Carbon-Negative vs. Carbon-Neutral

To understand why Carbon-Negative products are better than Carbon-Neutral products, it's helpful to compare the two:

• Carbon-neutral Diamonds have a net zero carbon footprint means any emissions generated during their production are offset by an equivalent amount of Carbon removal.
• Carbon-negative Diamonds go further by removing more carbon from the atmosphere than they emit during production. We get the Carbon to make our diamonds from greenhouse gases, and remove more greenhouse gases than we emit. Scientists say this has a “net-negative” effect. That is why we call these diamonds “Carbon Negative”, instead of “Carbon Neutral”. Reducing the Carbon humans released into the atmosphere by burning oil, gas, and coal, since the Industrial Revolution is one of the best ways to mitigate climate change.

A 1 carat diamond contains 1/5 of a gram of carbon.

While removing 1/5 of a gram might seem insignificant, it's the cumulative effect of many small actions that can make a difference.

Individual actions: While one person removing 1/5 of a gram of carbon might not matter much, millions of people taking small steps to reduce their carbon footprint can have a significant impact.

Technological solutions: Developing technologies are now available to capture and store carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. These technologies aim to remove much larger amounts of carbon, but they often start with small-scale experiments and pilot projects.  

Long-term perspective: Addressing climate change requires a long-term perspective and a commitment to continuous improvement. Every small step towards reducing carbon emissions is a step in the right direction.

“Carbon Neutral” as a goal will not be enough, on its own, to avoid climate disaster. 
Climate change continues to impact global economies, businesses and communities across the world, accelerating the transition to a low Carbon economy is more important than ever and meeting this challenge will require nothing less than transformative changes across our economy. Goldman Sachs Global Investment Research group estimates that $56 trillion in incremental infrastructure investment is needed to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Their research estimates that half of the decarbonisation required is reliant on access to clean power generation and that the decarbonisation of transport, buildings, and industry will require a complex ecosystem of low-Carbon technologies, including energy storage and Carbon capture alongside the supply of clean power.

There is also a significant challenge in that in many parts of the world, inexpensive, reliable, and clean energy is just not available at scale. 

No. Unfortunately Carbon emissions are
still increasing, not decreasing. Based on the most recent data available as of
February 2025, global Carbon Dioxide (CO2) emissions continue to reach record levels:

1. Fossil fuel and cement emissions: Approximately 37.4 billion tonne (gigatonnes) of CO2 in 2024, an increase of 0.8% from the previous year.

2. Total CO2 emissions (including land-use change): About 41.6 gigatonnes in 2024, representing a 2% increase from 2023 levels.

The increase in total emissions is
attributed to:

Consistent growth in fossil fuel emissions

Abnormally high land-use emissions, partly due to wildfires in South America exacerbated by El Niño and high temperatures.

It's important to note that while emissions
continue to rise, the rate of increase has slowed compared to previous decades.
Over the past decade (2015-2024), total global CO2 emissions have grown at only
0.2% per year, compared to 1.9% in the previous decade (2005-2014).

However, this plateauing of emissions is
still far from the rapid decrease needed to meet Paris Agreement goals. At current emission levels, the remaining Carbon budget to limit warming to 1.5°C (with a 50% chance) will be exhausted in about six years.

All of our diamonds carrying the C-® registered mark are trusted third party certification and verification.

Diatrace - Certifies that each C-® Carbon Negative Diamond contains more carbon than would otherwise be emitted to, or remain in, the atmosphere during the growth of the diamond.
Diatrace are the most comprehensive ESG-Sustainability and Traceability certification programme for the Gems & Jewellery Industry, paired with advanced Blockchain technology. This digital passport captures a wealth of information, from the source of the stone to its inherent characteristics and chain of custody.

Each C-® Carbon Negative Diamond also comes with a gemological certification from:

IGI - The International Gemological Institute (IGI) is the largest independent gemmological laboratory globally, with a strong reputation that grades and certifies diamonds.

GIA - Gemological Institute of America (GIA) is a highly respected and globally recognised independent organisation that grades and certifies diamonds.

You can tell that your diamond is Carbon Negative because it has the USPTO registered (C Minus®) trademark on the girdle of the stone.

All authorised C Minus® Diamond Manufacturers are required to certify that 100% of the energy used to grow each C Minus® Carbon Negative diamond comes from renewable sources, like solar power, so that no carbon is emitted during the growth of the diamond.

The Carbon in our C-® Diamonds comes from Methane or Carbon Dioxide,  powerful Greenhouse Gases. Since we use renewable energy to generate the power to create our diamonds, no Carbon is emitted into the atmosphere. The Carbon is safely stored in the diamonds. Our growth process is Carbon Negative without the need to use Carbon offsets.

Fossil Fuels have been relied upon to give us everything we use from lights down to clothes we wear and the houses we live in. The issue is that there is so much carbon dioxide in the atmosphere right now, every living thing (including the air and oceans) is not able to adapt fast enough and it is slowly suffocating life on our planet. The goal is to bring the current 420 PPM of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere down to 350 PPM. You can find an accurate measure of atmospheric carbon on NASA's website here.

