Accreditations & Memberships
Carbon Sync is committed to complying with all applicable accreditation, membership, registration and legislative oversight of the carbon industry in Australia, and, where appropriate, internationally.
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Carbon Sync is a Corporate Authorised Representative (No. 001305457) of Carbon IQ Trading Pty Ltd “CIQT” (ACN 167 028 211), Australian Financial Services Licensee (No. 450874).
Carbon Sync has been authorised to provide financial advice under this licence.
According to the Clean Energy Regulator, “Australian Carbon Credit Units (ACCUs) are classified as financial products under the Corporations Act 2001. This means that some participants may require an Australian financial services licence to buy, sell and trade in the carbon market.
The Australian Securities & Investments Commission (ASIC) is responsible for issuing licences under financial law, and monitoring businesses that provide financial services and products.
The Clean Energy Regulator also states, “carbon market participants who provide financial advice, trade, or make and operate and market in Australian carbon credit units, or derivatives of these units, require an Australian financial services licence (AFSL). Participants who conduct other financial services such as operating a registered managed investment scheme, or custodial or depository services must also hold an Australian financial services licence.”
Carbon Sync’s team recognises the importance of assuring its customers and stakeholders that it holds such a licence, and that team members who are involved in advising, educating and/or selling Carbon Sync’s services are fully trained to enable Carbon Sync to operate under this AFSL.
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Carbon Sync is proud to be a signatory to the Australian Carbon Industry Code of Conduct. The Code is a voluntary code, implemented by the Carbon Market Institute (CMI). Carbon Sync is a member of the Carbon Market Institute.
The Australian Carbon Code of Conduct outlines the principles and best practices for measuring, reducing, and offsetting greenhouse gas emissions. It is designed to provide guidance to project developers and carbon project stakeholders.
Carbon Sync has signed up to this voluntary code of conduct as a signal that we agree to meet the Code’s expectations and standards. We wish to signal this to our stakeholders, including project owners, land managers, industry bodies and Native Title Holders.
Being a signatory means that in developing our products and services, Carbon Sync aspires to deliver industry-best practices. We have given consideration to all the risks involved in establishing and managing a carbon project. Further, we have designed our carbon projects to minimise those risks to all relevant stakeholders. Being a signatory to this code ensures that certain standards for operating a carbon project have been met.
The Carbon Code of Conduct provides carbon farming organisations with access to best practices in measuring, reducing, and offsetting greenhouse gas emissions, which can help improve their sustainability initiatives.
By adopting the Carbon Code of Conduct, Carbon Sync seeks to build stronger relationships with stakeholders, including investors, customers, and employees.
You can read more about your rights as a carbon project participant on the CMI website. There is also guidance for consumers about working with Carbon Code signatories on the CMI website.
In the presentation of our offering to potential customers, we are required to provide full and transparent information. This means we give farmers all the information they may need to make an informed decision. The Australian Carbon Code of Conduct also has a complaints-handling procedure to support farmers. This procedure can be deployed in the event that a farmer has a problem with a carbon project developer.
You can see the list of signatories to the Code on the Carbon Market Institute website.
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Carbon Sync is a member of the Australian Carbon Market Institute. As stated above, we are also signatories to the Carbon Code of Conduct.
Why is accreditation, registration and legislative oversight important?
Accreditation, auditing and licensing is important in the carbon farming industry for several reasons:
Standardisation: Accreditation provides a consistent and reliable method for assessing the quality and legitimacy of carbon farming projects. This ensures all projects meet the same standards, which is essential for industry credibility and effectiveness.
Trust: Accredited projects can be trusted by investors, customers, and regulators to deliver the expected carbon reductions. This builds confidence in the carbon farming industry and promotes investment.
Accountability: Accreditation holds projects accountable to their stated goals and practices, ensuring that they follow through on their commitments. This can help prevent “greenwashing,” where projects claim to be environmentally friendly without actually delivering significant benefits.
Regulatory Compliance: In many regions, including Australia, carbon farming projects must be registered correctly to qualify for carbon credits under regulatory schemes. This ensures projects comply with legal requirements and best practices.
Market Access: Accreditation can provide access to carbon markets, allowing projects to sell their carbon credits to other businesses or individuals looking to offset their emissions. Without accreditation, these transactions would be much more difficult to arrange and less credible.
Innovation and Continuous Improvement: The accreditation and registration process often encourages projects to continually improve their practices and innovate to sequester more carbon more efficiently.
These reasons highlight why accreditation, registration and compliance play such a vital role in the carbon farming industry. It assures all stakeholders – from investors and buyers of carbon credits to regulatory bodies and the wider public – that the industry operates effectively and delivers genuine carbon sequestration outcomes.