Professionalism: bridging the missing link between environmental MRV and carbon neutrality

Carbon neutrality cannot be achieved without different economic sectors, individuals and households, and the government making serious efforts. Green finance in different forms including environmental, social and governance (ESG) investment and carbon emissions trading are used to measure the reduction in carbon emissions and place a monetary value on them. However, because of inconsistencies or even manipulation in the monitoring/measurement, reporting and verification (MRV) of air quality and carbon emissions data, the effectiveness of green finance has been largely compromised. Environmental MRV is a technology-based engineering task, which is also heavily impacted by institutional design and professionalism. This commentary will draw upon principal-agent theory and the practical arrangements of environmental MRV to discuss why professionalism is badly needed and how to bridge the missing link for achieving carbon neutrality and sustainability transitions. © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Cambridge University Press.