The Social Carbon Foundation is proud to announce the launch of its Nature Stewardship Framework (NSF), an innovative approach to scale nature-based solutions beyond carbon markets. The framework is open for a 60-day public consultation, inviting feedback from  industry experts, Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IP&LCs), and the broader environmental community.

The Nature Stewardship Framework supports the creations of Nature Stewardship Credits (NSCs)—a new class of environmental asset that recognizes and rewards measurable biodiversity conservation, ecological restoration, and sustainable livelihoods. NSCs are designed to capture the full spectrum of ecosystem benefits, ensuring that biodiversity, social impact, and robust governance are valued alongside climate mitigation efforts.

The NSCs are based on a Nature Stewardship Index (NSI), which evaluates outcomes across three dimensions:

✅ Biodiversity – Measuring habitat integrity and species conservation
✅ Socio-Economic Impact – Empowering local communities and promoting sustainable livelihoods
✅ Governance – Ensuring strong, transparent, and equitable project management

By integrating robust Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) requirements, the Nature Stewardship Framework sets a new global standard for nature-based credits. The framework enables projects to either issue credits as standalone assets or stack them with carbon credits under the SOCIALCARBON Standard, thereby increasing the integrity and accountability of environmental markets.

Call for Feedback:
The 60-day consultation period is an opportunity for industry experts, Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IP&LCs), and the broader environmental community to help ensure that the framework can drive significant investment into these much needed areas. Interested parties can submit their feedback via the Social Carbon Portal by 7th April 2025.

For more information on the Nature Stewardship Framework and how to participate in the consultation, visit https://www.socialcarbon.org/nature-stewardship

About Social Carbon Foundation

Social Carbon Foundation is a registered charity headquartered in the United Kingdom. Our high integrity standards and process innovation catalyse scalable nature-based-solutions to mitigate climate change, enhance biodiversity, and support sustainable livelihoods.

Social Carbon Foundation is a carbon standard setter and has developed and manages the SOCIALCARBON standard, which goes beyond carbon accounting embedding meaningful social, environmental and economic benefits in each of its projects and sharing them with their local stakeholders. As with all standards, it includes independent monitoring and verification requirements and ensures that projects comply with local laws and regulations.