ABOUT US
CCAP’s mission is to support every step of climate action, from ambition to implementation.
A recognized world leader in climate policy and action, CCAP creates innovative, replicable climate solutions, strengthens capacities, and promotes best practices across the local, national, and international levels to accelerate the transition to a net-zero, climate resilient future.
Our programs – climate finance, carbon markets, and climate action – are not siloed entities working on different issues. They are buckets of expertise from which we draw resources to share knowledge across all levels of societal organization. Our passion is establishing best practices and bringing diverse actors together to address the crisis of climate change.
At the international level, CCAP works as an advisor and observer to high-level discussions, such as the annual Conference of Parties to the Climate Change Convention. We work closely with international funding organizations such as the NAMA Facility and the Green Climate Fund to improve internal expertise and to directly organize projects that will help individual countries or regions to implement less carbon-intensive or carbon-neutral actions.
This international experience gives us a valuable perspective for advising countries and other governmental entities on how they can best position themselves to attract international climate financing, comply with international best practices, and achieve national goals.
In the process of our on-the-ground work, whether it is working directly with decision makers and stakeholders or whether it is working with stakeholders to implement new processes in the sectors of transport, waste, clean energy, or fossil fuels, we are able to identify specific challenges and obstacles to the high-level goals. This knowledge is then brought back to the international and national levels, creating a virtuous circle of knowledge sharing and expertise building.
CCAP is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization with a Guidestar gold transparency rating. Its funding comes from fee-based project work, grants, and donations from individuals and organizations.
CCAP has more than 35 years of experience working in the environmental sector. We currently work in Europe, Asia, South America, North America, and Africa.
For more information on CCAP’s current work, please see our program pages or contact us at development@ccap.org.
Get to know CCAP by exploring our work over the years.
1990
CLEAN AIR ACT
CCAP worked to usher in a new era in environmental policy by helping design and push for the inclusion of a market-based acid rain control program in the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990. Building an effective coalition, CCAP played a major role in the passage of SO2 emissions trading programs in the Clean Air Act amendments. The Acid Rain Trading Program was one of the first federal environmental programs to allow companies to comply with pollution limits through emissions trading. The legislation remains one of the most effective, most popular, and lowest cost environmental programs still active today.
1997
KYOTO PROTOCOL
CCAP played an important role in designing the flexibility mechanisms (including the Clean Development Mechanism and international emissions trading) of the Kyoto Protocol, an international agreement that spanned more than 15 years until its replacement by the 2015 Paris Agreement. These provisions spurred the development of a multi-billion dollar carbon market which has provided cost-effective greenhouse gas reduction options. Market-based approaches continue to be an important element of efforts to solve the climate change problem.
U.S. FEDERAL NITROGEN OXIDE REGIONAL EMISSIONS CONTROL PROGRAM
CCAP played a central role in the 37-state Ozone Transport Assessment Group (OTAG) through a CCAP-led NOx Strategy Group which provided a series of economic analyses of different NOx control options. CCAP’s coalition developed a stringent compromise control strategy that won the support of key Midwestern and Northeastern state commissioners and paved the way to OTAG’s agreement on a rigorous regional NOx control program.
1999
EUROPEAN UNION EMISSIONS TRADING SYSTEM
CCAP worked with stakeholders on Minnesota's Mercury Contamination Reduction Initiative Advisory Council to develop a cost-effective program that included emissions banking as a way to encourage voluntary and early reduction of mercury emissions. These efforts contributed to Minnesota passing a state-wide mercury reduction goal.
2003
EUROPEAN UNION EMISSIONS TRADING SYSTEM
After hosting a successful dialogue between European leaders and U.S. and other experts on emissions trading, CCAP was chosen by the European Commission as the lead designer on an international, multidisciplinary team that put together the first greenhouse gas emissions trading system for the Environment Directorate General of the European Commission. CCAP later helped the Commission convince Member European States to adopt the new system. CCAP also led an international team that developed the monitoring, reporting, and verification guidelines for the new trading system.
2006
U.S. STATE CLIMATE PROGRAM
CCAP’s highly successful policy and technical assistance program for U.S. states to develop and implement comprehensive GHG reduction programs across multiple sectors assisted New York, Connecticut, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Maine, and Oregon in conducting policy analyses and designing sector-specific policies and market-based programs. The comprehensive Task Force report to Governor Pataki of New York led directly to his implementing a renewable portfolio standard, restructuring transportation finance, and forming the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), the first U.S. multistate CO2 emissions trading program.
