rePLANET is company with a simple focus: to drive large scale ecological restoration and protection through private sector funding. The company funds this work through the sale of carbon and biodiversity credits on the voluntary markets. For full disclosure; Global Footprint Network is one of the founders and shareholders of this company. It also has board representation.

One of rePLANET’s core principles is that the main beneficiary of the income raised should be the local stakeholders (owners, users or managers of the areas being restored or protected) instead of brokers and others based outside the countries of the ecosystems being restored or protected. In fact, it aims to bring at least 60% of the retirement value of the credits back to the local stakeholders – this is a multiple of current practice. rePLANET does this because it is fair, builds trust and makes the permanece of the restoration more likely. It also reduces the legitimate fear of countries that conventional credit schemes may unfairly exploit those countries as they extract value without bringing back little benefit.

Mangrove restoration projects are the primary way that rePLANET and its partners currently offer carbon sequestration. These projects deliver carbon sequestration in the form of biomass accumulation, and carbon retention services by protecting carbon-rich underwater soils from eroding.

As mangroves are restored, biocapacity is added to the world. Based on our global assessments using the National Footprint and Biocapacity Accounts, it takes about 3,370 (global) m² to sequester one tonne of carbon dioxide every year. In this formula, global means one square meter with global average productivity.

One tonne of CO₂ sequestration from restored ecosystems may cost 15 USD, which is the typical market price for a high-quality carbon credit. These 15 USD are a direct contribution to GDP.

Therefore, assuming a carbon credit value of 15 USD, we improve the global overshoot balance by 225 m². per annual dollar value added. This is determined using the following calculation:
3,370 global m² [per annual tonne of CO₂ sequestration] / 15  $ [per tonne of of CO₂ ] =  225 m² per annual dollar reduction of global overshoot

This achievement is extraordinary. Because in contrast, the world economy requires 2.6 global m² of ecologically productive space to produce one dollar value add every year. So each annual dollar, rather than increasing overshoot by 2.6 global m², reduces it nearly 100 times.