If Gabon’s Largest-Ever Carbon Credit Sale Works, It Will Be World-Changing

If Gabon’s Largest-Ever Carbon Credit Sale Works, It Will Be World-Changing

African forest elephant (Loxodonta cyclotis) in Lekoli River, Odzala-Kokoua National Park, ... [+] Cuvette-Ouest Region, Republic of the Congo. (Photo by: Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images) When Amazon's AMZN Founder Jeff Bezos visited Africa's Congo Basin for the first time this month, he became enamored of its rainforests, biodiversity, and wildlife. He then pledged $35 million to Gabon to support nature conservation — part of the Bezos Earth Fund's $110 million donation to the region. The fund has promised to give $10 billion between 2020 and 2030 to battle climate change and preserve nature. Bezos' meetings in the Congo Basin occurred just before Gabon's October issuance of carbon credits to help the country protect its rainforest — the largest ever and potentially worth more than $2 billion. The government is now in talks with a major oil company. And Amazon may also want those credits. A successful sale would give rainforest nations and climate advocates renewed faith. Countries and companies have vowed to be carbon neutral — in alignment with the Paris climate agreement. But switching to renewables won't get them all the way there. So they buy carbon credits. If the credits are purchased directly from the