Member: SEKEM (aka Egyptian Biodynamic Association),

Location: Egypt

Size: 12,000 ha

Type of intervention: Sustainable agriculture (soil carbon)

The Economy of Love (EoL) Carbon Credit program, developed and owned by the Egyptian Biodynamic Association (EBDA) and inspired by SEKEM, has been further developed from a certification standard to a carbon credit initiative focussed on rewarding smallholder farmers for their environmental service. 

The EoL Carbon Credit program was launched at COP 27 under the auspices of the Egyptian Ministry of Environment, with support from UNDP Egypt. By implementing the EoL standard, farmers actively contribute to carbon sequestration through afforestation projects and soil carbon enhancement. Additionally, farmers can mitigate methane and CO2 emissions by engaging in compost production and adopting renewable energy practices. Participating smallholder farmers receive an additional income stream from EoL carbon credits.

In the year and a half since its launch, EoL has scaled the intervention to 5,000, aiming for 40,000 participating farmers in 2025. In rolling out the standard, EoL has observed that some farmers struggle with process and opportunity costs related to time-intensive MRV. A grant from CASH will support efforts to identify mechanisms for streamlining measurement and reporting by farmers, and data collection by EoL to support a streamlining process. The grant will also support the development of a case study documenting EoL’s experience and lessons learned through establishing and implementing a standard and carbon project.