As global climate change becomes an increasingly imposing issue, many people are wondering how to make an impact with their investments. One way to do this is to invest in green or low-carbon companies and funds. The first step to getting started with these types of investments is to identify a company that aligns with your values, and then find an ETF or stock that allows you to invest in it. This could include a fund that tracks companies verified by the Gold Standard, a Sustainability Exchange, or other reliable organizations.

This will help you reduce your exposure to dirty companies and funds, a major drawback of most carbon investments. It will also give you more exposure to the companies that are doing the most to fight climate change, making it easier to make a sustainable and ethical investment. As the world gets more and more focused on reducing greenhouse gas emissions, more companies are making it a priority to develop and implement strategies that will reduce their environmental impacts. In particular, there's a growing market for voluntary emissions reductions and carbon offset projects.

These offset projects are essentially trade carbon credits certificates that allow companies to limit their environmental impacts by limiting the amount of pollution they release into the atmosphere. These can be purchased by other companies, which then use them to offset their own emissions.

However, because these credits aren't yet commoditized, they can be an extremely risky investment opportunity. For this reason, they should be used as a secondary asset in your portfolio to ensure that you're diversified and not putting too much of your money into the same company.

There are a few different ways to invest in these types of assets, including carbon-credit ETFs and futures contracts. The ETFs are an accessible way to get started with carbon credits, as they allow investors to gain exposure to carbon offsets without having to pick and choose individual companies or invest in futures contracts.

Alternatively, for sophisticated investors with a narrower scope in mind, there are some green companies that offer carbon credits as part of their business model. Among these are TSLA, which is a net negative carbon emitter, and Microsoft, which requires its departments to calculate the cost of their CO2 emissions and contribute it to a sustainability fund.

These types of projects are still in the early stages of development, so prices will likely remain low until more pressure is put on these companies by stakeholders and society. Once the market gets more crowded and the demand for them increases, the price will go up accordingly.

The EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) is one example of a cap-and-trade system that enforces the trading of carbon credits. The system is regulated by governments, and the supply of credits is capped at a certain level. This means that the price of a carbon credit is not driven by outside investors, but by the supply of allowances.