‘Involve your people’: How businesses are moving toward net zero

By Jessica Davies

The recent IPCC report on climate change made for grim reading, with United Nations secretary-general António Guterres describing the report as a “code red for humanity.” There is still time to act but immediate and widespread action needs to be taken — and that includes by businesses, who can also play a major role in minimizing the climate emergency.

Nearly a third of the U.K.’s largest businesses including AstraZeneca, BT Group and Sainsbury’s have pledged to eliminate their contribution to carbon emissions by 2050, according to the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy. The U.K. government, which pledged in 2019 to bring all greenhouse gas emissions to net zero by 2050, is pushing more businesses to commit to net zero emissions by 2050 and has set up the UK Business Climate Hub, where companies can find practical tools, resources and advice to understand their emissions and develop a plan to tackle them.

“Every business — no matter their size or industry — has a role to play in limiting global warming,” said María Mendiluce, CEO of the We Mean Business Coalition, a founding partner of the small and medium business Climate Hub. “It’s time for every business to get on board. Every step to limit carbon emissions taken by companies large and small will have a collective role in bringing us to net zero.”

Many businesses are downsizing their office footprints and/or redesigning their workspaces to reflect the more flexible, hybrid-working models so popular as a result of the pandemic. And some are seizing the change to ramp up their efforts to be more eco-conscious in the process.

So where should businesses start?

IT company Data Solutions hired a climate consultant to measure its carbon footprint and commissioned annual carbon monitoring reports. “One of the biggest issues for any business thinking of taking their business carbon neutral or net zero is knowing where to start,” said Data Solutions managing director Michael O’Hara. “There is a wall of information out there about what we all should and should not be doing, this can be very confusing and even stop businesses from taking action.”

Depending on your business, one of the most effective ways to tackle your carbon emissions is reducing the environmental footprint of your office buildings or warehouse. For example, ensure walls and roofs are properly insulated. Switch from a gas boiler to a low carbon alternative, such as a heat pump or generate your own renewable energy by installing solar panels.

At Data Solutions, the company has replaced its gas burning office heating system with a more efficient heat pump system, replaced all lighting in its offices with LED lights, and installed solar panels on the office roof. “This now provides 12% of our energy needs via this renewable source,” said O’Hara.

Business travel can be a large source of carbon emissions, says Jaise Kuriakose, a lecturer in climate change at the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research at the University of Manchester in the U.K. “There needs …read more

Source:: Digiday