Activities to do for reducing the carbon footprint

“carbon footprint” is an amount of the impact your actions have on the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2 ) produced through the burning of fossil fuels and is expressed as a weight of CO2 emissions produced in tonnes. Global specialists call for a target limit of approximately 2 tonnes per person per year. The approximate national average for the United States of America is 20, United Kingdom 9, China 3, and India. As noted below, activities intended at reducing carbon emissions can be very beneficial to health! Readers will need to determine which actions apply to their particular environments.

Transport

Health benefits: Increased physical activity can result in reduced obesity, heart disease (including the lowering of high blood pressure), diabetes, osteoporosis, and cancer. Reduced air pollution can lead to less respiratory disease, including asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Reduced road-related injuries will result in fewer deaths and hospitalizations and less suffering.

Food 

Health benefits: Better dietary choices can reduce the intake of saturated fats, excess sugar, and salt and thus lower the risk of obesity, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and colon and breast cancers. 

Environmental benefits: Food production is a major contributor to global emissions. 

Energy Use 

Health benefits: Outdoor air pollution (attributable annual mortality of 0.8 million in cities >100 000) and occupational health risks, mostly in low-income countries. Currently, 2.4 billion people are governed by traditional biomass fuels and 1.6 billion do not have electricity

Water Use 

Health benefits. Actions that encourage and preserve water quantity and quality will support maintain safe drinking-water, agriculture, and get your clothes and serving dishes clean at low temperatures.

Waste Management: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle 

Environmental and health benefits: Waste is a significant supplier of carbon emissions. Reducing waste can lead to big emission savings and lower landfill necessities, with subsequent declines in air and land pollution. 

Sustainability Reporting Consultant in United Arab Emirates

Sustainability Reporting is a crucial step to achieve smart and inclusive growth with long-term profitability and environmental care. GE3S is a leading Sustainability Reporting Consultant in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. For the stakeholder, transparency encompasses a systemic process for improving performance and sustainability reporting practices. It enables companies to measure, monitor, and manage their impact on society, the environment, and the economy. 

For this to be useful, a company should meet with the Sustainability consultant writing the report and categorize the main impacts that influence the assessments and decisions of stakeholders. Material topics for a reporting organization should include those topics that have a direct or indirect impact on its ability to create value for the three pillars of Sustainability. 

In financial reporting, materiality is commonly thought of as a threshold for influencing the economic decisions of those using an organization’s financial statements i.e. while in sustainability reporting it is not limited to those sustainability topics that have a significant financial impact. 

GE3S as a Sustainability Reporting Consultants helps in determining materiality for a sustainability report includes the consideration of economic, environmental, and social impacts that cross a certain standard in affecting the ability to meet the needs of the present without compromising the needs of future generations. 

When Sustainability consultants create the report, materiality enables external stakeholders to understand the companies’ true value, tangible and intangible assets and provides a critical source of information for affected communities and stakeholders. 

GE3S Prepare Sustainability Reports by following the ‘Reporting Guidance for Defining Content’, and applying the ‘Reporting Principles for Defining Content’ in the GRI Sustainability Reporting Guidelines, the organization should be able to report on those impacts. The G4 Guidelines propose that the organization presents its material topics upfront in the report, meaning that higher visibility will be given to the chosen material topics. These could range from greenhouse gas emissions to human rights or the gender balance of boards of directors. As Sustainability Reporting consultants, GE3S understands the importance of this and values materiality assessment in the core of every sustainability report. 

Reduce your GHG emissions and move towards zero carbon neutral

A carbon footprint is the measure of the Green House Gas emissions of an organization, process, person or event in a given time period. It is calculated in units of tons carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e). GE3S helps it’s clients to establish a process, build organizational capacity to measure, analyze and monitor their GHG emissions that help organizations to realize their Carbon Footprint and build climate change mitigation strategy.

We have successfully completed carbon footprint projects for several clients in UAE. An organization’s carbon footprint can be measured by undertaking a GHG emissions assessment. The carbon footprint estimation involves setting the physical boundary and the time period for which it has to be calculated. It is followed by identifying significant GHG emission sources. Some of the common GHG emission sources are electricity consumption, fuel consumption, refrigerant leakage, anaerobic decay of waste in landfills, travel in fossil fuel run vehicles etc.

