carbon 101 courses through to attending a variety of Sustainability Events. As our team are based from North Island to bottom of the South it gives us a more holistic overview of different regions and industries. We enjoy engaging with collaborators, innovators and doers at events. Especially when we see regions coming together to make a wider impact, such as the Electrifying Queenstown event. This event was centred around decarbonising a region through electrification.

Wishing you all a joyful holiday season and a prosperous new year!