Maldives Stock Exchange declares "carbon neutral" status

The Maldives has today announced another milestone on its high profile journey towards becoming a low carbon economy, declaring that it is now home to the world's first "carbon neutral" stock exchange.

The Maldives Stock Exchange (MSE) announced that it had teamed up with UK-based CarbonNeutral Company to measure and offset its carbon emissions.

The company said that it had measured greenhouse gas emissions associated with the MSE's energy consumption, waste disposal, company controlled vehicles, business travel and staff commuting and purchased carbon credits to offset the emissions.

A spokeswoman for the company confirmed that 11 tonnes of CO2 had been offset through investment in a wind power project in India.

She added that while the MSE had not yet set an exact target for future emission reductions it was now deploying a number of initiatives designed to encourage further carbon cuts, including measures to encourage staff to walk to work and reduce paper use.

Ibrahim Nasir, chief executive at the MSE, said that the firm hoped that its new carbon neutral status would encourage companies listed on the stock exchange to similarly embrace emission reduction programmes.

"Organisations that implement comprehensive carbon reduction programmes can enhance their corporate reputation by showing customers, staff and prospects that they are taking direct action against climate change," he added.

The move was welcomed by Maldives president Mohamed Nasheed, who has emerged as one of the most vocal world leaders in the campaign to combat climate change and has staged a series of high profile publicity stunts in recent years designed to highlight the threat rising sea levels pose to the low-lying archipelago.

He has also committed to making the entire country "carbon neutral" by 2020 and other institutions are expected to follow the MSE with moves to cut and offset their carbon emissions in the coming months.

"A one metre rise in sea levels, which some climate scientists warn will happen if nothing is done to reduce carbon pollution, would be devastating for the Maldives," he said. "The government is doing everything we possibly can to remain here and that is why we have a plan to make the Maldives carbon neutral in ten years."