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Nature 444, 976-977 (21 December 2006) | doi:10.1038/444976a; Published online 21 December 2006

Open Innovation Challenges

Special report Climate credits

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Why change your lifestyle when you can pay a company to save your greenhouse-gas emissions for you? Quirin Schiermeier investigates whether carbon offsetting can really save the planet.

The 2006 World Cup in Germany will be remembered for France's Zinedine Zidane head-butting Italy's Marco Materazzi in the final. But in another sense, the largest sports event ever has passed without a trace: it has supposedly left no mark on the planet's atmosphere.