It's been quite a year.
In a year when the Voluntary Carbon Market has reached record sizes and record prices, we have been challenged more than ever to stay true to our HELIOZ values while remaining relevant. Challenged to be part of public discussions but not be discouraged or tempted, flexible enough to seize an assortment of new opportunities but level-headed enough to stick to what we do best.
We've navigated.
Public discussion and scrutiny of carbon offsetting reached new heights this year. Viral YouTube videos and well-crafted newspaper articles questioned everything from reforestation projects to “carbon neutral” labels.
“Greenwashing” is the buzzword of the moment and the public clamour for some form of regulation in this Wild West of the Voluntary Carbon Market is getting louder and louder. We at HELIOZ are happy about all of it! We should be asking questions about where the money is going, where the credits are coming from and what makes a company truly “carbon neutral”. We welcome the opportunity to show what we believe to be climate projects with impact and integrity and how we envision sustainable growth of a trustworthy offset market.
We've broadened our horizons.
The fact that most of us are back in the office after a long period of Covid-19 virtual meetings also means that there is often a lot of buzz in our HELIOZ headquarters. One of the reasons for this is certainly the arrival of a new term: “Impact Investment”. With the financial market increasingly recognising the importance of values beyond the money horizon, impact investment is one of the trends for 2022 that we are really excited about. There is no hiding the fact that climate projects and impact work need funding to get started. For HELIOZ, the move towards using capital in a meaningful way is a great opportunity, not only to expand the work we’re doing, but also to generate income for everyone involved.
We've grown.
7 new members in 3 different countries have joined the HELIOZ team since our last annual report. It‘s a source of pride to us that we are growing this team and filling every area of our business with the best possible people and it shows us, that we’re moving in the right direction. You’ll meet them all as you read through this report.
Most importantly, we've created impact and reduced CO2 emissions.
This report shows the progress and impact of our climate and clean water projects over the past year. We also show you our technological advances, put our partners in the spotlight and talk in-depth about how we feel about the current state of carbon offsetting. It‘s been quite a year – and we are proud to tell you all about it with this report.