New report explores integrity requirements for digital Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (DMRV)

The Integrity Council’s Continuous Improvement Work Program (CIWP) on Digital Monitoring, Reporting and Verification (DMRV), co-facilitated with the World Bank, has published a report examining how high-integrity principles should apply as digital tools and technologies become increasingly integrated into carbon market MRV processes.

Digital tools and technologies are transforming how carbon market activities are measured, monitored, reported and verified. Technologies such as remote sensing, satellite imagery, artificial intelligence, machine learning, Internet of Things sensors and automated data pipelines have the potential to improve transparency, traceability, auditability and the frequency of monitoring across carbon market projects. At the same time, the introduction of new technologies and actors into the MRV cycle presents new risks and raises important questions around governance and accountability, data ownership and transparency, algorithmic accuracy and bias, cybersecurity, the independence of verification, interoperability, and the rights of local communities.

Recognising the growing importance of these issues, the Integrity Council and World Bank convened experts from across the carbon market to explore how high-integrity principles should apply in a digital context. Participants included carbon-crediting programs, DMRV providers, validation and verification bodies (VVBs), multilateral institutions, Indigenous Peoples’ representatives, researchers and other actors.

“Digital technologies have the potential to strengthen accuracy, interoperability, and efficiency of carbon market activities, but technology alone cannot guarantee integrity. One of the key findings from this work program is that the same principles that underpin high-integrity carbon credits today must continue to apply in a digital context. By bringing together expertise from across the market, the working group has identified practical recommendations to help ensure that innovation is accompanied by appropriate governance, oversight and accountability, as well as the protection of community rights.” – Gemma Torras Vives, CIWP Co-Facilitator, World Bank.

Key outcomes of the CIWP

The report presents sixteen recommendations intended to support the responsible adoption of DMRV tools and technologies. While some recommendations are directed to the Integrity Council for potential future refinements to the CCP Assessment Framework, others are aimed at carbon-crediting programs and wider market actors.

The recommendations can be grouped under six broad themes:

• Governance, definitions and institutional foundations: The report identifies the need for stronger governance arrangements as digital tools and technologies become more widely used across the market. Recommendations include establishing common definitions for key DMRV concepts, requiring the independent approval of digital tools and technologies prior to deployment, clarifying the roles and responsibilities of DMRV providers and introducing publicly accessible governance frameworks for carbon-crediting programs that use digital systems. Together, these measures aim to provide a clearer foundation for how digital technologies are applied and overseen in the market.
• Cybersecurity, data integrity and conflicts of interest: As digital tools become more integrated into carbon market infrastructure, the report highlights the need for stronger safeguards against cybersecurity threats, fraud and data manipulation. Participants recommended that carbon-crediting programs explicitly address cybersecurity and data integrity within their anti-fraud frameworks and update conflict-of-interest policies to account for new relationships that may arise between technology providers, carbon-crediting programs and VVBs.
• Transparency and disclosure: Transparency is a core principle of carbon market integrity and remains equally important in a digital context. The working group found that transparency requirements should extend beyond project outputs to the digital tools and technologies used to generate them. Recommendations include enhanced disclosure of these tools and systems, including their assumptions, applicability and limitations, as well as greater visibility of how they are used within carbon-crediting processes.
• Verification and data quality assurance: The report emphasises that digitalisation does not diminish the importance of independent validation and verification. Recommendations include strengthening digital competency requirements for VVBs, ensuring that digital tools and technologies used for quantification are appropriately assessed as part of methodology approval processes, improving documentation of digital data pipelines and providing clearer approaches for addressing uncertainty and conservativeness in digital systems.
• Equity, rights and community impacts: Participants highlighted the importance of ensuring that digital tools and technologies do not undermine the rights, interests and participation of Indigenous Peoples and/or local communities. The report examines issues such as data ownership, privacy, Free, Prior and Informed Consent (FPIC), and the potential impacts of digitalisation on community roles in MRV activities. The recommendations emphasise that community rights and participation should remain a core consideration as digital approaches evolve.
• Capacity building and convergence: Recognising that the digital tools, technologies and governance practices underpinning DMRV are still evolving, the report also identifies opportunities for collaboration, learning and knowledge sharing across the market. Recommendations include supporting capacity building, encouraging greater convergence around definitions and approaches, and supporting further work by standard-setting bodies and other market actors to help ensure consistent and responsible adoption of digital technologies.

“Throughout our discussions, participants emphasised that the adoption of digital tools must not come at the expense of community rights and participation. While technologies can strengthen the efficiency of MRV processes, they must also respect Indigenous Peoples’ and local communities’ rights, knowledge and roles. A key message from the report is that responsible digital innovation requires governance approaches that place people, participation and accountability alongside technological advancement.” – Ismaila Wiafe, CIWP Co-Facilitator, ICVCM Expert Panel.

Implications for the future of carbon market integrity

The report’s overarching message is that digital innovation and carbon market integrity must advance together. DMRV has the potential to strengthen accuracy, transparency, and efficiency within carbon markets, but technology alone cannot guarantee high-integrity outcomes. Effective governance, oversight, accountability and respect for rights remain fundamental requirements.

The report concludes that the existing Core Carbon Principles and CCP Assessment Framework provide a robust foundation for assessing integrity in a digital context. Rather than requiring entirely new integrity principles, the challenge lies in ensuring that existing principles are applied consistently and effectively as technologies evolve.

Looking ahead

The findings from this CIWP will help inform future refinement of the CCP Assessment Framework while also highlighting actions that can be taken by carbon-crediting programs, VVBs, technology providers and other market participants. The report further identifies a number of open questions requiring additional research and collaboration as digital technologies continue to develop and mature.