Giotto

Objectives:

• Highlight BASF’s proven practical capabilities in delivering end-to-end Carbon Farming projects, enabled by digital farming tools that connect carbon farming schemes with farmers.
•  Build momentum and trust for scale-up, by drawing upon on experiences from recent projects, highlighting key lessons learned, implementation challenges, and opportunities for project developers, farmers, value chain actors, and certification bodies across Europe.
• Highlight the role of partnerships in delivery by illustrating how BASF’s Global Carbon Farming Program can support operators, farmers and value chain players in the implementation of future CRCF programs.
• Affirm support of EU government policies to promote CO2e emission reduction and targeted use of inputs for agriculture and support for modernized, accessible, sustainable agricultural practices.

Key Messages

• Alignment and harmonization matter for scale. BASF fully supports the aims and objectives of CRCF, particularly as the CRCF methodology has been developed to be like existing standards and protocols (VM0042) currently used by farmers and value chain players in the Voluntary Carbon Market. This is seen as beneficial as harmonization of existing practices will only help speed up the scale of adoption
• Credible delivery requires trusted partners. BASF is a credible leading partner in the Carbon Farming market. BASF’s Global Carbon Farming Program is open to future collaborations within CRCF projects, linking VCPs, European farmers, certification bodies and third-party innovation partners.
• Shared value can be achieved through the CRCF if integrity is ensured. Carbon removals and GHG emissions reductions can generate positive outcomes for climate through sustainable agriculture. To ensure that all players can be rewarded and/or incentivized to adopt sustainable agricultural practices, CO2e removals/reduction should be independently measured, monitored and verified.
• Accessibility and economic viability are essential for farmer participation. CRCF should be open to all interested European farmers, with participation requirements and costs that are economically achievable.
• Policy ambition must be matched with innovations available to farmers. BASF supports EU government policies to promote CO2e emission reductions and carbon removals, but it is imperative that farmers continue to have access to a viable toolbox of innovation that protect yields and resilience in the face of climate change.

We believe that CRCF must be accepted as a tool/ instrument under ETS, so that the hard to abate industries can use the verified carbon credits, which in turn would drive demand for farmers and all players in the European agricultural value chain.

We are pleased to note that CRCF will be open to the early adopters of sustainable agricultural practices in Europe.

BASF’s experiences around Carbon Farming projects

BASF is actively engaged in the development and implementation of Carbon Farming projects, through a number of pilot projects. which use our technology and products to enable CO2e emission reduction, and/or carbon removal in the soil, measurement and reporting.

BASF has developed a Carbon Farming platform, which enables farmers to reduce CO2e emissions at a field level and sequester carbon in the soil, by implementing recommended agronomic mitigation measures, including the use of cover crops, no-till and adoption of better nutrition management, based on our technology and models. The platform measures, monitors and validates (MRV) the savings from such activities, which once independently verified, allows farmers to get additional income, which is key in achieving farmers’ acceptance of carbon farming.

Experience gained from operating the Carbon Farming programs over the last three years has highlighted several challenges that potentially could hinder the large-scale adoption by farmers participating in such programs. These relate to ROI issues, managing complex data flow, the cost of soil sampling, MRV costs and calibration requirements, and eventual cash flow of the sale of generated credits.

Contributors:

• Stella Kontzidou, Senior Global Sustainability Communication Manager, BASF Agricultural Solutions
• Florian Feigs, Head of Global Sustainability, BASF Agricultural Solutions
• Andrew Beadle, Global Carbon Farming Lead, BASF Agricultural Solutions

Palladio

This contribution focuses on strengthening collaboration among agroforestry stakeholders to enhance the role of agroforestry systems in carbon removal and carbon crediting within the framework of the Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF). The session will begin with a brief introduction of the participants to identify their backgrounds and fields of expertise, followed by a system design approach aimed at mapping and defining key roles along agroforestry value chains, from farmers and advisors to researchers, policymakers, and private-sector actors.

Through participatory discussions, the workshop will highlight the needs, expectations, and challenges faced by the different actors involved in the implementation and scaling-up of agroforestry systems. Special attention will be given to the connections among these actors and to identifying potential synergies that can strengthen cooperation, knowledge exchange, and innovation capacity.

Building on insights from Living Labs and EU projects such as AGROMIX, DigitAF, and REFOREST, the session will encourage participants to co-design smart, context-specific solutions addressing both technical and administrative barriers to agroforestry adoption. The outcomes will contribute to a shared understanding of how multi-actor collaboration, digital tools, and coordinated governance can support agroforestry development and its recognition within the CRCF framework.

Draft Programme:

The session will be divided in two parts: 

Presentations (25–30 minutes)

Introduction: Practical Case Study 

• Alberto Mantino UNIPI 5 min

Use of fodder trees in Italy 

• Fabrizio Cella UNIPI 3 min

Is a quantitative definition of agroforestry possible in the CRCF? 

• Gerry Lawson EURAF 3min

Poplar based alley-cropping in Po valley 

• Anna Panozzo AIAF 3 min

Poplar agroforestry and carbon farming 

• Stefano Monaco, Pier Mario Chiarabalgio CREA 3 min

Polish Case-study 

• Alina Syp, Robert Borek, Paweł Radzikowski - Polish Agroforestry Association 3 min

Tools for agroforestry design and assessment

• Alice Ripamonti UNIPI 3 min

Facilitated table discussion on 5 practices/case-study (5 groups simultaneously)

• Mapping Value Chain Actors and Their Influences 15 min
• Identifying Key Challenges 15 min
• Co-developing Solutions 15 min
• Presentation of outputs (3 min each table) 15 min

Contributors:

• Alberto Mantino, University of Pisa
• Fabrizio Cella, Department of Agriculture, Food, and Environment - University of Pisa
• Gerry Lawson, European Agroforestry Federation (EURAF)
• Anna Panozzo – Researcher, Italian Agroforestry Association (AIAF)
• Stefano Monaco CREA Research Centre Engineering and agro-food processing, Torino (Italy)
• Pier Mario Chiarabalgio – Researcher, Council for Agricultural Research and Economics (CREA)
• Alina Syp - Polish Agroforestry Association
• Robert Borek – Polish Agroforestry Association
• Paweł Radzikowski - Polish Agroforestry Association
• Alice Ripamonti, Department of Agriculture, Food, and Environment - University of Pisa

Donatello

This 90-minute participatory workshop explores how agriculture with high water levels in wetlands and peatlands can become a cornerstone of Europe’s climate mitigation strategy. Focusing on the concept of Smart Carbon Farming, the session delves into how wetter agriculture can offer significant carbon emission reductions and additional carbon removals within the European policy framework. It also questions the economic viability of these business models.

The session opens with an introduction to the concept of Smart Carbon Farming and the critical role that wetlands, especially peatlands, play in reducing emissions and delivering durable climate benefits.

Building on this foundation, the workshop combines role-play and a World Café format and invites participants to step into the role of a “smart carbon farmer” in the year 2045. Guided by leading experts, they follow the real decision-making journey of a farmer managing a wetland landscape with drained peatlands. Participants rotate through thematic tables, making practical choices and reflecting collectively on how climate impact, agricultural productivity, and economic viability can be aligned.

