QUEBEC MINISTRY OF THE ENVIRONMENT, CAN.

This award is bestowed upon Quebec's Ministry of Environment and Climate Change and Parks (MELCCFP), recognised as the Architect of Cross-Border Emissions Trading System Linkage. Quebec stands out as a global pioneer in forging robust, fungible carbon market connections between subnational jurisdictions across international borders. This is notably exemplified by its groundbreaking collaboration with California, established since 2014.

This collaboration has meticulously established mechanisms ensuring the mutual recognition and seamless exchange of compliance instruments, thereby significantly enhancing market liquidity and overall cost-effectiveness for participating entities. The province’s rigorous framework for managing both domestic and international offsets, encompassing diverse categories such as methane destruction and vital afforestation/reforestation projects, unequivocally underscores its unwavering commitment to profound environmental integrity.

Crucially, Quebec's innovative 100% credit guarantee mechanism, which stringently requires the replacement of any illegitimate credits, powerfully fortifies market confidence and sets an exceptionally high benchmark for environmental integrity within linked carbon markets. Through these pioneering efforts, MELCCFP demonstrates exceptional leadership in advancing scalable and trustworthy climate action globally.