City of Ann Arbor Launches New Public Carbon Offsets Survey

The City of Ann Arbor Office of Sustainability and Innovations has launched a new public survey as part of the multi-month engagement process around carbon offsets. This survey will be open until November 20, 2026, and can be found on the City’s website, osi.a2gov.org/offsets, along with results from the previous survey and details about the City’s offset work. 

The survey asks participants to explore and provide feedback on nine different real-world carbon offsets projects, covering a variety of types, benefits, and locations. The purpose of the survey is to understand resident preferences around carbon offset projects so that these preferences can inform future carbon offset strategy, not to determine or select a final offset project.  

“The more than 650 responses we received to the first survey showed us both valuable insights and contradictions,” said Dr. Missy Stults, Director of the City of Ann Arbor Office of Sustainability and Innovations. “Now we’re taking this community-wide conversation one step further.”  

Carbon offsets are a key component of meeting the community’s 2030 carbon neutrality goals as identified in the A²ZERO Carbon Neutrality Plan. Carbon offsets refer to the action of funding projects that remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere (removal projects) or reduce future emissions (avoidance projects). Carbon offsets offer a practical way to balance emissions that have not yet been eliminated with emissions reductions in other locations. These emissions reductions are in addition to emissions reductions work already underway in Ann Arbor. 

This work is a part of A²ZERO, the City of Ann Arbor’s plan, vision, framework, and associated actions for a just and equitable transition to carbon neutrality, community-wide, by the year 2030. Adopted by Ann Arbor City Council in 2020, A²ZERO now spans more than 70 programs and initiatives. Learn more and get involved at a2zero.org.