Small-group discussions address four interlinked themes: (1) water-table management and emission avoidance, highlighting avoided GHG emissions as the primary climate benefit; (2) productive use of wetlands and value creation, including wet agriculture food and biomass, peat-replacement substrates, and biochar- and humus-based systems; (3) additional carbon sequestration and durable carbon removals beyond emission avoidance; and (4) measurement, recognition, and policy integration through Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV), with a particular focus on the EU Carbon Removals and Carbon Farming Certification Framework (CRCF).

The workshop aims to reflect on the set of policy instruments required to realise the vision of a future Smart Carbon Farmer. It concludes with a forward-looking discussion on the policy instruments, governance mechanisms, and market frameworks needed to scale carbon farming in wetlands. Participants leave with a clearer understanding of how agriculture on wetlands can contribute to Europe’s climate objectives—and which policy actions are necessary to make this transition feasible, investable, and attractive for farmers.

Contributors:

• Iryna Raiskaya 
• Greifswald University: Gerald Jurasinski
• Association of the Chambers of Agriculture of the Atlantic Area (AC3A): Clara Diebolt, Yann Mathias
• Green Restoration Ireland: Doug McMillan
• HumusGuru GmbH :Bernhard Aumann, René Notenbohmer

Mantegna 2

Carbon farming has a multitude of co-benefits associated with it. So many co-benefits in fact that they appear most important to staying within several more planetary boundaries than only the climate boundary (carbon tunnel vision). Livelihoods, provision of food diversity/nutrition, materials, water quality and quantity regulation, biodiversity, resilience, culture and sense of place - the closer we look the longer the list. These co-benefits however are almost entirely uncounted within current western industrialised economic systems. The struggle for fair and equitable carbon markets seems challenging enough - how could economic value be attached to biodiversity? Flood avoidance? Cultural connection? Indeed how can we ensure livelihoods of landholders who are the primary caretakers of these uncounted assets?

Whilst we cannot solve all the issues in a single panel or project, we can ask ourselves - does the way we value carbon farming through space and time affect the delivery of social and environmental benefits? How does our treatment of space and time (or lack thereof) affect the livelihoods of those who caretake these existing services, restore services and maintain them?

This panel will discuss the core topic of carbon farming co-benefits from the point of view of 1) who is providing which benefits 2) who is receiving those benefits and 3) over what space and time those benefits are accrued. Do any existing systems for carbon payments really align with providing all these additional values? How could we use CRCF to truly have the co-benefit outcomes our current and future generations actually need?

Contribution:

• Koen van Seijen - Investing in RegenAg and Food Podcast
• Ichsani Wheeler - Opengeohub Foundation
• Matteo Mazzola - Iside Farm
• Dr. Kelly-Ann Ross - RACE
• Prof John Gilliland - Chair ARCZero Farmers

Galileo

Carbon farming is gaining strength across Europe, backed by clearer rules, growing demand and rapidly developing certification tools. This momentum is encouraging—yet real‑world experience shows that carbon alone cannot capture the full value of agroecological transition. By linking carbon claims to independently measurable biodiversity and ecosystem outcomes, ‘Carbon+Nature’ approaches strengthen credibility, reduce greenwashing risks, and ensure incentives deliver real, verifiable change on the ground. Fragmented schemes, rising transaction costs and complex MRV systems risk slowing adoption. As Europe is moving towards Nature Credits, there is a unique opportunity to build something more ambitious, more coherent, and more farmer‑friendly.

This session highlights existing innovative approaches already shaping the “Carbon+Nature” landscape like the Fundación Global Nature’s Biodiversity Units, a robust framework tested in Spain and France and aligned with the EU’s Nature Credits Roadmap or the French PSE programmes, demonstrating how co‑benefits (water, biodiversity, landscape) can be recognised—but also how design choices impact monitoring costs and farmer engagement.

Together with farmers, technical experts and practitioners, and policy makers we will explore in a panel discussion how these tools can inspire the design of future Nature Credits: simpler, more integrated, scientifically credible and aligned with real adoption on the ground.

Contributors:

• Clara DIEBOLT, AC3A
• Vanessa Sánchez Ortega, Fundación Global Nature
• Véronique Chauvin, Chamber of Agriculture Pays de Loire
• Claudine Foucherot, Chamber of Agriculture Normandy
• Alexandre Morin, AC3A

Petrarca

Soil carbon projects are beginning to scale globally, and with that shift comes a new set of challenges. This panel brings together members of the International Soil Carbon Industry Alliance (ISCIA) to explore what it takes to implement soil carbon projects at scale, across different geographies, business models, and technical approaches.

While ISCIA members represent a wide range of companies, products, and perspectives, they are aligned around a shared set of core objectives for credible, scalable soil carbon markets. This session will highlight how differences in methodologies, technologies, and operating models can strengthen industry alignment rather than fragment it.

The panel will underline that the common objective is to produce robust carbon farming claims, which depend not only on rigorous MRV but also on farmer-centric project design, including data collection, technical support, engagement, and fair compensation.

The discussion will close by exploring why coordination across project developers, technology providers, buyers, and standard-setters is essential to move soil carbon projects beyond pilots and toward durable, high-integrity scale.

Contributors:

Moderator

• ChrysaLabs: Guillaume Breton-Ménard

Panellists

• Agreena: Petros Georgiadis
• Agricarbon: Annie Leeson
• Regrow: Anastasia Volkova anastasia@regrow.ag
• ChrysaLabs: Samuel Fournier samuel.fournier@chrysalabs.com
• ReGeneration: Paul Martin
• Perennial: JD Carluccio
• Seqana: Tobias Horstmann  

Mantegna 1

This session addresses how European carbon farming overcomes the cost-accuracy bottleneck through advanced technological solutions, demonstrating commercial viability under the EU Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF).

The first part of the session showcases four technical innovations optimising soil carbon measurement and verification (MRV):

In-Field Sampling & Lab Analysis (Agricarbon): Reducing measurement error across 25,000+ fields in 18 European countries by optimising the entire measurement chain—from field sampling design to laboratory performance—thereby lowering uncertainty deductions and maximising claimable carbon credits.

Earth Observation at Plot Scale (CESBIO/CNRS): Transitioning to high-resolution "wall-to-wall" monitoring using satellite data and crop-soil modelling to quantify soil organic carbon changes at the specific plot level where practices are implemented, automating manual verification to optimise costs across French projects.

Smart Sampling Strategies (Università Cattolica): Validating covariate-space optimisation algorithms over 2,000 hectares to determine the mathematical minimum sampling number, using multi-criteria decision analysis to identify optimal trade-offs between representativeness, accuracy, and total costs.

Hybrid In-Situ Sensing Framework (ChrysaLabs): Leveraging 60,000 co-located probe and lab samples to simulate sparse-sampling scenarios, identifying optimal sampling density that balances in-situ sensing costs against uncertainty-driven credit deductions across varying carbon prices and project scales.

The second part of the session consist in a panel discussion that examines systemic barriers to scaling—particularly data access and interoperability of public datasets—providing recommendations for cost-effective carbon farming advancement.

