So you’ve taken the first step and calculated the carbon footprint of your business and you’re wondering what’s next? Now you have a better sense of how much carbon your business needs to counteract, it’s time to take action to get your footprint under control by using reduction and avoidance strategies to lower your emissions. And then to offset the carbon that is left.
SKOOT’s Carbon Calculator indicates which areas of your business are currently creating the most carbon and that you need to implement strategies for. While you may be able to use environmental solutions for these on a global scale, there are also day-to-day things you can do now to start reducing your carbon footprint in the office and in your own life.
In order to accelerate change we need to slow emissions down. The best way to do this is by creating less carbon all together. Here are some of our top tips on how to do that:
Think about how you travel
Travel and meetings
Companies of all different sizes are having more virtual meetings - not only does this decrease the amount of carbon created for travel but it also saves time, reduces costs and can have a positive impact on productivity.
Office commute
How you travel to work has a huge impact on your carbon footprint. That’s why opting for an alternative like walking, riding a bike, carpooling or working from home can benefit the environment a lot.
In the UK 1 in 4 cars has only 1 passenger in them. Considering the amount of carbon each car produces and the congestion on the roads, this is a real problem. Sharing a lift or carpooling can significantly reduce this. The SKOOT Ride app offers smart carpooling where you can connect with people in the office or ask someone for a lift and plant a tree at the same time. A double win for the environment.
That could have been a Zoom call
Did you know that 25% of jet fuel is consumed during take off? This means that short-haul flights are some of the least eco friendly forms of transportation. People are increasingly opting to take meetings from home on the likes of Zoom and FaceTime avoiding having to meet in person where it isn’t necessary.
Around the world, aviation emits about 860 million metric tons of carbon dioxide every year. So if you want to avoid a huge chunk of carbon emissions - stop taking unnecessary flights.
Work from home more
If there’s one thing that Covid has been good for, it's less people commuting into the office. In London pollution levels significantly decreased after the first lockdown in 2020, which is likely as a result of reduced emissions from road traffic. You know that 4 day week that is being trialled in the uk that we don’t want anyone to mess up for us? Well less in office hours would be a great help to the environment. Literally having a positive impact on the planet by doing less. I think we could get behind that!
More sustainable office behaviour
Use a sustainable energy provider
Switch to a renewable or sustainable energy provider. This will not only reduce your carbon footprint but significantly reduce the office bills. There are many providers like Ecotricity who replace fossil fuels with green energy and supply the likes of our football partners, FGR. If you want to reduce your energy footprint even further, turn off lights, water and appliances when they are not in use.
Improving heating and cooling
Aircon releases a lot of CO2 into the atmosphere. Improving thermostat settings, keeping up maintenance, and only using them when needed can really help. Does the whole office have to be freezing when it’s summer outside? We think it’s a bit rude to have to wear a jumper when it’s 30 degrees outside…
Use green appliances
Replace appliances with new ENERGY STAR appliances that are built to standards that make them energy efficient, and that save you money by requiring less power. Take it one step further and turn off these appliances when they are not in use.
Do greener searches online
Did you know that you create carbon for every search you do online? Yup, you heard us right. But luckily you can use partners such as Ecosia, a greener search engine, to decrease your data footprint.
Go paper-free
Promote a paperless work environment. The likes of Docusign might not be the easiest to use all the time, but it's a whole lot better for the environment and documents aren’t getting misplaced or thrown away. And if you must print, use a more eco-friendly provider and print on both sides. Where you can turn off your equipment when not in use.
Office Supplies
Recycle
Care about recycling and have a zero-waste policy where possible. If you make it easier for people to recycle for example demarcated bins, they will be more likely to do it. The less items we need to throw away all together the better, so reusable items in the office are a winner.
More sustainable catering
Whether it is for the employees or clients can we opt for more sustainable catering and food and drink? Stocking organic or Fairtrade items in the office, and having sustainable coffee like the compostable options provided by Stirz, will enable people to make greener choices more easily.
Could you offer more vegetarian options at functions or prepare food items yourself rather than ordering them to limit packaging used? If you are buying, can you support local businesses and opt for businesses that openly try to better the planet like Too Good To Go, an app that saves perfectly good food from going to waste?
Use sustainable suppliers
Whether that be for office, supplies, catering, merchandise, supporting businesses who care about their carbon footprints too can be a great way to lower your own. Ditching any single-use plastics is a great way to start.
There are many ways that your business can begin to lower your carbon emissions today. The more carbon you can avoid creating, the less there will be to offset and the more money you will save as a whole. Our ultimate goal is to create a climate positive world, that goes beyond achieving net-zero emissions to create an environmental benefit by removing additional CO2 from the atmosphere.
Get in touch with us to find out more about how you can remove your carbon footprint - [email protected]
