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In recent years, companies are beginning to realise the importance of sustainability in business – such as by following upcoming trends, environmental regulations, and seeking information on how to calculate their company’s carbon footprint.
Similar to many regulations and standardization's, striving towards your climate goals should be a continuous effort. In other words, calculating your carbon footprint shouldn’t be a one and done event – but something that your company commits to doing every single year.
Many businesses may view it as a burden to calculate their carbon footprint every year, thinking, “If I calculate my carbon footprint, how is it really going to help my business?”
In this article, we’ll explain why you should aim to calculate your carbon footprint on an annual basis, the benefits of doing so for your business, and how you can get started calculating your carbon footprint today.
A carbon footprint refers to the amount of greenhouse gas emissions that are created by an individual or company. accounts for GHGs (greenhouse gasses) emitted by human activity. Typically, a carbon footprint is expressed in carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) and serves as a quantitative measure for companies to understand how they are currently impacting the environment.
👉 A company’s carbon footprint is often measured through the help of a third-party carbon accounting company like Greenly, which seek to use carbon accounting – or various methods to calculate the carbon emissions created by a company.
If your company decides to calculate their carbon footprint, it will often be done using one of two main methods: the spend based method or the activity based method.
The spend based method is a more general calculation, as it works by multiplying the economic value of a product or service purchased by the estimated amount of carbon emissions. The activity based method, on the other hand, is more specific and time consuming – as it makes use of data to determine how many units of a component a company has purchased. Ultimately, the spend based method is faster – but the activity based method is more exact and reliable.
More and more companies are beginning to commit to calculating their carbon footprint, but the problem is – not enough companies are recognizing the importance of calculating their carbon footprint on a consistent basis.
Here are a few other reasons why it’s important to calculate your carbon footprint on an annual basis:
👉 Ultimately, there are numerous benefits for those who opt to calculate their carbon footprint every year – and those advantages are most effective when an individual or company gets consistent updates to monitor their progress and make continuous adjustments according to their current carbon footprint.
Just as there are advantages for those who decide to calculate their carbon footprint, there are potential consequences for those who decide to not calculate their carbon footprint.
Here just a few reasons why it isn’t a good idea to skip calculating your carbon footprint after more than a year:
It may seem overwhelming when you make the choice to, “calculate my carbon footprint” – but when you break it down, it’s more intuitive and incremental than you might think.
First off, it’s important to determine the kind of carbon footprint you plan on calculating – are you going to calculate your own carbon footprint or a large company’s carbon footprint? This can help you determine if using something as simple as a carbon footprint calculator is right for you, or if you’re better off recruiting the help of a third-party carbon accounting company like Greenly.
After this, it’s essential to gather the relevant information and data – whether you choose to do this step on your own or with the help of a company like Greenly. This will often include a questionnaire on your individual or collective lifestyle choices – such as your daily energy consumption, method of transportation, food consumption, use of central air or heating, and travel.
Once the data has been collected, your carbon footprint calculator or your chosen carbon accounting company will estimate your carbon footprint in carbon dioxide equivalents. This data can help you to develop appropriate reduction goals and make relevant adjustments to help reduce your carbon footprint. This can be done alone, but is evidently more effective when you seek the personalised expertise of a carbon accounting company.
Ultimately, making the choice to calculate your carbon footprint is always a good idea to ensure your company works towards building greater sustainability, transparency, and environmental awareness – but it’s an even better decision to calculate your carbon footprint every year to ensure utmost accuracy and continuous progress.
Still wondering, “Should I calculate my carbon footprint?” – or have you made up your mind? If so, Greenly can help you get started today – with our personalised plans and experts waiting for you.
If reading this article about why your company should calculate its carbon footprint every year has made you interested in reducing your carbon emissions to further fight against climate change – Greenly can help you!
Trying to figure out how to calculate your carbon footprint all alone is a daunting task, but don’t worry – Greenly’s got you covered. Click here to book a demo and learn more about how we can help you to measure and reduce your various scope emissions.
Greenly can help you make an environmental change for the better, starting with a carbon footprint assessment to know how much carbon emissions your company produces.
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