A VRC™ is the monetized cost of the estimated impact of climate change, adjusted for the income level of the community, that will be avoided as a result of the project. In brief, it is a credit for work done to avoid damages or losses owing to climate change - a vulnerability reduction credit.
Uses of such a certification instrument could include providing impact investors with confidence that they are getting more than purely a financial return on investment. It may as well offer national and local governments, development financing institutions, and other donors a comparable tool for project design and prioritization, monitoring and evaluation. It could serve as a tool for international target setting on adaptation finance; however, knowledge of what these participants are already doing, and why, is a key foundation for understanding how our instrument can be of maximum social value.
To understand motivations for existing adaptation and adaptation funding, Higher Ground developed a report that considers:
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How is adaptation done, and why?
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What budgets support adaptation?
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If and how is adaptation assessed?
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Why assess?
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What do supporters of adaptation think of certifying the results of adaptation?