Contributors:

• Ahmad Al Bitar - CESBIO/CNRS
• Simon Bernard - Chrysalabs
• Heleina Black - Agricarbon
• Andrea Ferrarini - UniCatt
• Stewart Gee - Climate kic
• Edouard Lanckriet -AgroSolution
• Guillaume Vial - MyEasyFarm

Antenore

Robust data collection, sharing, and uncertainty management across the value chain are essential for accurate and cost-effective MRV in carbon farming. Building on insights from the previous two ECFSs, we learned that data from Long-Term Monitoring sites (LTM) are important for model calibration and MRV validation. However, greater trust and clearer incentives are still needed to encourage data sharing between the public and private sectors. At the same time, managing “Uncertainty” and establishing “Model Benchmarks” for robust MRV systems require a clear classification of the sources of uncertainties and how they can be introduced in a standardised quantification scheme consistent with the CRCF methodology.

Our previous discussions highlighted key challenges—both scientific and market-related—and led to several important recommendations: collect once, use many times; user-friendly digital tools with clear licensing; incentives that respect privacy and IP; and transparency from both data users and LTM owners to build trust. Looking ahead, implementing data-sharing agreements and incentive mechanisms could strengthen trust and enable more effective collaboration along the value chain.

Additionally, we explore how scientific insights on uncertainty can be translated into fair, enforceable, and scalable policy frameworks by clearly classifying uncertainty sources and integrating them into standardized quantification consistent with CRCF. This includes assessing the quality of Earth Observations (EO, e.g Copernicus) and ground-truth data, the role of in situ networks like ICOS ERIC (Europe), National Agricultural Soil Carbon Observatory - NASCO (Ireland), Field Observatory Network - FiOn (Finland) and Fluxnet/Ameriflux agricultural sites.

In this session, we will explore practical examples and success stories of data sharing, bringing together LTM data owners, private companies, and other actors in the value chain to discuss their respective needs. Together, we will brainstorm on how to find common ground, create trust, and translate previous recommendations into real-world practices.

The session will begin with short pitches showcasing success stories, followed by interactive discussions to address key questions, such as How can data sharing strategies benefit the different actors in the value chain? What uncertainty thresholds make a project bankable, and what operational hurdles limit on-the-ground implementation of complex MRV methodologies—and how can these systems be simplified without losing rigour?

Contributors:

• Chair: Hui XU, ILVO

Speakers:

• Flanders research institute for agriculture, fisheries and food (ILVO) Tommy D’Hose
• ICOS ERIC: Mariana Salgado
• ReGeneration: Wiebke Schulz
• Cinsoil: Antonella Succurro
• CESBIO/CNRS Ahmad Al Bitar
• Aarhus University: Sofia Biffi
• NILU, and EEA Copernicus in-situ (COINS): Ann Mari Fjæraa

Carraresi

• Establishing Credible Claims: Defining Ownership and Transparency in Agricultural Carbon Removals (Regrow Ag).
• Reliable Carbon Credit Markets with Soil Carbon Scientific Centre (SCSC) (AGviser AG).
• Estimation of Carbon and Nitrogen Restitutions from Cover Crops Using Satellite Images for Supporting More Sustainable Agricultural Systems (Airbus Space Digital – Geospatial Business).
• Beyond Carbon: Fertilizing Livelihoods and Restoring Land in Global South Communities (Boomitra).
• Soil Fertility Improvement and Effects of Regenerative Practices on Organic Carbon Sequestration and Related Ecosystem Services in Kiwi Fruit Orchards of the Mediterranean Area (Agreenment).
• Carbon Credit Fund (Innpact).
• Bringing Verified Scope 3 Claims to the Forefront of Decarbonisation Strategies (Agreena ApS).
• The Place of Carbon in Regenerative Agriculture: Aligning Carbon Farming with Ecosystem Regeneration (BIOSPHERES).
• Carbon Farming in Mediterranean Olive Groves: From Research to Market, Carbon Certification Pathways Through the LIFE. OliVER project (Tetis Institute S.r.l.).
• LIFE ClimatePositive: Advancing carbon farming in forestry across Italy (Maria Giulia Pelosi).
• WOOD4LIFE: locking carbon, from forests to buildings (Giulia Cecchinato).
• Carbon Farming in Northern Peatlands - LIFE PeatCarbon Project (Pēteris Āboliņš).
• LIFE SUPER EU (Inga Ķuze).
• Carbon Farming in Central Europe: Practical Experiences, Business Models, and Lessons from Two Years of Transnational Field Testing (Institute of Soil Science and Plant Cultivation State Research Institute).

Main contributors: Klim GmbH, CarbonAI Limited, Regrow Ag, AGviser, AG, Airbus Space Digital – Geospatial business, Boomitra, Agreenment, Innpact, Agreena ApS, BIOSPHERES, Tetis Institute S.r.l., Institute of Soil Science and Plant Cultivation State Research Institute.

Palladio

The purpose of carbon markets in agriculture is to compensate farmers for their efforts to increase and conserve organic carbon stocks in the soil, thereby helping to mitigate climate change. However, this objective may be hindered by various factors, and key farming organisations are calling for improved monitoring, reporting and verification methods, as well as approaches that incorporate indicators of farms' environmental, economic and social performance. This session will focus on proposing adequate methods to evaluate and reward the positive environmental services provided by farming beyond carbon sequestration and carbon markets, from the perspective of farmers. It will comprise four short presentations and an interactive discussion between the speakers and attendees. The titles of the four short lectures are as follows:

1. Pros and cons of participating in carbon markets from a farmers’ perspective
2. Holistic and outcome-based farm assessment
3. Small farms and local carbon markets: lessons from the field
4. Narrowing the Gap Between Farmers' Views and Policymakers' Decisions

Contributors:

• Chair: Pilas Andres, CREAF
• Juntos Farm, Alicia Torres
• SoilCo2, Katia Rivera
• Spanish Association for Regenerative Agriculture, Orson Acosta
• Agripurpose, Peter Froehlich

Petrarca

European Green Deal aims to make Europe climate neutral by 2050 and, to make this objective legally binding, the Commission has issued European climate legislation (Reg. EU No 2021/1119). To achieve this objective it was necessary to rectify some existing legislative proposals, including the Regulation on sharing "common efforts" and the LULUCF Regulation. European Regulation No 2023/857) sets a more ambitious target for reducing greenhouse gas emissions at Community level, from 30% to 40% compared to 2005 values by 2030.

EU Regulation no. 2023/839 has the objective of net natural carbon absorption within the EU of 310 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent for 2030.

In this context, on 19 November 2024 the European Council adopted EU Regulation no. 2024/3012 which aims to guarantee the achievement of the absorption objective envisaged for the LULUCF sector; to promote a voluntary market for carbon credits and to establish an EU certification system based on transparent and rigorous standards aimed at avoiding greenwashing. Therefore, the Commission will draw up a pilot methodology to assess the potential units generated by methane and nitrous oxide emission reduction activities by farms by 31 July 2026.

