I'm an attorney in TX panhandle, privileged w/ access large ranches so first hand view degradation. Reviewed a few traditional contracts, carbon credit generation agreements and they weird, problematic. A shame bc the land users want $ to do better but there's huge cultural disconnect
Moreover, the key issue & narrative here is water. Our streams stopped flowing in 1970s. Few remaining springs died 2010 and its largely unknown - doesn't compare to ag/ commodity economy
So we founded nonprofit, Ogallala Life. Wanted to crowdfund an endowment to subsidize ecological contracts for landscape rehydration, inspired by likes of Mulloon Institute in Australia. We learned a lot, the world crypto changed things up. Ended up doing a project February '23, built 110 check dams aka leaky weirs on 6 ephemeral watersheds with certain geological features (stormwater meets permeable porous outcrops). This year's project is at a community nature center and we adding agroforestry elements.
We proposed a watersheds & wetlands in drylands methodology concept year or two back. And plan to launch ecocredit class for playa wetlands restoration, trying to loop in larger aquifer focused groups that have more traditional funding (& skeptical web3).
We want to use regen as a tool to empower local land users & communities. We thought refi was maturer than it is. Work needs be done and who else but us...