Climate tech startup ThanksCarbon held a conference on the theme of ‘Sustainable Agricultural Transition through Carbon Credits’ at the Hyatt Regency Phnom Penh in Cambodia on the 24th, together with the General Directorate of Agriculture (GDA) of the Cambodian Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, and the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) Cambodia. The conference was attended by ThanksCarbon CEO Kim Hae-won, Cambodian Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Khy Kosal, Deputy Director General of the General Directorate of Agriculture Dr. Yon Tri, and GGGI Cambodia Country Representative Kim So-mi.

This conference was organized to discuss ways to overcome production declines and greenhouse gas emissions in the agricultural sector due to climate change through carbon emission rights and technological innovation. It was attended by Kim Hae-won, CEO of ThanksCarbon, Ki Kosal, Undersecretary of the Cambodian Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Dr. Yon Tri, Deputy Director-General of the General Directorate of Agriculture in Cambodia, and Kim So-mi, Country Representative of the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) Cambodia.

At this event, Undersecretary Ki Kosal announced that the Cambodian government will introduce carbon emission rights as a new capital mobilization solution to encourage farmers and strengthen climate resilience.

In the following sessions, case presentations were conducted focusing on the results of ThanksCarbon’s Alternate Wetting & Drying (AWD) pilot project in Battambang, Cambodia. According to research results from Dr. Yon Tri, Deputy Director-General of the General Directorate of Agriculture in Cambodia, and researcher Sopik from the Royal University of Agriculture (RUA), rice farming areas that applied the AWD method showed effects such as reduced methane emissions, increased yields, decreased pests and diseases, and reduced fertilizer use.

Lee Seung-ho, Director of Technology at ThanksCarbon, introduced MRV technology (Measurement, Reporting, and Verification) that accurately measures and manages farmers’ AWD implementation through AI-based satellite analysis technology. He emphasized that this innovative technology can create high-quality carbon credits, which can significantly contribute to increasing farmers’ income and achieving Cambodia’s and Korea’s Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) goals. In addition, Park Doo-byung, co-founder of ThanksCarbon, announced a specific expansion plan to convert more than 500,000 hectares of rice farming areas in Cambodia to sustainable agriculture by 2030.

In the subsequent panel discussion, experts from various fields, including GGGI, ThanksCarbon, the Cambodian Agricultural and Rural Development Bank, and the Cambodia Rice Federation, shared their opinions on how carbon credits and green finance can build agricultural resilience.

Kim Hae-won, CEO of ThanksCarbon, said, “It was a meaningful opportunity to exchange various expert opinions, focusing on the success story of the rice paddy methane reduction project, to ensure the sustainability of agriculture in a rapidly changing climate environment. Active cooperation from all stakeholders, including governments, financial institutions, companies, and farmers, is necessary to respond to climate change and achieve sustainable growth, and ThanksCarbon will play a key role in revitalizing the carbon credit market through innovative technologies.”