In this scenario, this contribution aims both to illustrate the certification methodology for animal husbandry, the certification methodologies adopted or present in other Member States, the synergies between interventions foreseen in the National Strategic Plan (NSP) of the Common Agricultural Policy 2023-2027 and European policies on the matter climate and of the IED Directive, which to assess the effectiveness of the interventions implemented by the CAP NSP; as well as propose a SWOT analysis of the sector to highlight the challenges of the ecological transition for Italian agriculture.

Contributors:

• Ilaria Falconi
• Giulia Pastorelli, Council for Research in Agriculture and Analysis of Agricultural Economics (CREA)

Mantegna 2

The old saying of ‘you can’t manage what you can’t measure’ has never been truer than in the delivery of service to current carbon farming markets. With the increased clarity offered to the market through new and clear requirements, including the CRCF regulation within the EU and externally through updated VCM standards such as VM0042.v3, it is finally possible to consider true outcome driven rewards for carbon farming. Further, the CRCF could go beyond generating short-duration credits for European farmers, and help us map a path towards unlocking long-term investments in regenerative agriculture and public digital infrastructure. This path could safeguard soil data, provide farmer agency and deliver climate accountability across generations.

To achieve this long-term vision for EU lands, all parties are best served with a clear scientific basis for determining uncertainty, whether using direct measurement, carbon process modelling, geochemical modelling, or digital soil mapping. Rigorous data-driven approaches also support understanding and allocation of long-term risks under CRCF.   

All of these conditions are required to create the institutional certainty necessary for carbon farming to become credible, scalable, and investible. This panel brings together diverse views on the current status of carbon markets and what the future direction, and roadmap to get there, may look like. 

This session is designed to be interactive and will request live (and anonymous) feedback from the audience. 

Contributors:

• Dr Antonella Ilaria Totaro, Investing in Regenerative Agriculture and Food (RegenEarth BV)
• Seqana: Julian Kremers, CTO and Co-founder
• European Commission DG CLIMA: Valeria Forlin, Deputy Head of Unit
• Verra: Carolina Lisboa
• RegenEarth BV - Investing in Regenerative Agriculture and Food podcast, Antonella Ilaria Totaro
• OpenGeoHub Ichsani Wheeler
• Race2reduce Kelly Ann Ross
• Chair of ARC Zero: Prof John Gilliland

Giotto

As Europe intensifies its efforts to meet ambitious climate and biodiversity goals, scaling carbon forestry and carbon farming is essential. This requires not only robust methodologies but also the development of solid and innovative business and financial models that attract private capital, align with policy frameworks, and ensure integrity across the value chain. This session brings together investors, project developers, certifiers, and financial institutions to explore how carbon forestry can evolve from niche pilots to bankable, large-scale solutions for climate and nature.

A key contribution will be Etifor’s cutting-edge work on developing business models for carbon finance, bridging the gap between supply and demand for carbon removals. Emphasis will be placed on models that move beyond traditional offsetting, including insetting within value chains, public-private partnerships, and integrated landscape approaches. Case studies will highlight where demand for removals is emerging and demonstrate how innovative financial structures can unlock this market potential.

From an investment standpoint, the discussion will address the “chicken-and-egg” dilemma in the forest carbon market, where high-quality, CRCF-compliant carbon removal credits struggle to find buyers amid regulatory uncertainty. Insights from institutional investors, such as Arpinge, will explore how private capital can be mobilized for high-integrity carbon and ecosystem projects, focusing on the fragmentation of the Voluntary Carbon Market (VCM) and the need for clear EU regulations and de-risking mechanisms to reduce investment uncertainty. Strengthening the three core components of the VCM - demand, supply, and marketplace - through hybrid public-private demand mechanisms and improved market infrastructures is critical to unlocking capital flow toward long-term climate and biodiversity goals.

Building on this, Caritas of the Archdiocese of Vienna - together with EY Austria - will present the results of a study commissioned to EY and BDO evaluating the current state of play of corporate and financial climate action in light of the CRCF, CSRD, and private initiatives like the SBTi. The findings will shed light on the alignment, potentials, and limitations of current frameworks and market mechanisms, opening the horizon for a more coherent and transparent carbon market. Caritas and EY will further illustrate real-world use cases and market barriers, showing how hybrid finance models and transparent market infrastructures can generate credible demand signals, accelerate market uptake, and ensure the long-term scalability of forest carbon credits.

The European Investment Bank (EIB) will share its experience in financing carbon projects, emphasizing the role of aggregators and the stacking of multiple funding streams, particularly in light of the Nature Restoration Regulation.

On-the-ground implementation will also be showcased through large-scale reforestation and restoration projects, such as those led by Land Life, demonstrating how multi-year monitoring approaches track carbon removal and ecosystem recovery, underscoring the importance of high-quality data and long-term performance monitoring in vulnerable landscapes, including the Mediterranean.

Finally, the session will explore how ecosystem service certifications, including those enabled by FSC, can connect verified ecological outcomes with ESG reporting, sustainable finance, and emerging Nature Credits initiatives. By linking Scope 3 reductions, insetting, co-benefits, and ecosystem-based claims with these frameworks, FSC’s approach helps companies translate ecological performance into measurable investment value.

Overall, the session offers a comprehensive overview of how innovative financial models, credible certification, robust monitoring, and supportive policy frameworks can scale high-integrity carbon forestry and carbon farming in line with EU climate and biodiversity objectives.

Contributors:

• Etifor | Valuing Nature Alessandro Leonardi
• Arpinge: Francesco Tomaiuolo
• Caritas Vienna: Klaus Kastenhofer
• EY denkstatt: Johannes Tintner-Olifiers
• EIB: Stephen Hart
• Land Life Company: Axelle Ducos
• FSC international: Ondrej Tarabus

Donatello

In 2022 and 2024, the European Commission’s Carbon Removal Certification Framework overlooked small-scale farms, exposing a significant gap between EU market mechanisms and the realities of small-farm operations. Hence, the majority of European farms remain unable to benefit from climate transition incentives.

This workshop brings together stakeholders to explore how small farms can be onboarded into environmental markets, making participation both financially viable and operationally feasible.

We will discuss the quality and traceability of carbon credits, examine the motivations of buyers seeking local, high-integrity credits, and identify practical pathways toward inclusive, trustworthy carbon markets.

About the Workshop

This interactive, solution-focused session invites participants to collaborate in small groups, each addressing a specific stakeholder perspective, including farmers, buyers, platforms and public bodies. Together, participants will identify barriers, define challenges, and co-create actionable solutions and share their results in a collective discussion.

Suggested challenges include:

1. How can carbon markets be made financially viable for small farms?
2. How can we ensure the quality and credibility of carbon credits and certification?
3. How can we attract buyers for premium-quality, locally generated European credits?
4. What types of credits should we prioritize, carbon, biodiversity, water, or community-based?

Expected Outcomes

• Raise awareness about the exclusion of small-scale farms from current carbon markets
• Generate actionable ideas and solutions to foster inclusion
• Contribute insights to the EIT Food project PATH2CC
• Produce a summary white paper capturing key findings and recommendations
• Gather participant inputs on the workshop through an anonymous survey

The session will be facilitated by PATH2CC consortium members, composed of universities, farms, and industries.