Once these sources are identified, required data is collected and then GHG emissions are calculated using emission factors. GE3S specializes in carbon footprint calculation. The GHG Protocol Corporate Accounting & Reporting Standard provides guidance for companies preparing a corporate-level GHG emissions inventory also known as carbon footprint. GE3S has experienced Consultants who help the clients in calculating Carbon Footprint for their company. We have developed carbon footprint for several companies using The GHG Protocol Corporate Standard.

It was updated in 2015 with the Scope 2 Guidance, which permits companies to reliably measure and report emissions from acquired or acquired electricity, heat, steam and cooling.

GE3S has experienced Consultants who help the clients in calculating Carbon Footprint for their company. We have developed carbon footprint for several companies using The GHG Protocol Corporate Standard. The GHG Protocol Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard offers desires and regulation for corporations and other organizations preparing a GHG emissions inventory also known as carbon footprint. It was designed with the following purposes in mind:

·         To help corporations prepare a carbon footprint that signifies a true and fair account of their emissions through the use of standardized methodologies and values

·         To make simpler and reduce the costs of compiling a GHG inventory

·         To provide business with information that can be used to build an actual strategy to manage and reduce GHG emissions

·         To increase regularity and transparency in GHG accounting and reporting among various companies and GHG programs

GE3S helps in reducing their GHG emissions and move towards zero carbon.

Carbon Footprint/ Carbon Neutral

A carbon footprint is the measure of the Green House Gas emissions of an organization, process, person or event in a given time period. It is calculated in units of tons carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e). GE3S helps it’s clients to establish a process, build organisational capacity to measure, analyze and monitor their GHG emissions that help organizations to realize their Carbon Footprint and build climate change mitigation strategy. We have successfully completed carbon footprint projects for several clients in UAE. An organization’s carbon footprint can be measured by undertaking a GHG emissions assessment.

The carbon footprint estimation involves setting the physical boundary and the time period for which it has to be calculated. It is followed by identifying significant GHG emission sources. Some of the common GHG emission sources are electricity consumption, fuel consumption, refrigerant leakage, anaerobic decay of waste in landfills, travel in fossil fuel run vehicles etc. Once these sources are identified, required data is collected and then GHG emissions are calculated using emission factors. GE3S specializes in carbon footprint calculation.

The GHG Protocol Corporate Accounting & Reporting Standard provides guidance for companies preparing a corporate-level GHG emissions inventory also known as carbon footprint. GE3S has experienced Consultants who help the clients in calculating Carbon Footprint for their company. We have developed carbon footprint for several companies using The GHG Protocol Corporate Standard. GE3S has experienced Consultants who help the clients in calculating Carbon Footprint for their company. We have developed carbon footprint for several companies using The GHG Protocol Corporate Standard.

Carbon neutral is a term that arose from the idea of ​​achieving equality between the following two exchanges: What is added to the atmosphere from carbon are products of energy use and natural biological processes such as breathing of living organisms and others, and what is consumed of carbon as photosynthesis processes in the plant.

Organizations and companies use the term carbon neutral or carbon neutral, when they take measures to remove the largest amount of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere whenever they put carbon dioxide in it. The goal is to keep the carbon from increasing in the atmosphere to achieve a zero carbon footprint.

Carbon Footprint

Today, it is becoming common to hear about climate change, a topic that many people talk about, but few realize the impact of this phenomenon. As the causes of the phenomenon of climate change are attributed to the high levels of human industrial activity in particular, and consequently, the percentage of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere rises with it.

Carbon dioxide emissions (CO2) from diverse human activity are directly related to the degradation of the world environment. Accordingly, it is essential to measure the rates of carbon dioxide emissions from these activities, from which the extent of negativity contributes to increasing environmental loads.

A carbon footprint can be defined as an indicator by which the total amount of greenhouse gas emissions resulting from the production, use, and end of a product or service is expressed. It includes carbon dioxide – the gas most emitted by humans – and others, including methane, nitrous oxide, and fluorinated gases that trap heat in the atmosphere causing global warming.

