Where can I calculate my carbon footprint?
While searching for a program to calculate our own carbon footprint, we soon came across the “myclimate” foundation. This non-profit organization is one of the world’s leading providers of voluntary CO2 offset measures, with roots in Switzerland. Its client base includes companies, public administrations, non-profit organizations, event organizers, and private individuals. Through partner organizations, myclimate is also represented in Germany, Austria, Sweden, and Norway. Voluntary CO2 emissions offsetting takes place through more than 140 climate protection projects in over 40 countries. Myclimate supports projects that utilize renewable energy, implement energy efficiency measures, and carry out reforestation projects. In 2016, myclimate was awarded the Swiss sustainability prize “PrixEco.”
What about Vanillaplan?
So we took the plunge—and calculated Vanillaplan’s carbon footprint online using the myclimate website. Fortunately, our office is heated by district heating, and we use green electricity from IWB—we’ve already scored some points here. Then we reviewed everyone’s commute: We all get to work by public transit, on foot, by bike, or on a Vespa. None of our commutes are longer than about 15 kilometers, and some of us also work from home on a daily basis. We travel very little for business. We try to handle all customer contact online whenever possible, so we only travel by car in exceptional cases. This is the case, for example, at trade shows or when individual customers request a face-to-face meeting on-site. It’s a huge advantage that we use almost no paper for our office processes—with the exception of notes, for which we mostly use scrap paper.
One area where we really stand out is our IT setup during our daily coffee breaks! Well, and maybe also when it comes to the number of electronic devices: Each of us uses a laptop with a second monitor, a cell phone, and a headset.
How large is the carbon footprint—and how large should it be?
If all emissions are taken into account—that is, both those emitted domestically in Switzerland and those caused by imported goods—annual per-capita emissions in Switzerland amount to approximately 14 tons of CO2. This means that every person living in Switzerland consumes an average of 14 tons of CO2! By comparison, global per capita CO2 consumption is only about half that, at six to seven tons per year. And as another point of reference: to achieve climate neutrality, a person’s average consumption should be between 0.6 and 2.5 tons, depending on the model.
How can we at Vanillaplan further reduce our carbon footprint?
For one thing, certainly through transportation: We could all bike to the office or work from home even more often. Another area to focus on is the number of electronic devices we use: We could leave the newer, more powerful devices to our professionals, while the rest of us could use devices from the slightly older generation—that way, we’d have our own in-house second-hand operation. And clearing out our data storage would also be an option: Over time, a lot of stuff accumulates there that we no longer actually need but that still consumes energy—so let’s get rid of it. We’ll stay on top of it, as always at Vanillaplan!