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All projects submitted to TICOS are processed through a robust three stage validation procedure and must conform to both the TICOS Operational Procedure and the TICOS Validation Standard (available to our partners and service users on request).
TICOS has a team of independent verifiers that will assess your project for compliance with these requirements. Once your project has successfully passed our validation, it can be made available for funding.
The projects ready for funding page of our website will give you examples of projects that have passed the validation process and are now on offer to our Service Users for funding.
Our whole offset programme is subject to independent validation, not just the carbon calculations or project benefits. Validation includes how the programme operates and how all finances are used. Thus any company working within our Operational Procedure will be assured of a due diligence assessment. It should also be noted that TICOS has an active web monitoring system and as projects commence, customers will be able to see what has been achieved and how their money has been spent.
The TICOS three stage validation procedure:
John Swarbrooke (the Director of the Centre for International Tourism Research at Sheffield Hallam University) and his team of specialists analyse the application project matrix to check that it is bona fide. The projects applicants are contacted a second time and will have to answer a series of tailored questions. All non-carbon benefits will be researched including the finances.
Hugh Somerville and his team at Carbon Offset Ltd (COL) calculate the likely carbon offset values based upon the number of tonnes of CO2 to be saved. COL then divide this by the proposed financial contribution by TICOS (often a lot less than 100%) and reach a cost per tonne. All figures for projects of interest will be provided to potential funders and TICOS will assist you in making a judgement in selecting which project(s) you want to support.
Stefan Gössling, (a Professor working at the Department of Service Management at Lund University in Sweden) who is entirely independent, will then look at the proposal as a whole and will cast his expert opinion and will sign off projects if/when satisfactory. Stefan also works closely with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
Once the projects have been signed off they are placed in the 'projects for funding' section and our Service Users are invited to fund them.