CDOP Releases Version 2.0, Extending Standardization Across the Credit Lifecycle and Giving Carbon Credits & Projects a Traceable Status History

Sep 17

One year after its Version 1.0 launch at Climate Week NYC, the 75-member coalition has more than doubled its schema coverage from 4 to 11 common data definitions, updated its functionality, and includes an auditable status history designed to support transparent data exchange.

Version 2.0 extends the open-source Carbon Data Open Protocol (CDOP) schema to 11 data categories, building on the four foundational pre-issuance categories established in Version 1.0 — Location, Project Approach and Details, Disclosures, and Issuance

Schema coverage now includes 11 total data categories, including Crediting Period, Estimations, Co-benefits, Durability and Permanence, and Project Finance, alongside a re-architected, standardized entity model and a forward-compatible schema design

One year after unveiling Version 1.0 at Climate Week NYC, and now with more than 75 member organizations, the Carbon Data Open Protocol (CDOP) today announced the release of Version 2.0 of its open-source data schema, extending common, cross-industry standards for carbon crediting project and credit data across the credit lifecycle.

From pre-issuance foundations to expanding lifecycle coverage

CDOP’s Version 1.0, launched in September 2025, marked a significant initial milestone in addressing the market's most immediate fragmentation problem: the absence of common definitions for the carbon data. Starting from the pre-issuance stage, CDOP Version 1 established four standardized pre-issuance categories — Location, Project Approach and Details, Disclosures, and Issuance — after CDOP's Technical Working Group analyzed and harmonized more than 15 distinct data schemas submitted by market participants, representing over 1,600 unique data fields.

Version 2.0 builds on that foundation and more than doubles the coverage of Version 1. The schema now spans 11 data categories in total, including Crediting Period, Estimations, Co-benefits, Durability and Permanence, and Project Finance — an expansion made possible by the Pod structure that the Technical Working Group initiated at the beginning of 2026. Heading Pods of 3-6 Pod Members, Pod Leaders volunteer to lead the Pods’ data standardization process for different categories. This approach accelerated CDOP’s progress while integrating diverse expertise from across the market into the elaboration of each data category. CDOP appreciates the Pods’ dedicated, thoughtful work across the 7 new data categories published in time for NYCW, including:

  
      Data Category
      Pod Leader(s)
      Pod Members
    
      Co-Benefits
      Centigrade
      CarbonAI, GBB Strategy, oneshot.earth, Cawa
    
      Durability/Permanence
      Kita
      CaptureNow, Ceezer, Centigrate, Klimate, oneshot.earth, Space Intelligence
    
      Unit Description
      S&P Global
      Cloverly, Infrablock Technologies, CIX, Ecoregistry, Cawa
    
      Crediting Period
      South Pole
      BlueLayer, Cawa, Infrablock Technologies
    
      Estimations
      South Pole
      BlueLayer, Cawa, Infrablock Technologies
    
      Label/Certification
      Sylvera
      Cad Trust, CarbonHQ, CDSC, CIX, Cloverly, EcoRegistry, Submarine
    
      Project Finance
      Sylvera
      Infrablock Technologies, Artio, Centigrade, Herzog Law, Kita, Tangelic

Key Technical Changes

Beyond providing broader coverage, Version 2.0 represents a year of real-world implementation and introduces breaking changes that improve the schema’s functionality and strengthen its forward-compatibility:

A standardized entity model. Where Version 1.0 data was structured around individual document schemas, Version 2.0 organizes the entire structure around a fixed set of entities — project, stakeholder, registry, and issuance — so that data holds together consistently across the full schema.

Forward compatibility by design. Version 1.0's structure rejected any field it hadn't explicitly defined, making incremental extension brittle. Version 2.0 tightens structural validation — with consistent nesting and enforced value lists — while loosening its treatment of unrecognized fields, making future schema evolution far less likely to break existing integrations.

An auditable history. Project and credit status, previously a single field overwritten with every update, is now modeled as a versioned record with a clear current-state flag. Every status change — a reissuance, a correction, a rating update — leaves a traceable history instead of disappearing into an overwrite.

Why this matters for the market

For a market built on comparing and aggregating information across hundreds of registries, project developers, and platforms, to say that shared data is essential infrastructure is an understatement. The carbon market has endured the burden of dedicating precious resources to cleaning and reformatting data at nearly every point of data sharing throughout the carbon credit value chain, a chore that has slowed the market’s scaling. Every hour spent manually reconciling incompatible data formats between counterparties is an hour not spent structuring climate finance or bringing the next project online. Removing that reconciliation burden frees up time and resources that can instead go toward what carbon markets exist to do: mobilize capital toward real, measurable climate impact.

Beyond the increased coverage of the CDOP schema, the upgrade of Version 2’s schema architecture itself is an advancement worth special note. Version 2.0's standardized entity model, forward-compatible design, and shift to an auditable status history are what make the schema fit for purpose today and durable enough to keep pace with a continuously evolving market. By replacing a single, overwritable status field with a versioned history, CDOP gives registries, developers, and buyers a shared way to see how and when a project's or credit's status changes, strengthening schema integrity and use.

