"By paying for projects that reduce greenhouse gases, the credit card educates consumers and allows them to do something more with their rewards than purchasing airline tickets and hotel stays."
- Mindy S. Lubber, Brighter Planet Project Selection Committee

November 30, 2007 —

Bank of America is introducing a credit card that buys carbon offsets every time you use it. Instead of earning rewards points or frequent flier miles, a Brighter Planet Visa card holder earns one EarthSmart point for every dollar charged. For every 1,000 EarthSmart points a customer accumulates, enough offsets will be purchased to take one ton of carbon dioxide out of the air.

Brighter Planet is a Vermont-based company that was founded in 2005 by two students at Middlebury College. Inspired by a course they took in environmental economics, Andy Rossmeissl and Jake Whitcomb began looking for ways to found a business around the ideas they had explored that semester. Two years later, their little company has partnered with one of America's largest banks and is planning to offer a Brighter Planet checking account, although details of that plan aren't yet available.