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How can carbon offsetting be used to meet Corporate Social Responsibility goals?

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Carbon offsetting is a way of compensating for the greenhouse gas emissions that your business generates by investing in projects that reduce or remove carbon from the atmosphere. It can be a powerful tool to meet your Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) goals, which are the voluntary actions that your business takes to address its environmental, social, and economic impacts. In this article, you will learn how carbon offsetting works, what are the benefits and challenges of using it, and how to choose credible and effective carbon offset projects.

本文章的要点总结

Set science-based targets:

Before offsetting, ensure your company is actively reducing emissions. Align with standards like the Science Based Targets initiative to show genuine commitment to CSR goals.
Invest in high-quality offsets:

Choose carbon credits that deliver real change. Look for projects with rigorous standards and clear benefits for both the environment and local communities.

本摘要由 AI 和以下专家提供支持

Eleni Polychroniadou

CEO of Sintali │ Catalysing a greener…
Natalia Ciobanu, PhD

Social-Ecological Sustainability…

1 What is carbon offsetting?

Carbon offsetting is based on the idea that you can balance out your carbon footprint, which is the amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that your business activities emit, by supporting projects that either prevent emissions from happening elsewhere or capture and store carbon from the air. For example, you can offset your emissions by funding renewable energy projects, forest conservation, or carbon capture technologies. Carbon offsetting is usually measured in tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e), which is a unit that accounts for the different global warming potentials of different gases.

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Natalia Ciobanu, PhD

Social-Ecological Sustainability, Climate Change Impact Assessment & Resilience Building
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Carbon offsetting is a sensible way to act for environmental good ONLY IF: 1. Absolute GHG emission reduction targets have been set and all possible efforts have been deployed to reduce emissions. Targets should be in-line with science (e.g. SBTi's Net Zero standard requires to first reduce absolute emissions by min. 90% before compensating the unabatable max.10% with carbon removal offsets); AND/OR 2. You purchase carbon credits as a means to contribute to societal efforts to mitigate climate change (i.e. beyond value chain mitigation) and don't count them towards carbon footprint reduction of your business; AND 3. You make sure that carbon credits are high quality (see the many online resources explaining quality criteria for offsets)

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Anuraj Shrivastava

Data Management | Alternative Investments | Green Energy | Environmental Science | Chemical Sciences | Economics | Football
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Carbon offsets are rights which are linked to activities that reduce the carbon footprints. By buying these offsets one can contribute to the climate change fight; without reducing their own carbon emissions. Recently, in the WWDC 2023, we witnessed Apple Inc. making efforts to implement sustainable development. The purchase of carbon offsets can be seen as an efficient way of promoting SDGs without effecting one's operations. Inclusion of Carbon offsetting as a CSR goal will not only solidify a firm's commitment towards the SDGs but will also make a positive impact on the environment. However, the real picture differs as companies around the globe continues to decrease their investment in Carbon offset funds due to credibility issues.

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2 Why use carbon offsetting for CSR?

Carbon offsetting can help you achieve your CSR goals in several ways. First, it can demonstrate your commitment to reducing your environmental impact and fighting climate change, which can enhance your reputation, brand value, and customer loyalty. Second, it can support your compliance with environmental regulations and standards, such as the Paris Agreement, the Carbon Disclosure Project, or the Science Based Targets initiative. Third, it can create positive social and economic outcomes for the communities and regions where the offset projects are located, such as improving health, education, and livelihoods.

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3 What are the challenges of carbon offsetting?

Carbon offsetting is not without its challenges and limitations. One of the main challenges is ensuring the quality and integrity of the offset projects, which means verifying that they are actually delivering the expected emission reductions or removals, that they are not causing negative side effects, and that they are not double-counting or selling the same credits to multiple buyers. Another challenge is avoiding the risk of greenwashing, which is when you use carbon offsetting to make false or misleading claims about your environmental performance or to justify continuing your emissions without making any real changes. Carbon offsetting should not be seen as a substitute for reducing your own emissions, but as a complementary and transitional measure.

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4 How to choose credible and effective carbon offset projects?

To ensure that your carbon offsetting efforts are credible and effective, you need to choose projects that meet certain criteria and standards. Additionality, permanence, leakage, and co-benefits are all important criteria to consider. Additionally, look for projects certified by the Gold Standard, Verified Carbon Standard (VCS), and Climate, Community, and Biodiversity (CCB) Standards. These standards require high levels of environmental and social safeguards, stakeholder engagement, rigorous assessment and verification of the emission reductions or removals by independent third parties, and the demonstration of positive impacts on climate change, local communities, and biodiversity.

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Eleni Polychroniadou

CEO of Sintali │ Catalysing a greener built environment globally
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Choosing a verified carbon offset that accounts for additionality and no double counting is essential. But the type of project also makes a difference. For example, people often think that reforestation is the best type of carbon offset but actually it may not be as robust because of the time frame required (for example a planted tree may take 20 years to capture the amount of carbon offset)

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5 How to measure and report your carbon offsetting results?

Communicating and showcasing your carbon offsetting results requires measuring and reporting them in a transparent and consistent way. This includes calculating your carbon footprint with online tools such as the GHG Protocol or the Carbon Trust, setting your own reduction targets or aligning them with external frameworks, selecting and purchasing offsets from reputable providers or online platforms, and reporting your performance to stakeholders using platforms or your own channels. As long as you use carbon offsetting responsibly and effectively, it can be a valuable and impactful way to meet CSR goals. Quality and credible carbon offset projects demonstrate leadership and contribution to a low-carbon and sustainable future.

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6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?

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Eleni Polychroniadou

CEO of Sintali │ Catalysing a greener built environment globally
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Carbon offsetting is a hotly debated topic in the sustainability industry. From a purist perspective, we shouldn't do carbon offsetting as it encourages business as usual. From a practical perspective, the idea of reaching "net zero" without carbon offsetting is impossible. We need to find a balance that pushes changes in business models, while also creates financial flows to support a just transition, which carbon offsetting allows for

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How can carbon offsetting be used to meet Corporate Social Responsibility goals?

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1 What is carbon offsetting?

2 Why use carbon offsetting for CSR?

3 What are the challenges of carbon offsetting?

4 How to choose credible and effective carbon offset projects?

5 How to measure and report your carbon offsetting results?

6 Here’s what else to consider

Corporate Social Responsibility

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How can carbon offsetting be used to meet Corporate Social Responsibility goals?

1

2

3

4

5

6

1 What is carbon offsetting?

2 Why use carbon offsetting for CSR?

3 What are the challenges of carbon offsetting?

4 How to choose credible and effective carbon offset projects?

5 How to measure and report your carbon offsetting results?

6 Here’s what else to consider

Corporate Social Responsibility

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