The carbon footprint is used at several levels, where it is used to express the rates of carbon dioxide emissions at the level of the individual, institutions, countries or even at the level of the production of a specific product or at a particular level of activity, and is often expressed in units of tons of carbon dioxide emissions )Ton / Year(.

Currently, organizations are moving towards achieving a sustainability strategy through their responsible sense of the environment.

As companies around the world measure their carbon footprint, inform stakeholders, and use the results to communicate their sustainability measures.

The idea of “sustainable consumption” has emerged, which depends on the idea that both individuals and institutions consume goods and services that have little impact on the environment.

The carbon footprint can be calculated by capturing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in a specified period, usually on an annual basis, as the data must have a fixed period. Data is collected from a variety of different sources, which differ from one institution to another, including travel, logistics, and operations, to obtain a complete and accurate footprint.

Also, the appropriate emission factor must be determined for each emission source to calculate the tons of carbon dioxide (tCO2e).

After analyzing the results of the carbon footprint, organizations are working on a strategic approach to reduce these emissions and set sustainable environmental goals. It can include ways to reduce the carbon footprint of enterprises, such as driving more energy-efficient cars, and where employees use public transportation, and the use of energy-saving devices in the enterprise.

An insulator can also be installed in the organization’s offices to reduce heating and air conditioning costs, and urge employees to consume food that does not require a significant amount of transportation and others.

Organizations can also offset CO2 emissions by investing in projects such as tree planting or investing in renewable energy.

What Are Sustainability Reports and Essential to Companies

How do companies, organizations, and stakeholders know how sustainable they are? This is not an easy question to answer. Since all human activities have an economic, social and environmental impact, it is very difficult to determine whether the total aggregate impact of all the company's activities makes them “sustainable” or not.

In today's world, some companies and organizations tend to offer tangible and reliable offers on their level of sustainability. While there are various ways to demonstrate the commitment to sustainable practices, one of the most common is reporting.

The Sustainability Report is the primary tool available to an organization or company to communicate its performance and impact voluntarily, whether positive or negative, act in - economic, social, and environmental matters - The information in the report must be relevant to stakeholders.

When companies report sustainable programs, actions, or practices, they are, in a way, shape, or form that communicate with others: shareholders, employees, society, buyers, and consumers of their products.

Sustainability reports help companies and organizations improve management by identifying risks, discovering opportunities to save energy, avoiding compliance issues, etc. It also strengthens internal communication and a sense of belonging. In large organizations, employees are often unaware of the company's actions that they may recognize. Sustainability reports enhance the organization's reputation and image by connecting its relationship with sustainable development in the form of a set of sustainable services and its social and environmental contributions.

The disclosure of companies and organizations on their sustainability improves financial relations by providing a unified message and avoiding data outside the news since the sustainability report is prepared based on internal consensus, it is a regular source of reliable information.

Voluntary guidelines have emerged to help companies determine how to report sustainability performance. These tools provide a structure that can help companies start preparing sustainability reports or help companies that already report on sustainable performance improve or expand their reports.

The most frequently used standard for drafting sustainability reports was created through the Global Reporting Initiative, established by CERES and the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP). GRI has taken the lead in sustainability reporting, transforming it from a specialized practice into one now adopted by the growing majority of organizations, and the GRI reporting framework being the most trusted and widely used in the world.

GRI's sustainability reporting standards help companies and organizations understand and communicate business impact on critical sustainability issues.

Five ways to reduce your carbon footprint

Climate change is real, but not unsolvable. There are several steps which we can take to save the planet from an ever-changing climate. Below are the five ways to reduce your carbon footprint.

These are the 5 R’s: refuse, reduce, reuse, rot, recycle:

Practicing zero waste formula  is a great step towards combating climate change. We always here about three R’s: Reduce, Reuse and Recycle. But there are two more that are also equally important to reduce the carbon footprint.

·         Reduce – Downsize what you purchase, opting to be more mindful of what you really need.

·         Reuse – Always find a way to keep an item out of the landfill by keeping it in great condition, repairing or up cycling it when it breaks.

