Eight steps to making your business carbon neutral
It’s a good idea –– both for the planet and your company’s corporate social responsibility goals –– to think about and implement ways of reducing your carbon emissions. But where does one start? Today Carbon Catalog speaks with Carbon Concierge, a consultancy firm that helps businesses take on the “60 Day Carbon Pledge.”
Providing tools, resources and assessing carbon offset providers, Carbon Concierge helps companies take stock of and then reduce their carbon emissions.
When additional hands-on help is needed, the team can recommend best-in-their-field consultants to ensure your business practices are in line with –– and not against –– a good climate balance.
Mickey Lee (pictured above), the strategic director of Carbon Concierge, offers us some useful first step tips:
So you’re ready to implement a carbon reduction strategy for your business? Where do you start? It’s not really a complicated process. The steps are about the same no matter where you look. It just takes some time and varies with the size of your business.
Greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) may come from all areas of your business, so in conducting an inventory, the first step is to determine exactly what activities to include. Below are the three main sources of GHG emissions. We recommend a business to focus on the first two to start with, but also understand the increasing importance in assessing the third, in your supply chain.
Sources of GHG emissions from your business:
- Energy and electricity combusted, created or used in company owned facilities, business travel in company owned cars or jets, and hydro fluorocarbon (HFC) emissions from company-owned or controlled refrigeration and/or air-conditioning equipment.
- Emissions from sources like electricity and gas that is used for your company, but is generated by another company, like your local power company.
- Emissions from services provided by third parties. For example: emissions from travel in non-company owned vehicles or planes, outsourced activities like shipping and printing etc. Essentially –– your supply chain.
Here are eight steps to get your company started:
1). Get everyone on board. Get management buy-in. This is important because if upper management does not support the effort of the project, it will be an uphill battle to make any progress. Once you have management’s support, create a “Green Team” of enthusiastic employees. There are usually employees at any company who are eager and enthusiastic about “green” initiatives. These people will be your foot soldiers.
Create a budget: Being prepared upfront for additional costs will help in several areas. It will lend credibility to your project from upper management when they see that you have thought through the financial impact of the plan. In your financial planning, try to estimate savings as well. A budget also helps you and your team think the project through more thoroughly.
2). Define your Inventory. Where are your emissions coming from? This is an easy step in that you are simply documenting known and potential sources of emissions. Energy use, business travel, employee commutes and shipping are some of the key emissions factors.
Define your GHG emissions (in points 1 – 3 above). Understanding where emissions come from helps you understand which ones you have direct control over –– these are ones that you might be able to start reducing right away. Supply chain emissions will take you longer to assess than energy use, for example.
3). Collect Data. Define the best data collection system for your business. It would make sense to gather data directly from utility bills and direct sources of information. However, sometimes it is not possible to do so.
One example is when you are leasing the building and energy use is built into the lease or lumped together with other tenants. In this case look at alternatives for data collection, e.g. dividing your company’s actual space by the total building area and then multiplying it by the total building kilowatts to give you a rough estimate of energy use. Other steps are also available. Whatever system you use, make sure to use it consistently.
Decide what year to begin the inventory process. Having a base year that you can compare future measurements against will be important over the long term. Ensure quality data is being collected. Your emissions data and subsequent follow-up requires that your team will be thorough and accurate.
4). Calculate Emissions. Make sure you are using reliable emissions calculations tools. We often suggest the World Resources Institute for its consistency and reliability across sectors and because it is a globally respected tool.
5). Set targets for emissions reductions. Decide what the targets your company can meet right away. This is where the low hanging fruit comes in. You want to make progress as rapidly as possible and so attacking sources that can have the best impact in the short term is helpful and motivating.
Then, determine a long-range plan for targets. You’ll also want to set targets so that you have data to work with in both the short and long term; and also so that you can inform your stakeholders.
6). Reduce emissions. Implementing your reduction strategies is the heart and soul of your initiative. This is the fun part, where you can actually start seeing progress. Starting with lighting and changing all your lights to low energy consumption –– or switching over to “Green Power” like wind energy –– is a fast way to make immediate changes.
7). Offset what you can’t reduce. Do your research on offset providers. The Carbon Catalog is a solid resource tool. You’ll want to make sure that the offset provider that you choose is matching or exceeding industry criteria, such as providing more than “business as usual” projects, or ensuring project quality or other key criteria.
Find providers that support your company’s social and environmental mission. If social justice issues, planting trees or providing alternative energy are important to your company’s core principles, then find a provider that serves these aspects in their business model.
8). Report your results. Sharing information is useful in many ways: It helps get more of the company on board for future initiatives, it ensures goodwill in the community, and it motivates others in your industry to do the same. Share your results with your stakeholders, employees, the general public and business peers.
Above all celebrate your success!
For more ways to help your company reduce its impact, see:
Business Conventions Going Carbon Neutral
How to Buy Carbon Offsets Guide
Carbon Catalog’s Database of Offset Providers Around the World
Ten Carbon Offset Providers On Why They Do It For Love And/Or Money