Work

Organisational attitudes and preferences towards forest carbon offsets in Spain's Carbon Footprint Registry

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: Corporate participation in voluntary carbon offsetting remains limited, yet little is known about how organisations evaluate forest carbon removal options and what drives their offsetting decisions. This study examines the economic and behavioural factors associated with organisational engagement in forest carbon offsetting within Spain's Carbon Footprint Registry. Using a survey that combines the Theory of Planned Behaviour with a Discrete Choice Experiment, we analyse how attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived control interact with preferences for project attributes. The results show that subjective norms and internal managerial attitudes play a prominent role in offsetting behaviour, but their relative importance varies across organisational segments. Organisations with higher emissions show a stronger alignment with internal attitudes towards offsetting, while external expectations from clients, shareholders and competitors are more salient among organisations with lower emissions. Across both groups, organisations display a strong preference for domestic afforestation and forest restoration projects. These findings underscore the importance of market segmentation in voluntary offsetting strategies and provide evidence to inform policies and interventions aimed at supporting net-zero objectives.

Source: Ecological Economics

DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2026.109015

Authors: Brenda Morales, Paola Ovando

Institutions: Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Instituto de Políticas y Bienes Públicos

Language: English

Topic: Climate Change Policy and Economics

Subfield: Economics and Econometrics

Field: Economics, Econometrics and Finance

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Climate action

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,730