CALIFORNIA CLIMATE LEGISLATION
CCAP developed a major study on policy options in the electric power, industry, transportation, agriculture and forestry sectors, including the potential for each sector to participate in market-based compliance approaches, which supported establishment of a state-wide mitigation goal and helped shape AB-32, California’s landmark climate legislation. CCAP also provided expert advice on emissions trading to California Air Resources Board Chairwoman Mary Nichols (long-time CCAP board member) and her staff which integrated our recommendations into California’s multi-sector GHG trading GHG system.
2011
NATIONALLY APPROPRIATE MITIGATION ACTIONS
Through regional dialogues with middle income developing countries, CCAP supported the design, implementation and financing of innovative policy actions that catalyze private sector investment. These policy packages (known as Nationally Appropriate Mitigation Actions, or NAMAs) form the basis for individual national commitments under the “Paris Agreement” and serve as strong program proposals to the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and other donors. CCAP's dialogues and on-the-ground capacity support resulted in participating developing countries defining more than two dozen NAMAs. Four have won financing from the UK-German NAMA Facility (NF) (transit-oriented development in Colombia, low emission coffee production in Costa Rica, and CFC/refrigeration policy in Colombia), while others received host-country financing. NAMAs served as building blocks for country commitments in the lead-up to the Paris Agreement and continue to play a central role in NDC conversion.
2012
STRONG CRITERIA FOR TRANSFORMATIONAL CLIMATE ACTION
CCAP provides advice to Green Climate Fund (GCF) and NAMA Facility (NF) board members, secretariats, and key stakeholders on strong competitive criteria to select mitigation actions for financing. Criteria emphasize policy ambition, country buy-in, GHG and sustainable development benefits, and private sector investment leverage. Through policy dinners for board members, targeted submissions to the GCF, policy papers, and concrete on-the-ground CCAP-inspired project examples, CCAP encourages the GCF and other donors to support transformative climate policy packages.
2013
COLOMBIAN TRANSIT-ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT NAMA
The Colombia Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) NAMA was awarded funding by the NAMA Facility, making it the world’s first internationally funded transportation NAMA.
CCAP is partnering with Colombian Development bank FINDETER to deliver $20 million (USD) in technical and financial resources to catalyze the building of TOD neighborhoods in five cities across Colombia.
2015
COP21 IN PARIS
CCAP’s work with developing countries in advancing sector-scale mitigation actions contributed to the ability of developing countries to adopt meaningful climate commitments—a cornerstone of the Paris Agreement. CCAP was also a leader in assessing how developing country INDCs—intended nationally determined contributions--can make strategic use of international financial support in converting proposed mitigation elements into implementable policies and measures and finance-ready investment plans. CCAP participated actively on the sidelines of the 21st Conference of Parties (COP21) of the United Nations Climate Change Conference (UNFCCC), in Paris, France to support adoption of the landmark Paris Agreement. Thanks to CCAP’s work, the Agreement included language on support to developing countries to help formulate INDC-related policies and investments plans.
2017
CALIFORNIA PASSES A NEW LAW ESTABLISHING COMMUNITY-SCALE EMISSION ABATEMENT PROGRAMS
CCAP supported a statewide policy dialogue identifying solutions that were enacted in California’s landmark legislation to establish community-scale and community-led emission abatement programs. This new law, which passed alongside AB 398 extending California’s cap-and-trade program for greenhouse gas emissions, has the potential to make meaningful progress in reducing criteria air pollutants and toxic air contaminants impacting disadvantaged communities and improving health outcomes.
2018
MEXICO REGULATIONS TO COMPREHENSIVELY CONTROL METHANE EMISSIONS FROM THE HYDROCARBON SECTOR
Following a series of capacity support workshops and technical input, Mexican government officially published regulations expected to reduce methane emissions from the national oil and gas sector by 40-45% by 2025. These regulations require companies to adopt technologies and practices to reduce fugitive emissions and almost eliminate routine flaring and venting. These strong regulatory measures will reduce the emission of “super pollutants” that have an impact that is 28 times greater than CO2 on a 100-year timescale.
2021
GCF COUNTRY PROGRAM
CCAP supported the development of the GCF Country Programme in six targeted countries (Chile, Ghana, Malaysia, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Uzbekistan) through finance mapping, policy assessment, and stakeholder engagement services. The finance mapping services contribute to strengthening the understanding of each country’s financial sector of climate-related risks and opportunities at the portfolio as well as project level, and they support the National Designated Authority (NDA) and relevant stakeholders in understanding the range of available sources of climate finance, and financial instruments with a view to tapping into the GCF. strategically.
