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How To Make Your Company Carbon Neutral: A Step-By-Step Guide
Last updated: May, 2023
Fighting climate change is no small task.
To see tangible societal change requires buy-in from everyone, including businesses.
In March 2021, findings from the Climate Action 100+ Net Zero Company Benchmark assessments found that 52% of the 166 focus companies ( some of the largest and most carbon-intensive in the world) have already committed to net zero in some form.
For example, L’Oréal, by the end of 202, has reduced its emissions by 87% compared to 2005 without any carbon-offsetting projects and aims to use 100% renewable energy across all their sites by 2025. The company also secured two solar parks with a combined capacity capable of producing 25% of the total electricity consumption in France.
While reducing your carbon footprint and achieving similar results feels like a daunting challenge, there are simple steps you can take to mitigate your responsibility.
It starts with understanding your emissions footprint, setting clear, actionable goals, and using the right tools to drive reduction and behavioral change at scale.
How to Make Your Company Carbon-Neutral
Achieving net zero is easier than you think. Follow these seven steps and help your businesses’ carbon footprint, and the environment reap the benefits of reducing carbon emissions.
Step 1: Understand Your Current Carbon Footprint
Before embarking on a journey to carbon neutrality, it’s crucial to know your starting point.
The first step involves a comprehensive assessment of all your company’s activities contributing to carbon emissions.
You’ll want to consider indirect and direct emissions like:
- Employees commute.
- Your supply chain and manufacturing process.
- Energy consumption in offices.
- Employee aviation travel.
- The end-use of your products.
Remember, the accuracy of your carbon footprint calculation sets the stage for setting realistic and impactful reduction goals. It’s not just about understanding the numbers; it’s about comprehending the story they tell about your business’s environmental impact.
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Step 2: Set Clear and Achievable Goals
With your footprint in mind, set clear, measurable goals for carbon reduction within a realistic timeframe.
Start by considering your baseline carbon footprint and identifying key areas where reductions are feasible. Goals should be ambitious yet attainable, balancing environmental impact with what’s possible for your business.
Factor in resources available to you, like financial investment, technology, and human resources.
You can use frameworks like the Science Based Targets initiative to make the process easier. It aligns corporate goals with climate science. These targets provide a clear roadmap for reducing emissions and help benchmark progress against industry standards.
Step 3: Develop a Carbon Reduction Plan
Your carbon reduction plan serves as a roadmap. It outlines the specific actions your business will take to reduce its emissions.
First, look for quick wins like changing to energy-efficient lightbulbs and longer-term investments such as renewable energy sourcing. You’ll want to incorporate a mix of direct actions (like switching to renewable energy sources) and indirect actions (like influencing suppliers towards greener practices).
The key is to focus heavily on reducing your own emissions as much as possible first and then offset the remainder that can’t be avoided or addressed in other ways.
Step 4: Engage and Educate Employees
Engaging and educating employees is a pivotal step in achieving carbon neutrality. It involves creating awareness and fostering a culture of sustainability within your organization.
Host awareness training workshops for education and use AI tools to generate personalized emissions reduction recommendations.
For engagement, invest in tools like Emissions Sentri. It can help you drive behavior change at scale and encourage sustainable practices like public transport, reducing energy consumption, and recycling.
When you track your carbon-neutral plan on a dashboard, you can integrate all your data from other sources like spreadsheets and see your progress towards net zero at a glance.
With your insights delivered across your digital ecosystem, you can motivate employees to continue choosing the more sustainable option.
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Step 5: Implement Reduction Strategies
Now it’s time to adapt operational procedures, transition to greener energy sources, and leverage technology like Emission Sentri to streamline your efforts.
Take inspiration from companies like Lidl GB, which is committed to carbon neutrality by enhancing its energy strategy.
The aim?
Install solar energy systems onsite at all of its new stores.
By 2030, these and other changes are expected to yield an 80-percent savings in Lidl’s total operational emissions.
RELATED: X Essential Sustainability Strategies for Businesses
Step 6: Offset Remaining Emissions
After reducing emissions as much as feasibly possible, the next step is to neutralize the impact of the remaining emissions. You can achieve this through carbon offset projects or purchasing renewable energy certificates (RECs).
Carbon offset projects vary widely, ranging from reforestation and conservation efforts to renewable energy and community development projects. Investing in these projects helps counterbalance your unavoidable emissions by contributing to environmental sustainability elsewhere.
On the other hand, renewable energy certificates prove that energy has been generated from renewable sources. Purchasing RECs supports green energy production, which offsets non-renewable energy use in your operations.
An excellent example of off-setting in action is Etsy. 90% of the company’s footprint comes from shipping costs, and Etsy became the first global e-commerce company to offset all of its shipping emissions.
Step 7: Monitor, Report, and Adjust
Establish a system to track your carbon emissions continuously. This could involve using software tools that analyze energy consumption, waste generation, and other relevant metrics.
Periodic audits can also provide in-depth insights into your progress and the effectiveness of implemented strategies.
You can also use a platform like Emissions Sentri to sync your emissions data sources for personalized recommendations on reducing emissions.
Then, share your insights with stakeholders and track employee awareness training to show your commitment to sustainability.
RELATED: X Biggest Business Benefits of Reducing Your Carbon Footprint
Take Your First Step Towards Net Zero
Embarking on the journey to carbon neutrality is a strategic move that can bring tangible benefits to your business and the environment.
By following the outlined steps, your company not only contributes to a healthier planet but also stands to gain in multiple ways.
These include significant cost savings through efficient resource use, an enhanced brand image as a leader in sustainability, and increased customer loyalty from those who value eco-conscious practices.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. What are the first steps to making my company carbon neutral?
The first steps to making your company carbon neutral involve understanding your current carbon footprint. This means assessing all activities within your company that contribute to carbon emissions, including direct emissions from your operations and indirect emissions like those from your supply chain and product use. After calculating your footprint, the next step is to set clear, measurable goals for reducing these emissions based on the insights gained from your assessment.
2. How can businesses reduce company carbon footprint?
Businesses can effectively reduce their carbon footprint through a combination of direct actions and strategic planning. This includes implementing energy efficiency measures, shifting to renewable energy sources, optimizing supply chain practices, encouraging sustainable behavior among employees, and promoting awareness education.
3. How do carbon offsets contribute to carbon neutrality?
Carbon offsets contribute to carbon neutrality by allowing businesses to compensate for their unavoidable emissions. Offsets typically involve investing in environmental projects that reduce emissions elsewhere, such as reforestation, renewable energy projects, or community development initiatives focused on sustainability. These projects either remove CO2 from the atmosphere or prevent new emissions, effectively balancing out the emissions that a company cannot eliminate through direct reduction strategies. Offsets are a vital component in achieving carbon neutrality, especially for emissions that are currently difficult or impossible to eliminate.
4. What role do employees play in a company’s journey to carbon neutrality?
Employees play an integral role in a company’s carbon neutrality efforts. Engaging them in sustainability initiatives can significantly amplify impact. This involves educating them about the importance of reducing emissions, involving them in setting and achieving sustainability goals and encouraging sustainable behaviors in the workplace. Companies can also use tools like Emission Sentri to drive employee engagement and behavior change.
5. Can small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) also achieve carbon neutrality?
Yes, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can also achieve carbon neutrality. While the scale and resources differ from larger corporations, SMEs can make significant contributions by implementing energy-efficient practices, reducing waste, and using sustainable materials. Smaller businesses often have the advantage of agility, allowing them to adapt and innovate in their sustainability practices quickly. SMEs can also participate in carbon offset programs to balance their remaining emissions, making carbon neutrality an achievable goal regardless of company size.