Carbon offsets are a crucial component of any brand’s sustainability strategy, and are one of the easiest ways to take climate action.
Carbon offsets are a practical and effective way to reduce the effects of climate change by funding renewable energy, forestry, or clean water projects. These projects reduce emissions of carbon dioxide or other greenhouse gasses in order to compensate for unavoidable emissions made elsewhere, like the emissions created from ordering something online.
Carbon offsetting is a necessity in any serious sustainability strategy because sustainability isn’t just about mitigation. Business operations have been emitting carbon into the atmosphere for centuries now, which means we need to be removing carbon from the atmosphere in addition to avoiding emitting any more. Carbon offsets enable you to have an immediate positive impact on the environment by funding projects like restoring and protecting forests, creating clean energy sources, and more.
Minimizing or eliminating your carbon emissions is the best way to lessen the negative impact your business is having on the environment. But no matter how efficient you make your supply chain, there will always be inevitable emissions from business activities. Carbon offsetting enables businesses to counteract those carbon emissions that simply can’t be eliminated. This is why carbon offsetting is a vital factor in the UN’s net zero carbon by 2050 goal, and why any business that is serious about lessening its ecological impact is buying into it.
EcoCart’s carbon offsetting projects have social benefits in addition to their environmental benefits, like creating jobs, driving gender equality, improving the local community’s quality of life, and more.
Understanding which parts of your business are emitting the most carbon can enable you to take the proper steps to pivot your operations to be more sustainable. A pivot like this can be everything from partnering with more eco-friendly suppliers to finding manufacturing plants that use cleaner energy. The point is: calculating your carbon footprint is the first step along your sustainability journey.
According to Forbes, 87% of customers would buy a product with a social and environmental benefit if given the opportunity. Furthermore, 92% would be more likely to trust a company that supports social or environmental issues.
Everything has a carbon footprint. Carbon footprints are more frequently associated with activities like driving a car or flying in a plane, but many don’t realize that even the simplest everyday activities emit carbon.
The average US citizen’s carbon footprint is about 20 tons. That means that they produce an annual amount of CO2 equivalent to the emissions from driving a car 50,000 miles. A variety of activities contribute to this footprint, including electricity usage, fuel consumption, and even food choices.
All of EcoCart’s projects have been verified by several major carbon standards, including VERRA, the Climate Action Reserve, and the Gold Standard. Carbon standards are groups that verify carbon offsetting projects of all types.