Avenue #1 Sustainability credit buying Examples of relevant business models Carbon credits Biodiversity creditsStormwater retention credits Resilience credits Companies that buy carbon, biodiversity, stormwater retention or resilience credits directly inject capital into sustainability activities. While carbon credits are the most advanced, biodiversity, stormwater retention and resilience credits are maturing quickly and are particularly relevant for mangrove conservation and restoration. However, before purchasing mangrove-positive carbon or biodiversity credits, corporations should take the following necessary steps towards reducing their impacts on nature and climate: –Follow the mitigation hierarchy:83 a. Take steps to avoid creating impacts. b. Minimize the extent of impacts that cannot be avoided. c. Restore ecosystems damaged by corporate impacts. d. Only then purchase offsets or credits to compensate for any residual, adverse impacts. –To facilitate this process, companies can formulate science-based net-zero and nature- positive targets that align with the Paris Agreement and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework. Buying sustainability credits allows companies to further contribute to climate-, nature- and people- focused actions, driving additional positive impact beyond their immediate operations. It is important to signal demand for high-quality verified credits through the purchase process, which can be done by ensuring credits and underlying projects meet the High-Quality Blue Carbon Principles and Guidance. Biodiversity credit quality can be supplemented through the High Level Principles to Guide the Biodiversity Credit Market.84 This can also help spur high-quality pipeline generation. To ensure integrity while making such purchases, corporations can perform their own project-specific due diligence, if they have the appropriate capacity, supplemented by the High-Quality Blue Carbon Practitioners Guide 2024 and the World Economic Forum’s 2024 community paper, Biodiversity Credits: A Guide to Identify High-Integrity Projects.85 Corporations can also make use of resources from the Global Mangrove Alliance or Fair Carbon. Alternatively, they can hire an external consultant or third-party verifier to conduct due diligence on projects. Corporate credit buyers should include in their portfolio early projects or engage with facilities that cater to early-stage projects, as they offer companies the opportunity to help grow those projects in line with corporate targets, and help ensure they meet high quality criteria. By offering project developers advance purchase agreements for sustainability credits, companies can play a critical support role in project development, especially if they act as a primary buyer, offer a premium price or provide pre-feasibility funding. This supportive action is magnified if taken when the requested price for carbon credits is above the current demand price, or when the project is in early development stage.86 In addition, companies can assume various carbon financing roles to support credit-generating projects. Importantly, when purchasing high-quality blue carbon credits, corporations are also purchasing benefits to local communities, while supporting biodiversity, coastal resilience and benefits such as improved water quality. As such, carbon credit pricing should reflect this. Pricing of carbon credits that includes the full value of the project’s scope enables developers to properly establish projects and include core people, nature and climate benefits, which in turn increase the value of the project and likelihood of long-term delivery. By offering project developers advance purchase agreements for sustainability credits, companies can play a critical support role in project development, especially if they act as a primary buyer, offer a premium price or provide pre- feasibility funding. Investing in Mangroves: The Corporate Playbook 21

Investing in Mangroves 2025