Contributors:

• Chair: Marie-Lou Manca, ELEKS

Participants

• ELEKS, Lyubomyr Matsekh-Ukrayinskyy
• Juntos Farm Alicia Torres
• University of Helsinki, Marja Roitto
• Queen's University Belfast, Stephane Durand

Galileo

To support the development of a robust quantification methodology for the Carbon Removal and Carbon Farming (CRCF) Regulation, main approaches were proposed: measure–remeasure, TIER 3 modelling and hybrid approaches. A shift from costly, high-uncertainty approaches to hybrid, data-driven systems that are cost-effective and scalable across Europe is needed.

For modelling, critical issues for the CRCF methodology that need to be addressed include validating model performance and minimizing uncertainty and errors.

The objective is to share insights from the MRV4SOC and MARVIC projects, that are supporting the development of the CRCF framework. In the session, we will focus on different modeling approaches, including soil-centered models, ecosystem models with and without EO assimilation. We will explore their performance in croplands and agroforestry ecosystems, parametrization needs, validation against long-term experimental data. The discussion will also cover other key challenges for scalability, transparency and harmonization for model evaluation and issues related to uncertainties, including error propagation and impacts of scales. Using different case studies, the projects will illustrate these issues, highlight challenges and ways forward.

We will present results from some case studies of the two projects, focusing on exploring challenges and assessing solutions in modelling performance and uncertainties.

Contributors:

• Chair: Hui Xu, ILVO

Speakers:

• Greet Ruysschaert, MARVIC coordinator, ILVO
• Marta Gómez Giménez, MRV4SOC coordinator
• Judit Torres, INIA-CSIC
• Liisa Kulmala, FMI
• Marta Bertola, UCSC
• Maria Fantappiè, CREA

Antenore

The transition to carbon farming and regenerative agriculture is increasingly constrained not by ambition, but by data confidence and the ability to convert environmental outcomes into robust investment decisions. This interactive workshop provides an end-to-end view of how artificial intelligence (AI) can support monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) for soil organic carbon (SOC), enabling both credible carbon accounting and high-impact program design with a strong return on investment (ROI). First, we will demonstrate how to design an AI-based SOC monitoring pipeline, drawing on the Smart Carbon Farming (Interreg North-West Europe) MRV system: integrating remote sensing with proximal and in situ sensing, fusing multi-source datasets, and applying machine learning for SOC prediction, with attention to uncertainty, validation, and auditability. Second, we will show how AI and advanced modelling can translate MRV outputs into actionable decisions for companies and project developers: where to invest, how to prioritize practices, how to quantify ROI, and how to de-risk finance across complex agricultural supply chains while supporting sustainability reporting needs. The session will close with a co-created "Data-to-Decision checklist" to help participants assess AI-enabled MRV readiness and investment decision-making in carbon farming.

Contributors:

• Matthieu Duval
• Elleni Paulson, Regrow Ag, United States of America
• Ahmed Baha Ben Jmaa, Multitel, Belgium
• Fabian Dortu, Multitel, Belgium
• Prasad Dandu, Multitel, Belgium
• Bert Callens, Flemish Institute of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Research (ILVO), Belgium
• Simon Cool, Flemish Institute of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Research (ILVO), Belgium
• Tommy D’Hose, Flemish Institute of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Research (ILVO), Belgium 
• Dimo Dimov, Constellr GmbH, Germany
• Owen Fenton, Teagasc, Ireland

Mantegna 1

The session will begin with keynote addresses from the European Space Agency (ESA), Climate Analytics Finland Ltd (CAF) and Airbus Space Digital (France). 

Descriptions of the keynotes:

European Space Agency (ESA): ESA will present the outcomes of the EO for Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) of Carbon Removals conference (EO4MRV). It will present funded projects that are developing EO-based applications for Carbon Markets, in support of advancing EU climate goals through improved monitoring under the LULUCF regulation and the Carbon Removals and Carbon Farming Certification (CRCF) framework. 

Climate Analytics Finland Ltd (CAF): Science-based and data-driven Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV) tools are needed for establishing European level framework for carbon markets. The keynote will summarize the critical components for this framework, including European Research infrastructures and their open data, satellite remote sensing data and process-based modeling tools describing space an

Airbus Space Digital (France): The rapid loss of agricultural hedgerows in Europe is threatening the ecosystem services they provide, including biodiversity conservation, water and climate regulation, and carbon storage. To support the certification of high-quality agricultural carbon credits, and RegenAg programs, an automatic hedge detection method using Pléiades Neo 30cm satellite imagery has been developed. The approach is based on a foundation model which was retrained on 150 annotated tiles containing hedges in various landscape contexts in Europe and then tested in 18 countries in Europe. The performance of the model relies now on 0.87 of global accuracy across different european landscape contexts, different climates zones, different seasons and with different acquisition parameters (accuracy can still be improved by adding annotations if needed). The experiment confirms the relevance of using Pléiades Neo for hedge imaging and the potential of foundation model-based approaches for large-scale hedge mapping in different European contexts. This paves the way for integrating these analytics into operational tools for valuing hedges in RegenAg programs and agricultural carbon credits. With an upstream procurement, this EO-derived analytics can be made available in open access and free-of-charge to end users, to support carbon farming use cases. 

The invited panel of stakeholders, including research organizations, service providers, policy and market actors, will then discuss the current and evolving landscape of Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV) systems for carbon farming. Questions will be posed to the panellists by the moderator, as well as the audience. The panel will open with a forward-looking discussion on the latest developments in the use of EO for MRV purposes, addressing key needs, challenges, and areas where innovation is most required. Panel members will discuss the demand for timely and spatially consistent information/models on carbon stock changes and carbon removal dynamics, and the importance of defining indicators of change derived from EO data. Specific questions will be posed on EO-based MRV systems for the three ecosystem categories defined under the Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF) regulation: rewetting of peatlands, agricultural soils and agroforestry, and planting of trees. Through examples from research initiatives and operational service providers, panel members will illustrate how MRV approaches are adapted to the specific characteristics and challenges of each ecosystem type, and how these approaches are being translated into operational systems supporting carbon farming implementation across Europe. The discussion will also address the development of tools to assess co-benefits and trade-offs associated with carbon farming practices, and will outline elements of a research roadmap in light of upcoming EO data streams expected from 2026 onward.

Contributors:

• Neha Hunka
• Climate Analytics Finland and University of Helsinki: Tuukka Petäjä
• Maanvaalija: Lauri Jyllilä
• Airbus Space Digital: Marie Christine Delucq
• National Physical Laboratory (NPL): Joanne Nightingale
• BeZero Carbon: Saheba Bhatnagar

Carraresi

Keywords: Nature Credits, MRV, Carbon Farming, Agroecological Transition, Biodiversity Co-Benefits, Transaction Costs, Payments for Ecosystem Services.

