100,000. That’s the number of acres, spread across 19 states, stewarded by more than 750 family forest owners, that are now enrolled in the Family Forest Carbon Program (FFCP) and actively participating in the fight against climate change.

That’s 100,000 acres being managed or reforested to improve the long-term health, productivity, value and ecosystem benefits of our country’s woodlands. That’s 100,000 acres with 20- and 30-year commitments to this stewardship from hundreds of families. That’s more than 750 family forest owners who now have access to more than $24 million in direct incentives while also having technical forestry assistance most have never had before.

FFCP has reached this incredible milestone due to high-impact partnerships, iterative science and accounting, tireless efforts of the AFF team and the relentless commitment of family forest owners to caring for their lands. On this journey to 100,000, the American Forest Foundation continues to learn what it takes to implement and scale a high-integrity forest carbon project, improve the health and productivity of our forests and expand market access to rural landowners from all walks of life.

Meet Landowners Where They Are

A central element of FFCP’s success is our commitment to environmental integrity and social integrity, ensuring the impact we have is always a net positive for the communities with which we partner. Catering to each landowner’s unique forest, ensuring FFCP is the right fit for each interested landowner, and sharing the benefits of our collective success is baked into FFCP’s design.

Regular landowner payments, forester capacity, technical knowledge sharing and assistance and ongoing support beyond enrolled landowners’ contracts all help boost rural economies, increase the value of the forest, and ensure a real climate impact of our program’s intervention as we grow. We can’t fight climate change without listening to and meeting the needs of the communities where we work.

When a landowner enrolls in FFCP, AFF foresters survey the property and accommodate any level of landowner forestry experience, allowing them to take advantage of new opportunities while making educated decisions about their land. Our foresters map the forest, record plant and wildlife species, measure tree health and maturity and use these factors to get an accurate grasp of the land’s condition. From there, foresters collaborate with enrolled landowners to craft a Forest Management Plan. For a majority of FFCP enrollees (60%) this is their first ever management plan.

Photo credit: Drew Bennett, provided by the American Forest Foundation

“FFCP is a core element of my urgent goal to preserve our forests and mitigate climate change so my grandchildren (and their generation) can enjoy this farm and the rest of Vermont the way that our family has enjoyed them over the last 80 years.”

–Tim Stout, Jockey Hill Farm, Vermont Landowner

Science Drives Integrity

We’ve also learned that the latest science must drive measurable and verifiable impact in climate mitigation. In an emerging market like the voluntary carbon market, it is critical to base our project on the best science and carbon accounting available to ensure we can verify our climate impact.

The best carbon accounting means using a non-predictive dynamic baseline methodology. Working with partners, AFF co-developed a first of its kind methodology approved through the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS). Using this innovative methodology, we can compare forests enrolled in FFCP to neighboring unenrolled forests on a regular basis to accurately isolate how much additional carbon is sequestered by FFCP’s interventions. Our commitment ensures extra diligence on the permanence of our credits and helps us also mitigate leakage.

Landowners, credit buyers and other stakeholders want to trust that their investment is making a meaningful contribution to the climate, and our dynamic baseline methodology helps ensure the Family Forest Carbon Program makes a real, additional impact in the fight against climate change.

What’s Next for FFCP

We have learned so much on our path to enrolling the first 100,000 acres in FFCP and we continue to learn more. AFF’s job is to make the planet better in collaboration with family forest owners, and we’re actively fighting climate change alongside our conservation heroes— family forest owners—who are working every day to better the environment.

Want to learn more about the Family Forest Carbon Program? Visit familyforestcarbon.org.