Amazon's Carbon Credit Marketplace: A Genuine Climate Effort or Corporate Greenwashing?

Amazon's recent announcement that it will sell carbon credits to suppliers and business customers raises critical questions about the effectiveness and integrity of corporate climate strategies. While the tech and retail giant frames this initiative as a way to promote investment in nature-based solutions and carbon removal, it also underscores the growing debate about the role of offsets in emissions reduction.

A Convenient Climate Solution?

Carbon credits have long been a controversial tool. While they can, in theory, help fund environmental projects, they also provide an easy way for corporations to claim climate progress without making meaningful reductions in their own emissions. The Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi), a widely respected standard-setter, recently clarified that credits should be used only for residual emissions—those that remain after companies have done everything possible to cut their direct footprint. Amazon’s credits, however, seem to be positioned as a broader solution, potentially enabling companies to offset more than just the last, hardest-to-remove emissions.

Amazon’s Climate Track Record

Amazon itself has faced criticism for its environmental impact, from high transportation and packaging emissions to its growing energy consumption in data centers. Its Climate Pledge, promising net-zero carbon emissions by 2040, has been questioned for its reliance on offsets rather than fundamental operational changes. The company’s decision to sell credits rather than focusing solely on decarbonizing its massive supply chain suggests it is doubling down on market-based mechanisms rather than tackling its own footprint head-on.

The Bezos Earth Fund Connection

It’s also worth noting the timing of this move. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’s philanthropic fund was a major backer of SBTi—until it abruptly ended its $18 million grant in November 2023. This raises concerns about potential influence over climate standards and whether Amazon is promoting an offset-heavy approach in response to shifting industry narratives.

A Step Forward or a Step Back?

To be clear, investment in high-quality carbon removal and nature-based solutions is necessary. However, for Amazon’s initiative to be more than a PR stunt, transparency and accountability must be prioritized. Ensuring that these credits truly result in additional, verifiable emissions reductions is critical. More importantly, they should not serve as a smokescreen for companies—including Amazon itself—to delay or avoid real operational change.