Description:

• Unlocking Biodiversity and Nature Crediting Opportunities in Carbon Farming (Meo Carbon Solutions GmbH).
• Agro Carbon: Enhancing Sustainable Agriculture through Carbon Farming (Agro Carbon).
• Carbon Footprint Measurement, Carbon Credits and Reforestation Projects as Integrated Solutions for Climate Action (CO2 REVOLUTION).
• Why Soil Health, its Real Time Monitoring and the True Cost of Carbon Sequestration, Storage Must Be Central to the EU Voluntary Carbon Cert (BIONUA).
• Transforming Agriculture for a Healthier, Sustainable and Tastier World (Doktar Technologies).
• Scaling Measured Soil Carbon Sequestration Projects in Bulgaria: Lessons from Carbonsafe’s Experience (Carbonsafe JSC).
• Today's Agriculture in Africa (A. R Brenya Company Ltd).
• From Practice to Scale: Lessons and Insights from aeco’s Peatland Restoration Portfolio (aeco GmbH).
• Turning Soil Health into Climate Impact: Delivering High-Integrity Carbon Credits Through Regenerative Agronomy (Gaïago SAS).
• Scaling Carbon Farming Program and Resilient Agriculture While Ensuring Scientific Robustness Through Technologies (MyEasyFarm).
• Nature Based Solution Removal Project Development and Marketing (Anew Climate).
• Field Insights on Uncertainty Management in Carbon Farming Projects to Guide the Design of the European CRCF (Agrosolutions).
• MRV Certification Framework Workshop (Klim GmbH).
• Scaling Sampling Design for Carbon Farming MRV (Agricarbon).
• From Trust to Transformation: Data-Driven Carbon Project Ratings and Impact Indices for a Credible EU Carbon Market (CarbonAI Limited).

Main contributors: Meo Carbon Solutions GmbH, Agro Carbon, CO2 REVOLUTION, BIONU, Ecobase, Doktar Technologies, Stantec (on behalf of CINEA), Carbonsafe JSC, A. R Brenya Company Ltd, aeco GmbH, Gaïago SAS, MyEasyFarm, Anew Climate, Agrosolutions, Agricarbon.

Giotto

Several carbon farming projects have components or tasks which are exploring the MRV challenges facing the certification of agroforestry carbon farming projects. There is a pressing need to share information on their approaches and lessons learnt. This session will provide the opportunity for lightning presentations from up to 20 agroforestry-related projects, followed by a panel session identifying common issues and next steps. Projects which will be invited to contribute include: DigitAF, ReForest, MARVIC, MRV4SOC, CarbonFarmingMed, Trees4CLIMA, LIFE-CarbonFarming, CarbonFarmingCE, CarbonFarmingNorthSea, CAFAMORE, OGCR, OPERATION CO2, CarbonFarmDemo, HarvRESt, TRANS-SAHARA, AfroGrow, GALILEO and Natural Capital. Lightening presentations will focus on the EU’s Carbon Removal Certification Framework (CRCF), and also on how the emerging EU Nature/Biodiversity Credits Roadmap may open up new opportunities for recognizing and rewarding nature-positive actions. Opportunities for collaboration will be explored with the 3 Horizon Europe EU-AU projects which are strengthening agroforestry research and extension in Africa, including carbon-farming.

Contributors:

• Gerry Lawson
• Dienda Hendrawan
• Daphne Keilmann-Gondhalekar
• F. Delpinto
• Alberto Mantino, University of Pisa
• Beatrice Croce, ELO – European Landowners Organisation
• Rico Hübner, DeFAF – German Association for Agroforestry
• Anna Panozzo, AIAF – Italian Agroforestry Association
• Antinio Brunori, PEFC Italy
• Gilles Amadou Ouedraogo, Head, UNCCD Great Green Wall GGW initiative
• Dr. Sekouna Diatta, UNCCD GGW country office Senegal
• Aminata Diallo, UNCCD GGW country office Senegal
• Dr. Stanislav Shmelev, Environment Europe
• Giada Bertolini, ZABALA Innovation
• Almudena Blanco, ZABALA Innovation
• Anna Lorenzini, ZABALA Innovation
• Dr. Abrham Abiyu, ICRAF-CIFOR
• Dr. Ioannis Varvaris, Eratosthenes
• Dr. Olivier Roupsard, CIRAD IMAP
• Eleanor Gardner, TUM
• Claudia Heidecke, Thünen Institut
• Bernhard Osterburg, Thünen Institut

Galileo

The transition to a sustainable agricultural future requires going beyond the "unpalatable" technical language of carbon farming. This panel aims at putting in the spotlight the real transformation taking place on the ground, already being led by pioneer farmers who have implemented agroecology practices for generations—often without labeling them as "carbon farming".

Drawing inspiration from the achievements of the Interreg project Smart Carbon Farming, as well as the involvement of farmers in umbrella organisations such as Agroecology Europe, the European Agroforestry Federation and the European Environmental Bureau, this panel will focus on three main subjects:

• Capacity building for new entrants: Implementing digital e-learning and comprehensive training programs (developed, among others, by the project Smart Carbon Farming), tailored for the younger generation of farmers;
• Peer-to-Peer learning: Connecting new practitioners with experienced pioneers to share "field-tested" tips and success stories;
• Reflecting on opportunities for more inclusive engagement: Designing agro-environmental supports that may reach the 30% of EU farmers currently disconnected from agricultural subsidies - while also providing better tailored support to those already benefiting from EU funds

Contributors:

• Constantin Muraru 
• Alexandre Cottin
• Mathieu Mal
• Matteo Metta

Carraresi

Regenerative management practices and Carbon farming are increasingly recognised not only for their role in climate change mitigation but also for the Beyond Carbon positive externalities they deliver in terms of soil health, water systems, biodiversity and generally for ecosystem resilience. Scaling nature-positive credits and practices requires robust and credible ways to define, measure, verify and reward their outcomes while keeping MRV operationally feasible and cost-effective across diverse farming systems, land-use types, geographies and markets.

This session will focus on how practice and outcome-based frameworks, combined with MRV systems, can provide a robust structure to monitor and integrate Beyond Carbon co-benefits at farm and landscape scale. This session will ground itself in applied real-world examples drawn from panelist experience, including initiatives such as the SAI Regenerating Together Framework framework, the EU LIFE Biodiv CrEW project in EU wetlands, LIFE Wetlands4Climate (Mediterranean wetlands; direct GHG flux measurements and CRCF-aligned MRV) and England's statutory Biodiversity Net Gain market. These examples will be used to share early lessons and benchmark existing schemes, their methodologies and MRVs, including trade-offs between scientific rigour, scalability and transaction costs, and why carbon-only accounting can undermine the business case in high-value ecosystems such as wetlands.

A strong scientific foundation will underpin the session, through the presence of the Joint Research Centre (JRC) to share and illustrate evidence-based tools to illustrate how scientific findings should guide the design and integrity of Beyond-Carbon measures while identifying synergies and trade-offs. With this variety of stakeholders represented in the panel a strong attention will also be brought to ensuring a complete alignment between science, the reality of implementation and regulatory requirements.

The panel will conclude with a multi-stakeholder open floor discussion on emerging mechanisms to reward land-managers who restore and protect nature and on how lessons from testing Beyond-Carbon initiative in real landscapes can inform the development of credible, effective European frameworks to finance ecosystem restoration and accelerate the transition toward regenerative and nature-positive agriculture at scale.

