FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Visit the Shopify app store to install the Carbon Checkout app, in one-click. The app will automatically install on your store, all you have to do is authorize the installation when prompted by Shopify, then Activate the app from your Carbon Checkout dashboard by selecting the “On” mode.

You can choose where to place the widget in your checkout funnel to optimize the opportunity. If our automated placement is lackluster, please contact support for assistance. Some Themes require a custom touch - we stand ready to support any necessary optimizations.

• Inline places the widget inline above the checkout button on your cart page.
• Inline with AJAX Cart places the widget inline above the checkout button on your AJAX cart and cart page. However, on some Themes, we must add custom script to activate with the AJAX cart, just contact support and we’ll promptly add the necessary script on our end.
• Footer places the widget in the footer as a sticky bar when your cart is activated.

Yes, you can join the BALANCE initiative as a Match Partner, and match your customers’ contributions penny for penny. As a Match Partner, you can leverage logos and cause marketing collateral to communicate your commitments and differentiate your brand. 

The app continues to be Free; by activating the app you must agree to transfer all collected contributions to Carbon Checkout via your Shopify bill. Therefore, all charges will appear on your normal Shopify bill, and will be paid through Shopify on a 30-day billing cycle. There are no extra contracts, vendors, or payment schedules to worry about.

After initial installation, you must activate the app by turning the app “On”. Please login to your Shopify dashboard, select the Apps tab, then select the Carbon Checkout app to view your dashboard. You must check the “On” check box to activate the app.

If you visit your storefront, add a product to cart, then navigate to your cart page, you should see the Carbon Checkout widget. If the widget is still not present, then it is likely that your Theme is blocking the Carbon Checkout widget from view. In such instances, please contact support so we can make the necessary code adjustments to ensure integration with your Theme structure.

You can choose where to place the widget in your checkout funnel to optimize the opportunity – Inline, Inline with AJAX cart, or footer. If our automated placement is lackluster, please contact support for assistance. Some Themes require a custom touch - we stand ready to support any necessary optimizations.

You can also select custom style options from the Settings tab on your app dashboard, including font type and size, text reveal feature, customized carbon offset calculation method, and language (English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, Italian, Dutch, German).

Visit your app dashboard and select the “Inline placement with AJAX cart” setting from the Home tab. This setting will place the widget inline above the checkout button on your AJAX cart and cart page (if applicable). However, on some Themes, we must add custom script to activate the widget when the AJAX cart is viewed, please contact support and we’ll promptly add the necessary script on our end.

By default, Carbon Checkout’s Balance “product” (or rather donation), is hidden from your product catalogue. However, on some Themes the “product” will flash momentarily in your product catalogue before hiding, if your default product catalogue includes all products. This issue can be resolved by simply creating a new product catalogue that does not include Carbon Checkout’s balance product.

If you leverage third-party inventory management applications beyond Shopify’s tools, you’ll want to look at Carbon Checkout’s Auto-fulfillment setting within your app dashboard.

Auto-fillfillment turned “On” - when a customer makes a contribution, the contribution is automatically “fulfilled” in your Shopify orders, as we fulfill the carbon offset order in real-time on our end (you do not hold inventory in your catalogue).

Auto-fulfillment turned “Off” - when a customer makes a product purchase and adds the Carbon Checkout balance contribution, the contribution portion of the order must be manually “fulfilled” in your Shopify orders.

Depending on how your third-party inventory management app manages orders within their platform, will dictate whether in fact the Auto-fulfillment setting should be activated to streamline your inventory management process. Your inventory management app team can advise which setting works best with their system.

Carbon Checkout only invests in renewable energy projects by purchasing and retiring carbon offsets (VERs - Verified Emission Reductions, and CERs - Certified Emission Reductions). Our primary investment strategy is focused on utility scale wind infrastructure, with investments going primarily to the Oaxaca Wind Power Complex in North America and the Punta Palmera Wind Farm in Chile. However, we are actively diversifying our project portfolio to include wind and solar projects that resonate regionally with our customers that span the globe.

Yes. Carbon Checkout invests in renewable energy projects that are third-party verified by the Climate Action Reserve (CAR), Verified Carbon Standard (VCS), The Gold Standard, and/or The Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). This oversight ensures that all contributions are directed to only the highest quality projects, that:

1. have been rigorously and independently verified;
2. are additional to business-as-usual, meaning the project would not otherwise be developed without your carbon offset contribution; and
3. have emission reductions that are both measurable and permanent according to the highest internationally recognized standards.

Yes. Carbon Checkout sends each customer a verification e-mail with a unique tracking code immediately after they make a contribution. This hyperlinked tracking code gives each customer access to their personal Carbon Portfolio, allowing the customer to track their contributions and engage with the projects they helped to make possible. Each unique tracking code is linked with a pooled carbon offset investment that is permanently retired on the relevant emission registries – APX, IHS Markit or The Clean Development Mechanism registry operated by the UN Climate Change Secretariat.

For every $1 contributed, Carbon Checkout offsets 245 pounds of CO2-equivalent emissions. Our offsets are currently trading at $4.08 per 1,000 pounds of emission reductions, the lowest trading price of any retail renewable energy carbon offset provider. Compare this with The Nature Conservancy who offsets 147 pounds of CO2-equivalent emissions per $1 collected, and with a minimum purchase of $15 for one metric ton.

We do more good, with every dollar contributed.

Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) are a measure of power generation in MwH, merely a certificate that a measured volume of renewable energy was produced. However, RECs do not offset emissions, most notably because there is no “additionality” to REC projects, meaning this is “business as usual”. Carbon offsets on the other hand are a measure in metric tons of CO2-equivalent emissions that have been permanently reduced or eliminated, and with strict third-party protocols that ensure projects are additional to business as usual, and would not otherwise occur without the carbon offset investment.