New Arbor Day Foundation Report Calls for Financial Innovation in Voluntary Carbon Market

The 2025 Insights Summary outlines opportunities to unlock greater investment in high-quality forest carbon removal projects

LINCOLN, Neb.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--There’s a growing need to explore financial creativity in the voluntary carbon market (VCM), according to the Arbor Day Foundation’s 2025 Insights Summary. The annual report developed by the Foundation’s team of VCM experts considers the barriers limiting current investment in nature and the range of innovative solutions that could help overcome them.

“To strengthen nature, we need to strengthen investment in nature. That’s why it’s so critical we limit hurdles for VCM buyers and embrace more creative, collaborative approaches,” said Jeremy Manion, managing director of carbon markets. “In this report, we’re digging into the strategies we believe can help some buyers navigate a lack of technical or financial expertise, reduce risk, lower transaction costs, and ultimately draw more people to this important market.”

According to the United Nations Environment Programme, current investment in nature-based solutions like reforestation is just one-third of the total financing needed to meet climate, biodiversity, and land restoration targets by 2030.

In addition to an analysis of innovative financial opportunities in the VCM, the 2025 Insights Summary also includes a close examination of the state of the VCM, the environmental and economic importance of forest carbon projects, and an outlook for the future of the market.

Visit arborday.org/carbon to download the full report and learn more about how the Arbor Day Foundation can help serve as a trusted partner for businesses looking to engage in the VCM.

The Arbor Day Foundation specializes in fostering strong connections with corporate buyers, investors, project developers, and on-the-ground planting partners to drive tangible impact in critical ecosystems. We are a global leader in transacting forestry carbon credits to reinvest into planting and growing new trees. The organization has retired more than 1.6 million credits on ACR, more than any other nonprofit, and has transacted nearly 10 million credits in total.

About the Arbor Day Foundation

The Arbor Day Foundation is a global nonprofit inspiring people to plant, nurture, and celebrate trees. They foster a growing community of more than 1 million leaders, innovators, planters, and supporters united by their bold belief that a more hopeful future can be shaped through the power of trees. For more than 50 years, they’ve answered critical need with action, planting more than half a billion trees alongside their partners.

And this is only the beginning.

The Arbor Day Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit pursuing a future where all life flourishes through the power of trees. Learn more at arborday.org.