Contributors:

• Romain Boulet, Soil Capital
• Anna Uebachs, aeco GmbH
• Ivan de Klee, Nattergal Ltd
• Simona Bosco, JRC
• Gian Luca Bagnara, Cà Colonna
• Vanessa Sanchez Ortega, Fundacion Global Nature

Petrarca

Building on the previous consultation to develop fit-for-region carbon farming and carbon credit schemes conducted under CREDIBLE, in this session we will explore initiatives that take different approaches to design carbon projects.

• In Catalonia, a review of 25 results-based methodologies for certification of SOC is shaping the thinking about a regional scheme;
• in the Netherlands, a farmer-led regional carbon farming initiative is using practice-based remuneration to build trust and connect supply and demand;
• in Switzerland, a project is running from 2020 and provides insights into the design of carbon farming projects with results-based payment schemes and intensive farmer involvement;
• in Veneto, they recently launched a regional certification scheme based on viable regenerative agricultural practices; and
• in Canada, they could draw valuable lessons on subsidiarity from multi-Level Governance in Nature-based Carbon Projects.

After briefly presenting their respective initiatives, speakers will contrast different approaches and discuss how monitoring and certification methodologies, emerging standards and governance frameworks can enable robust, locally adapted yet interoperable soil carbon markets that work for farmers, regulators and private sector.

Contributors:

• Moderator: Sonia Pietosi, EIT Food

Presenters/panellists

• Lorenzo Furlan, Agriculture Innovation Director, Veneto Agricoltura
• Lucila Gonzalez, Soil Carbon Certification Specialist Institute of Agrifood Research and Technology (IRTA)
• Laurence Pelletier, Carbon and Sustainability Lead, ChrysaLabs
• Sam Wisse, Climate Project Expert, ZLTO (Smart Carbon Farming Interreg)
• Markus Steffens, Group Leader Soil fertility and Climate, Research institute of organic agriculture FiBL

Mantegna 1

Carbon farming is increasingly promoted as a policy instrument to support climate mitigation and environmental objectives in agriculture. However, its effective deployment is constrained by unresolved issues related to Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (MRV), certification standards, governance arrangements, the alignment between public policy frameworks and private market initiatives, and farmers’ lack of trust in such initiatives. This panel addresses these challenges by bringing together evidence from research projects, private certification schemes, and local and regional implementation experiences.

The session will present early findings from the MARVIC and MRV4SOC Horizon projects on stakeholders’ views regarding MRV requirements, policy coherence with EU environmental objectives, stakeholders’ trust in carbon credits and agri-food companies’ willingness to pay for verified emission reductions and removals. The session will then showcase practical experiences from on-the-ground implementation. These include the development of a holistic certification framework for carbon farming that integrates soil health, biodiversity, and water quality as key co-benefits. The framework is established through a multi-stakeholder approach, involving agri-food companies, researchers and farming communities. Then a local carbon credit scheme developed by a network of B Corp companies in the Vicenza region (Italy) will be presented, followed by a large-scale certification approach in the global coffee sector. These will offer insights and recommendations on how certification systems can strengthen integrity, credibility, feasibility, and reward mechanisms for farmers. Finally, a public-private action platform supporting carbon farming and carbon removal in Flanders (Belgium) will be illustrated. Together, these cases illustrate different pathways to operationalise MRV principles, governance arrangements, and financing mechanisms across diverse territorial and value-chain contexts.

Through 6 short presentations and a moderated discussion with representatives of farmers’ organisations, agri-food companies, SMEs, policymakers, and advisors, the panel will address key questions on how to bridge the gap between scientific design, policy frameworks, and market implementation, contributing to the development of trustworthy and scalable carbon farming schemes in Europe.

Contributors:

Speakers:

• Silvia Coderoni, Associate Professor, University of Teramo;
• Niklas Witt, Aarhus University;
• Lisa Vanderheyden, UCLouvain;
• Katarina Heidrich, International Sustainability and Carbon Certification;
• Daniele Pernigotti, Aequilibria srl;
• Lorena Huber, 4C Services GmbH;
• Anton Maertens, Flemish Action Platform For Carbon Removal & Carbon Farming

Panellists:

• Romain Boulet, Soil Capital;
• Andrea Tosoroni, Arca Srl Benefit;
• Sam Wisse, ZLTO;
• Alessandro Zatta, Research Centre on Animal Production

Mantegna 2

During this session, 5 perspectives will be heard, starting with a new financial piece of architecture with a global reach, through to a European focused study, followed by a regional study, then finishing with two national examples:

The presentations find their focus on the various stakeholders involved in carbon farming, including policy makers, farmers, operators and companies paying for carbon farming. They include: A new private sector financing mechanism, a decision-support framework for design and scalability, considerations on the importance of biodiversity as a co-benefit, crucial elements of environmental agreements, and how to include small and medium-sized farms.

Speakers and Presentations

(Åsa Lindh) How we involve the corporate sector in financing the gap present in national State-budgets for climate and nature, using a new financial mechanism: The Generational Contribution.

(Nidhi Raina) The research identifies key knowledge gaps in the designing and scaling of carbon farming contracts, examines efficient incentive mechanisms for carbon removal schemes, and presents a decision-support framework for designing high-performing schemes informed by global carbon farming experts and stakeholders.

(Pia Otte) The importance of biodiversity co-benefits in carbon farming programs, and issues surrounding local vs. international carbon and nature-credits, as well as the growing role of biodiversity in corporate sustainability reporting.

(Georges Assaker) Designing carbon farming contracts to increase farmers’ willingness to participate, and the need for stronger incentives and clearer information between farmers and policymakers.

(Mayra Vázquez) Presenting a techno-economic model, highlighting the importance of appropriate financial design, as the lack of such is likely to result in small and medium-sized farms being left out, with the conclusion that carbon farming has clear potential to be economically viable.

Contributors:

• Initiative 1415:
  • Asa Lindh
  • Christopher Bonde
• Ruralis: Pia Piroschka Otte
• Central University of Catalonia Mayra Vazquez Martinez
• University of Bologna: Nidhi Raina
• University of Ferrara: Geaorge Assaker
• Wester Norway university of Applied Sciences: Natalia Maehle

Palladio

This session explores how Improved Forest Management (IFM) can deliver credible, climate-resilient carbon removals in Europe under the EU Carbon Removals and Carbon Farming Framework (CRCF) and the LULUCF Regulation. Bringing together practitioners, scientists, policymakers, and certification bodies, the session connects on-the-ground IFM practices with methodological challenges related to baseline setting, additionality, permanence, leakage, and cost-effective monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV). Through participatory discussion, expert panels, scientific analysis, and a national case study, the session examines how EU-level certification, national registries, and voluntary standards can be aligned to ensure high-integrity, transparent, and inclusive forest carbon certification systems that reflect climate risks and Europe’s diverse forest contexts.

The session is structured as a progressive learning and dialogue journey, moving from EU policy framing, to practical implementation, certification alignment, scientific integrity, and finally national governance, before closing with integrated reflections and takeaways.

The session opens with a Welcome and Framing led by Climate KIC, situating the merged programme within the objectives of the European Carbon Farming Summit and the evolving EU policy landscape. This introductory segment explains the role of Improved Forest Management (IFM) within the Carbon Removals and Carbon Farming Framework (CRCF) and the LULUCF Regulation, and clarifies how the individual session components are interconnected. It establishes forest carbon integrity, governance coherence, and climate resilience as core principles underpinning credible carbon farming in Europe, setting a shared foundation for the discussions that follow.