The update to Version 2.0 lowers the integration burden for organizations adopting the standard. With the advancements of Version 2.0, X CDOP members have renewed or made new commitments to adopt and integrate it into their internal systems, providing a critical early mover signal that the market can expect to trigger a broader wave of adoption that will quicken data sharing and unlock greater carbon finance flows.

“This market is only as trustworthy as the data behind it, and until now, carbon markets haven't had a reliable way to show that a credit's history is exactly what it claims to be. Version 2 of CDOP gives everyone in the value chain a shared way to see how a project or credit has changed over time. This is the kind of transparency carbon markets need to earn the confidence of institutional capital at scale. We're proud to have contributed our expertise to this milestone.” – Allister Furey, CEO of Sylvera.

“CDOP’s momentum and growth over the last year are an indication of the market-wide appetite for greater connectivity, standardization, transparency, and credible market infrastructure. CDOP’s Version 2.0 represents the collective expertise and user needs of CDOP’s 75 members and represents a milestone, not an endpoint, in CDOP’s journey: over the next year, we will continue building the technical tools and necessary partnerships to deliver a complete and interoperable schema capable of uniting and scaling the carbon markets.” – Josh Henretig, Managing Director, RMI

“Market coordination is a sign of market maturation. CDOP's growth to more than 75 member organizations, and its expansion from four data categories to eleven spanning the full credit lifecycle, marks exactly that shift for carbon markets. Every organization that adopts this schema is voting, in practice rather than in principle, for a market where data is comparable, reliable, and no longer a barrier to institutional participation. That is the foundation a mature asset class is built on, and CDOP's second year shows the market building it together.” – Chris Canavan, CEO, Global Carbon Market Utility

What to look out for next

CDOP's work on Version 2.0 hasn't happened in isolation. The initiative continues to progress in close, collaborative conversations with other data standardization efforts across the market including the CAD Trust's post-issuance infrastructure, and continued attention to the UNFCCC's Article 6 framework — all in service of a shared goal: scaling the carbon market through data infrastructure that is robust and reliable.

Several more data categories are being finalized following NYCW, including:

  
      Data Category
      Pod Leader(s)
      Pod Members
    
      Baseline Scenario & MRV
      GBB Strategy, Unmai Carbon, Straatos, CarbonAI
      GBB Strategy, CaptureNow, Tangelic, Submarine, Burn Manufacturing, MECS
    
      Methodology Metadata
      oneshot.earth
      Artio, Ceezer, Submarine, MECS
    
      Additionality
      Sylvera
      Herzog Law, Tangelic
    
      Registry Metadata
      EcoRegistry
      Unmai Carbon
    
      Validation Metadata
      Sylvera
      Centigrade, Submarine
    
      Verification Metadata
      Cawa
      Centigrade

Getting started

Organizations interested in the technical details of what's changed in Version 2.0, or looking for guidance on adopting or migrating from Version 1.0, can find full documentation and a step-by-step migration guide on GitHub: CDOP Version 2.0 Schema Documentation & Migration Guide. Migration is designed to limit disruption: adopters build a translation layer at the integration boundary rather than re-architecting internal data models, validate transformed data against the new schema, and cut over on their own timeline.

For questions not covered in the documentation, contact the CDOP team at sebastian.weeks@rmi.org.

About CDOP

The Carbon Data Open Protocol (CDOP) is a cross-industry, multi-stakeholder collaboration to standardize data describing carbon crediting projects and carbon credits across markets, geographies, and activity types. More than 50 leading organizations backed CDOP's Version 1.0 Principles at launch in September 2025, committing to integrate or evaluate CDOP's standardized definitions within their own data models. Version 2.0 extends that shared foundation further across the credit lifecycle, backed by the expertise of now over 75 member organizations from across the carbon market industry.

About Sylvera

Sylvera is the carbon data platform to empower real climate action. Using proprietary data science and on-the-ground expertise, Sylvera provides independent ratings, pricing intelligence, and advanced geospatial data for better climate decisions. Trusted by leading businesses, developers, and policy-makers worldwide, the company is ISO certified and backed by leading investors including Balderton Capital, Index Ventures, Insight Partners, and Salesforce Ventures.

About GCMU

The Global Carbon Market Utility (GCMU) is a public utility with a mission to transform the carbon market into a fully developed financial market. The GCMU serves as a central book of record, offering best-in-class financial market infrastructure and registry services. This infrastructure will enable financial intermediaries, like banks and insurance companies, to enter the market, provide project financing, and house risk for end-buyers. The GCMU was launched at COP27 in 2022.

About RMI

Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) is an independent, nonpartisan nonprofit founded in 1982 that transforms global energy systems through market-driven solutions to secure a prosperous, resilient, clean energy future for all. In collaboration with businesses, policymakers, funders, communities, and other partners, RMI drives investment to scale clean energy solutions, reduce energy waste, and boost access to affordable clean energy in ways that enhance security, strengthen the economy, and improve people’s livelihoods. RMI is active in over 50 countries.

Media contacts

Chris Potter, RMI cpotter@rmi.org

Darren Ralphs, Sylvera darren.ralphs@sylvera.io

Darren Ralphs