·         Rot – You can Set up a compost system for your food scraps, or find a food scrap drop off center (like a farmers market, or community garden) near your house.

·         Recycle – Maximize the recycling of  any plastic, paper, glass or metal that comes into your contact which you cannot refuse, reduce, or reuse by researching your state’s recycling laws.

Bike more and drive less:

Traditional cars throws a lot of exhaust into the air, which promotes to pollutes the air. In fact, vehicles produce one-third of all U.S. air pollution. The toxins emitted by vehicles are also very dangerous for human health, considering the tailpipes are at street level where humans can breathe the air directly into their lungs. Challenge yourself to drive less and bike more. Riding your bike forces you to utilize your own energy/muscle power. Better to  take a public transportation which automatically helps in reducing the exhaust air.

Conserve water and protect our waterways:

Reducing your water usage is essential: There’s only so much water on this earth, and we can’t make any more of it. 96.5 percent of the water on earth is too salty for human consumption? Two thirds of the remaining fresh water has been locked in polar ice, glaciers, and permanent snow.

Melting it won’t help, seeing as most of it will just end up as sea water. That’s why it’s so important to cherish the water we have. Here are a few ways to help conserve water and protect our waterways: When you brush your teeth, be sure to shut off the water while you lather up. Don’t leave it running: Only turn it on when it’s time to rinse your mouth out.

·         Take shorter showers.

·         One flush can save up to 5 or 7 gallons of water.

·         Avoid dish/body soaps filled with toxins. As  the conventional dish and body soap contain ingredients that go down into the drain and it helps to pollute our water supply. Better to use all-natural, eco-friendly soap.

·         Host or join a waterway cleanup in your local community. Keep those waters plastic free!

·         Opt for reusables.

·         A single disposable diaper takes 144 gallons of water. There are several other products, like paper plates, cups and towels, that gallons of water to make as well. That’s why switching to reusables will help you save water in the long run.

GE3S provides carbonfootprint services to its clients across sectors. We have helped clients in achieving carbon-neutral certification.  Contact vishal.kumar@ge3s.org for more information.

Do you want to reduce your carbon footprint?

A carbon footprint is the measure of the Green House Gas emissions of an organization, process, person, or event in a given time period. It is calculated in units of tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e). GE3S helps it's clients to establish a process, build organizational capacity to measure, analyze and monitor their GHG emissions that help organizations to realize their Carbon Footprint and build a climate change mitigation strategy.

If we want to save ourselves and our planet from climate change, we need new policies and some governmental actions. Many studies are done on how to reduce carbon footprint, which says there are four ways to reduce individual carbon emission.

Eat a Plant-based Diet

In media many articles are published on a plant-based diet in the last few months. Plant-based diets are getting popular these days which means ditching meat to fight climate breakdown. Plant-based diets are a good alternative for clean meat to save the environment. This type of diet saves around 0.8 tons of CO2 equivalent per year.

Air Travel

Flights are the main source of gas emission, unfortunately, we can’t avoid flying.

Car-free environment

Many research is done on how the car affects the environment by emitting carbon footprint. Research predicts that a car-free environment can save around 2.4 tons of CO2 equivalent per year. In some countries like nether land uses public transport to travel here and there so they will have a less carbon footprint.

Small Family

Now a day’s population is the main concern for the environment. Less population means less carbon emission, less carbon footprint.

Taking part in environmental initiatives

Try to buy your fruits and veggies from any local farmers market instead of going to supermarkets and all. Farmers always try to use healthier and more organic practices that are better on the environment.

Keeping these smaller companies open at the expense of less-environmentally-friendly options can do more to sway a company toward environmentally-friendly practices than any personal initiative of your own.

Use tap water

Try to use tap water instead of using bottled water to help the environment and to reduce carbon footprint. The recent water filtration systems in the market create less waste.    

 

Reduce usage of the air-conditioning system

Turn off your thermostat when you are not at home which may save 15% of your energy bill.  People keep the home cool during the day and warm there self by sweater and blankets instead you can reduce your carbon footprint.

Now a day’s smart home thermostat also available in the market, using the smart home thermostat, can control home temperature no, matter wherever you are. Changing a temp by a centigrade makes a big difference on your energy bill.