Carbon projects, particularly in the agriculture, forestry and renewable energy sectors, not only aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions but also create far-reaching impacts on local communities. These impacts can be positive or negative, depending on the design and project management.

1. Positive impact

Carbon projects bring many practical benefits to local communities, especially in increasing income and improving sustainable livelihoods. Through the sale of carbon credits, farmers are supported to diversify their livelihoods, such as growing fruit trees, industrial crops, or harvesting wood-free forest products from agroforestry and REDD+ projects, thereby increasing their income and economic stability. Using renewable energy such as biogas helps households reduce fuel costs and improve economic efficiency. In addition, carbon projects conserve resources, reduce soil erosion, and improve fertility through sustainable practices such as tree cover planting or no-till farming. At the same time, REDD+ projects and mangrove protection contribute to maintaining ecosystems, protecting biodiversity and reducing the negative impacts of climate change such as salinity intrusion and flooding. In addition, communities are empowered through training on sustainable agriculture, effective resource management, and climate change awareness. These projects also improve community services by providing clean energy from biogas or renewable energy, and develop infrastructure such as roads, clean water systems, contributing to improving the quality of life.

2. Negative impact

Carbon projects, while offering many benefits, also have some potential negative impacts on local communities. First, reforestation projects or REDD+ sometimes cause land conflicts when they reduce the land use rights of communities, especially ethnic minorities, or convert traditional farmland, leading to the loss of old livelihoods. In addition, the benefits from the project are not always equitably distributed, when the poor or vulnerable groups such as women often do not receive the benefits they deserve, or are excluded from the decision-making process and access to resources. In addition, carbon projects are often heavily dependent on financing from international businesses or organizations, making communities vulnerable to difficulties if funding is cut or the project fails. Environmental risks are also a concern, such as inappropriate planting of trees (exotic trees) that can alter ecosystems, or increased water demand from reforestation projects that put pressure on local water resources. These challenges require strict management and proper project design to minimize negative impacts.

3. Solutions to Optimize Positive Impacts and Limit Negative Impacts

In order to optimize the benefits and minimize the negative impact of carbon projects, a number of important solutions need to be applied. First, it is necessary to conduct transparent community consultations, ensuring the participation of local people in the project design, implementation and monitoring process, with a special focus on protecting the rights of vulnerable groups such as ethnic minorities and women. Next, equitable distribution of benefits is also important, with a clear mechanism for the community to receive a commensurate share of the benefits from carbon credits and associated income sources. In addition, it is necessary to strengthen the community's self-reliance capacity through training and technical support, helping them to self-manage and maintain projects even without external support. At the same time, the protection of land use rights should be prioritized with appropriate policies to ensure that the land and resources of the community are not negatively affected. Finally, building an independent monitoring system is essential to assess the environmental, social and economic impacts of projects, helping to detect and timely adjust arising issues, ensuring long-term sustainability. Carbon projects offer many potential benefits to local communities, from protecting the environment to improving livelihoods. However, to ensure sustainability and equity, it is necessary to design the project with community participation, transparent distribution of benefits, and a strict monitoring mechanism. When implemented correctly, carbon projects not only reduce emissions but also contribute to local socio-economic development