According to current projections, the 2025 UN IPCC climate change report executive summary highlights the critical need for immediate global emissions reductions, emphasising that to limit warming to 1.5°C, a global greenhouse gas emissions must peak before 2025 and be significantly cut by 2030, with a focus on urgent action in all sectors, including energy transitions, to avoid catastrophic climate impacts; it emphasises the growing urgency of adaptation measures due to already observed climate change effects.

Read the Special Report

Companies that are aiming to use 100% renewable energy, is a positive step towards sustainability and it is ultimately the way forward. However, the world will not be able to achieve this quickly enough and “Carbon Neutral” as a goal will not be enough, on its own, to avoid climate disaster.

Carbon offsetting is a mechanism that
allows individuals, companies, or organisations to compensate for their
greenhouse gas emissions by investing in projects that reduce or remove an
equivalent amount of Carbon Dioxide or other greenhouse gases from the
atmosphere.

The process of Carbon offsetting involves:

1.Calculating one's Carbon footprint (total emissions caused by their activities)

2.Purchasing Carbon credits or investing in environmental projects

3.Supporting initiatives that reduce or capture an equivalent amount of greenhouse gases.

Carbon offsetting is controversial because
it is difficult to guarantee that the offset Carbon will be accurately linked
to the Carbon emissions intended to be offset, or if the Carbon that is being
offset will be stored permanently.

Carbon Offsetting provides an answer to the day-to-day emissions created that can’t be prevented.
It’s a strategy that’s already been adopted by many big brands from around the world, including the likes of EasyJet, Shell and Gucci, who all now use Carbon Offsetting to help improve the environmental impact of their businesses. 

As a result of unethical or questionable tactics with Carbon Offsetting, many companies, including Shell Oil are steering clear of it. However, there are legitimate and essential ways to offset and it is important to understand that there is no single silver bullet that will address climate disaster.

Companies that use 100% renewable energy
are helping to stop new carbon emissions. However even if we stopped all Carbon
emissions today, we would still need to remove 21% of the Carbon that remains
in the atmosphere to return to the 350ppm level at which life on Earth
evolved.  That is why Carbon Negative is
a more effective standard than Carbon Neutral.

Reducing atmospheric Carbon to sustainable levels is important because excessive Carbon Dioxide traps heat, disrupting Earth's climate balance and threatening the conditions that support life as we know it. By reducing Carbon in the air, we can mitigate the most severe impacts of climate change, including extreme weather events, rising sea levels and ecosystem disruptions that endanger human health, food security and biodiversity.

To meet global commitments and avoid the worst impacts of climate change, it’s imperative we reduce the Carbon emissions we add to the atmosphere each day. But, the science now shows that emissions reductions alone will not be enough to limit global warming to 1.5°C. We must also remove billions of tons of excess Carbon Dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere.
In the short term, Carbon removal can help bring global emissions down to net zero, by providing a tool to address difficult-to-decarbonise sectors, such as aviation. In the future, once deep emissions cuts have been made, Carbon removal may be needed to bring the overall level of CO2 in our atmosphere back down to levels deemed safe by scientists.

We all have a part to play in achieving a low-Carbon future and for homeowners, this means being given the chance to balance their Carbon footprint. For the environmentally conscious and those looking to reduce their impact on the climate, Carbon Offsetting gives them the tools to make a difference. Whilst it shouldn’t be used as a stand-alone approach and is best used as part of a wider Carbon reduction strategy, it will help people reduce their impact on the environment.To learn more about the different types of Carbon removal and why it’s a necessary part of climate mitigation, check out this video explainer by World Resources Institute.

The beneficiaries of Carbon offsetting could be anything from helping some of the poorest households in West Africa to access eco-friendly cooking equipment, to supplying clean hydroelectric power to the local grid in rural China, the options are diverse. One example is the Kariba REDD+ Forest Protection project in Zimbabwe, Africa. Since its launch in 2011, it’s avoided more than 18 million tonnes of Carbon Dioxide from being released into the atmosphere and has prevented deforestation in an area of nearly 750,000 hectares.
While Carbon offsetting might not be the only answer, it’s part of a much bigger solution. It’s true that many of us are already doing our bit in all areas of life to reduce our carbon footprint but choosing great initiatives such as Carbon offsetting is yet another step in the right direction. By supporting worthy sustainability projects that deliver quantifiable greenhouse gas reductions, we can all play our part in securing the future of the planet.

In the UK, the net-zero strategy released by the Government last year includes at least 5m tonnes of CO2 (MtCO2) per year of “engineered” removals by 2030, scaling up rapidly to 23MtCO2 by 2035 and 75-81MtCO2 by 2050.
As it stands, these engineered removals – technical solutions such as bioenergy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS)and direct air Carbon capture and storage (DACCS) – are essentially non-existent in the UK.

Our selected diamond growth partners support high-impact projects, from supporting Artisanal Scale Mining communities around the world, to funding ICIMOD's Himalayan Climate and Clean Air Project, an ambitious effort to dramatically reduce black carbon and other emissions in this critical ecosystem.

Greenwashing is an exaggeration of a company's environmental credentials. This is completely different from offsetting. Offsetting removes Carbon Dioxide out of the atmosphere that is used during production of the product. Greenwashing is given to companies that claim they are helping the climate more than they truly are. However, there are methods of offsetting that are also greenwashing as Forbes investigated.