Building on this policy framing, the programme moves into a participatory workshop on Improved Forest Management in Practice, led by Climate KIC through the Horizon Europe INFORMA project. This session grounds the discussion in real-world forest management practices across Europe’s diverse ecological and ownership contexts. Participants explore how climate-resilient IFM practices are implemented on the ground and how they can be translated into credible carbon certification methodologies, with particular attention to dynamic baseline setting, additionality, and cost-effective monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV). Interactive group discussions allow participants to identify key barriers and enabling conditions for integrating IFM into European carbon farming frameworks in a way that is scientifically robust, inclusive, and responsive to climate change.

The workshop outcomes then feed directly into a panel discussion on harmonising forest carbon certification, led by Etifor Srl Società Benefit. This session examines how the EU-level CRCF can align with and complement national and voluntary forest carbon standards to deliver high-integrity outcomes. Panellists discuss interoperability and governance across EU frameworks, national schemes such as Italy’s forestry carbon credit system and the French Label Bas-Carbone, and international standards including Verra, Gold Standard, and FSC Ecosystem Services. The discussion also considers how biodiversity and other co-benefits can be integrated into forest carbon claims, and how emerging initiatives such as Nature Credits and CRCF-aligned pilot projects can support coherence across certification systems.

To strengthen this governance discussion with a rigorous scientific lens, the programme then turns to a scientific presentation on integrity and risk in forest carbon credits, led by AgroParisTech and academic research partners. This segment critically examines two structural risks impermanence and market leakage that can undermine the climate effectiveness of forest carbon credits. By demonstrating the limitations of static buffers and partial leakage deduction.

Contributors:

• Mohua Karim Climate-KIC (Netherlands)
• Valeria Forlin DG CLIMA, European Commission
• Simon Martel I4CE – Institute for Climate Economics / Label Bas-Carbone (France)
• George McLoughlin Climate-KIC (Netherlands)
• Julia Grimault I4CE – Institute for Climate Economics (France)
• Ondrej Tarabus FSC International
• David Hynes Gold Standard
• Spencer Plumb Verra 
• Saverio Maluccio CREA – Policies and Bioeconomy Research Centre (Italy) 
• Ugo Chiavetta CREA – Forestry and Wood (Italy)
• Davide Pettenella University of Padua (Italy)
• Mauro Masiero University of Padua (Italy)
• Nicola Andrighetto Etifor Srl Società Benefit (Italy)
• Maria Giulia Pelosi Etifor Srl Società Benefit (Italy)
• Jens Abildtrup University of Lorraine; University of Strasbourg; AgroParisTech; CNRS; INRAE; BETA (France)
• Hannes Böttcher Öko-Institut (Germany)
• Tommaso Chiti DIBAF, University of Tuscia (Italy)
• Philippe Delacote University of Lorraine; University of Strasbourg; AgroParisTech; CNRS; INRAE; BETA; Climate Economics Chair (France)
• Jurij Diaci University of Ljubljana (Slovenia)
• Aleksi Lehtonen Natural Resources Institute Finland (Luke)
• Helga Pülzl European Forest Institute (Finland)
• Andreas Schindlbacher Austrian Research Centre for Forests (BFW), Austria 
• Andreas Kontoleon University of Cambridge, C-EENRG (UK)
• Ana Rey National Museum of Natural Sciences (MNCN), CSIC, Spain
• Miguel A. Zavala Universidad de Alcalá; FORECO; Department of Life Sciences (Spain)

Antenore

Tier 3 model-based Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification systems require a large number of input data to calibrate, run and validate the applied models. The efficient and accurate sharing and use of those data requires systematic collection and storage, applying standard formats and vocabularies and aggregation or disaggregation at appropriate scales. Standardisation is at the basis of reusability, which is one of the FAIR principles, and is a prerequisite for interoperability and harmonisation, that is, those procedures which eventually can permit to minimize the errors, in case data collected with different standards is combined. MRV systems require data of soil, land use and management, and climate, as well as collected using different data collection techniques (in field, lab, remote sensing). The different domains require different standards and tooling, developed and maintained by different groups.

This session explores data standardisation and harmonisation for Tier 3 model-based MRV (Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification) systems, which require large, diverse datasets for calibration, running, and validation. Efficient use and sharing of soil, land use, management, and climate data—collected via field, lab, or remote sensing—depend on systematic collection, standard formats, vocabularies, and appropriate aggregation or disaggregation. Standardisation underpins FAIR principles, enabling reusability, interoperability, and harmonisation, which reduce errors when combining datasets from different sources. The session presents recent advancements and best practices, with introductory presentations by experts covering MRV data assessment, benchmark sites, sampling design, and the operationalisation of standardised vocabularies. Participants will engage in breakout groups to discuss challenges and co-develop solutions, followed by a plenary wrap-up. The session aims to foster interaction among stakeholders and advance the alignment of standards and tools, supporting more reliable, efficient, and interoperable MRV systems for carbon and soil monitoring.

Format:

A. Introductory presentations including those from invited speakers

1. Introduction to the topic of data standardisation and harmonisation for MRV by Maria Fantappiè (CREDIBLE/MRV4SOC). This includes an overview of the concepts and possible solutions, like transfer functions, ~5-10 min.
2. Demo and Benchmark sites, their use, design and requirements, incl. appropriate sampling design a joint presentation by the MARVIC and MRV4SOC projects, likely represented by Sofia Biffi or Greet Ruysschaert and Maria Fantappiè. ~ 15 min incl questions
3. Farm data assessment for MRV, availability, accessibility and interoperability of sources by Hui Xu (MARVIC/CREDIBLE), this includes the findability of sources, eg. through a dedicated metadata catalogue ~ 15 min incl questions
4. Need and operationalisation of standardised vocabularies for MRV by Fenny van Egmond (MARVIC/SoilWise/CAFAMORE) data standards and standard vocabularies in general and specifically for MRV purposes, from theory to derivation and application in the community. ~ 15 min incl questions

B. Breakout groups with dedicated discussions between participants on the topics of the session: 3 subgroups: ~30 minutes

C. Plenary wrap up of breakout groups ~5-10 minutes

Contributors:

Chair: Dr. Maria Fantappiè, (CREDIBLE, MRV4SOC, Soilwise) Senior Researcher at Council for Agricultural Research and Economics - Agriculture and Environment (CREA-AA).

Speakers:

• Dr. Hui Xu, MARVIC project manager, Researcher at Flanders research institute for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (ILVO)
• Dr. Sofia Biffi, Postdoc researcher at Aarhus University
• Dr. Fenny van Egmond, MARVIC/SoilWise/CAFAMORE, Wageningen Environmental Research (WENR) and ISRIC – World Soil Information

Support:

Kathi Schleidt (DATACOVE), Panagiotis Tziachris (SWRI), Gitanjali Thakur (LIST), Arthur Monhonval (SOIL CAPITAL), Greta Formaglio (EAGRONOM), Carlos Lozano Fondon (CREA-AA), Stefano Monaco (CREA-FL)