WHY WORK WITH CO2BALANCE?
- An expert team of dedicated professionals with a wide range of specialist skills
- Privately financed with a belief that we can do some real good by applying efficient business process to challenging environmental and development issues
- Realistic and practical with a profit for purpose approach
- Transparent in operation, with open and honest reporting
- A leading edge project developer, informing and improving the industry standards from innovative project development to highly ethical sales and marketing practice
Which organisations are CO2balance members of?
CO2balance is a founding member of the International Carbon Reduction and Offset Alliance (ICROA), a non-profit organisation that promotes best practice across the voluntary carbon market.
CO2balance is also proud to be a member of:
- Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves
- Gold Standard Network Platform
Is CO2balance a Charity or a Company?
Our approach is best described as “Profit for Purpose”. CO2balance is set up as a Company in order to operate the organisation with the efficiency of a business, required to meet all of its costs through its activity, not as a charity or NGO funded by donations or grants. This requires the company to be completely transparent with detailed accounts, to show we are achieving our goals of maximum carbon reduction within strict efficiency targets.
CO2balance frequently works in partnership with charities and NGOs to implement projects and to develop funding to contribute to their sustainable long term activities.
CO2balance – Projects:
How do you deliver projects internationally?
CO2balance works in partnership with local consultants and international and local NGOs in order to implement projects. CO2balance UK Ltd provides partners with technical guidance and training on the requirements of the project to ensure that they are carried out in line with carbon offset methodologies.
How do you ensure a project is viable in a community?
Initial identification of a suitable area begins with research into critical local factors, such as levels of deforestation and fuel use. Prior to establishing a project in a community CO2balance approach the local community leaders and ask for a Letter of Approval to work within their community. This involves a local stakeholder meeting where the project is proposed to key stakeholders including community members, and their feedback is gathered.
Following the meeting CO2balance undertakes a feasibility study which involves collecting initial baseline data from a cross section of households in the identified potential project area. Depending on the results from the feasibility survey CO2balance determine whether to proceed into an area and deliver a project.
Why does CO2balance use partner NGOs for project implementation?
In order for projects to maximise the socio-economic benefits that they aim to deliver, it is important that projects adhere to local customs and traditions, as well as focusing on community ownership of the project activity. Local NGOs typically have established relationships with communities in areas where CO2balance are interested in developing projects, and also often focus on working with and recruiting community members to carry out activities.
Projects are also monitored on a minimum of an annual basis, and community engagement and training is carried out throughout the project period. Therefore, it also makes sense for CO2balance to work with localised organisations that are able to mobilise and access communities on a regular basis.
Following the meeting CO2balance undertakes a feasibility study which involves collecting initial baseline data from a cross section of households in the identified potential project area. Depending on the results from the feasibility survey CO2balance determine whether to proceed into an area and deliver a project.
How do CO2balance projects contribute towards wider socioeconomic benefits?
CO2balance focus on developing and implementing high impact projects that reduce carbon emissions as well as making quantifiable contributions to achieving the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.
Under Gold Standard for the Global Goals, SDG contributions are certified as part of registration and certification process, and CO2balance projects have contributed to key SDGs including SDG 3 (Good Health and Wellbeing), SDG 5 (Gender Equality), SDG 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation), SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy), and SDG 13 (Climate Action). For more information please see here.
CO2balance has also pioneered implementing Gold Standard’s impact certification process towards Gender Equality, which involves an additional audit process to ensure that the project makes contributions towards a wide range of SDG 5 indicators.
How can we be sure CO2balance deliver the project to an accredited standard?
Every project delivered by CO2balance is independently audited by an accredited third party, such as Gold Standard, or an approved DOE (Designated Operational Entity). This involves a review of project documentation and monitoring data, prior to any credits being issued. This rigorous verification process ensures that all credits that are issued are in line with the principles and requirements of the relevant accredited standard.
CO2balance has extensive experience developing carbon projects under a range of recognised international standards for verifying emission reductions including CDM, Gold Standard, and VCS.
Can CO2balance deliver bespoke projects relevant to an organisations’ activities?
Yes. CO2balance has expertise in developing community based, high impact projects, and our flexibility means that we are able to develop projects that meet the needs and objectives of your organisation. For example, if your organisation has operations in Kenya and has high water usage within the supply chain, CO2balance could develop a safe water project for rural Kenyan communities that offsets your carbon emissions.
If you are interested in developing a project with CO2balance, we are always interested in hearing from you.
Carbon Offsetting:
What is Carbon Offsetting?
It is now very clear that human activities are causing the global climate to warm with potentially dangerous consequences. It is important on all of us to reduce our emissions of greenhouse gases. However, it is equally clear that it is not going to be possible for us to be able to eliminate our carbon footprint entirely. Carbon offsetting exists as a means to enable us to do something about our residual carbon footprints rather than just ignoring them.
Carbon offsetting works by helping businesses to assess the size of their residual carbon footprints and then invest in projects that save the equivalent amount of carbon emissions. Through this process, they balance out their unavoidable emissions and become CarbonZero.
What is a Carbon Footprint?
A carbon footprint is a measure of the impact our activities have on the environment, climate change in particular. It relates to the amount of greenhouse gases produced in our day-to-day lives through burning fossil fuels for electricity, heating and transportation etc. The carbon footprint is a measurement of all greenhouse gases we individually produce and has units of tonnes (or kg) of carbon dioxide equivalent (called CO2e).
How do you calculate a Carbon Footprint?
CO2balance undertake a full Greenhouse Gas Audit in accordance with the internationally-recognised Greenhouse Gas Protocol and the ISO 14064 standard. Audits can vary depending on what is being audited, but a standard company carbon footprint usually covers utility usage (electricity, gas consumption and so on), together with business travel. A carbon footprint report to these standards can be used in corporate reporting, in the knowledge that the methodologies employed are accepted across the world.
To calculate the carbon emissions from a company or activity, CO2balance use the UK Government Conversion Factors for Company Reporting obtained from the DEFRA website. For emissions from aviation CO2blance include Radiative Forcing, which is a measure of the additional environmental impact of aviation, as recommended by DEFRA.
CO2balance- Carbon Audits:
What if I can’t access any data (for example, in serviced offices)?
The first time data gathering data for an audit can seem daunting; however, CO2balance have years of experience to assist you to make the process as simple as possible. For any data gaps industry averages can be used, with advice on how to capture the data for the following audit.
How can I promote my company’s carbon offsetting?
Fully maximising the carbon offset work that you do to your clients and customers can help businesses achieve a return of their investment. To assist, CO2balance provide you with a Certificate of Offset to confirm that the carbon has been offset. When you offset your carbon footprint you can benefit from marketing your organisation as CarbonZero. Project information, case studies and images are also available to aid your marketing and promotional work, along with project videos for selected projects which can be made available for downloading.
As well as carbon offsetting, how else can we protect our environment?
The first step in carbon management is to calculate your carbon footprint, and CO2balance can arrange to carry out a Greenhouse Gas Audit to assess the carbon amount of carbon dioxide the company annually emits. The second step is to reduce carbon emissions internally where possible and where practicable, this is commonly referred to as ‘Insetting’. Engaging with your staff is an effective way to carry this out, and CO2balance run on-line staff engagement programme to interact with staff and generate a shift in behavioural attitude towards a low carbon culture. The third step is to offset your residual carbon footprint.