woodlandplanet-earthsprout

At London Speaker Bureau, we are conscious that our planet’s environment is in a precarious position due to climate change which is both caused and exacerbated by the actions of humans. The Earth naturally produces CO2, however the quantity released has reached unprecedented levels which if left unchecked, will have an irreversible impact on our delicate ecosystems.

We have always strived to create an impact for our clients and their organisations, however we cannot ignore the unintentional impact that our business is having on our environment.

In 2016, we decided to address this and began our Carbon Offsetting program, and each year since then, we’ve steadily increased our contributions to carbon offsetting schemes. We aren’t going to stop there though; we’ve set a goal to reach net-zero emissions across all our speaker events and offices globally, and continue to work with our partner to reach that aim

What is carbon offsetting?

Our everyday actions, both at work and at home, consume energy and produce carbon emissions. The purpose of carbon offsetting is to aim to balance out these emissions by paying towards emission saving projects elsewhere.

Why do we offset our carbon footprint?

London Speaker Bureau is a truly global bureau, and we’ve flown our speakers and consultants to over 88 different countries, which has resulted in a considerable carbon footprint. In order to address this issue, we decided that it was necessary to offset our carbon emissions by working with our dedicated partner, Carbon Footprint, to identify and then contribute to a number of projects that aim to offset global carbon emissions.

Additionally, our projects also support local communities by providing employment, education and health benefits. For example, our wind turbine project in India provides education, skills and jobs in the building and maintenance of the turbines as well as renewable, clean energy.

How does it work?

Firstly, we calculate the amount of carbon generated by each speaker, or London Speaker Bureau member of staff’s journey. For example:

A return business flight from London to New York releases an estimated 4.85 tons of CO2.

Then, for every 1 ton of carbon produced by our team member or speaker’s travel, we fund £5.50 towards our chosen projects.

Our de-carbonisation projects

All of our carbon offset projects are held to international standards, including the Verified Carbon Standard (VCS), Gold Standard Voluntary Emission Reductions (VER) and Certified Emission Reductions (CER). All of which meet the Quality Assurance Standard for Carbon Offsetting and BSI's PAS 2060 specification on carbon neutrality.

Wind Turbine VCS Project in India

This project builds and operates hundreds of windmills across the State of Maharashta, providing social and sustainability benefits for the local community.

Impacts:

  • The building and maintenance of the windmills offers the opportunity to employ and train local workers to manage the day to day running of the wind farms.
  • By using the wind as an energy source, it helps reduce the supply and demand gap that restricts the region from the use of reliable electricity.
  • This wind energy removes the need to depend on fossil fuels and therefore cuts the potential emissions that would be released from its burning.

Efficient Cookstove Project in Kenya

Throughout Kenya, many people still cook using a three stone fire – this contraption is very wasteful as most of the heat escapes and its fuel is non-renewable. This project provides locally-made domestic fuel-efficient cooking stoves for families as a cleaner and easier way of cooking.

Impacts:

  • Kenya’s forests will be protected from being cut for biomass to fuel the cookers.
  • Efficient cookstoves reduce the risk of harmful pollutant exposure and health issues due to burning biomass indoors.
  • The manufacturing of the new cookers creates jobs for the rural Kenyan economy

Rmdlt Portel – Para REDD Project in Brazil

The Amazon is home to 10% of all species on earth and is at constant threat of deforestation due to logging, squatting and attempts to implement pastures. This project focuses on managing and protecting the land, turning it into a “private conservation reserve”.

Impacts:

  • By protecting the land, it promotes biodiversity conservation. The Para REDD zone projects protect numerous critically endangered mammals, birds, reptiles and fish
  • Our forests play a huge part in carbon capturing as they convert CO2 into oxygen. By protecting them from being destroyed, we increase the amount of carbon removed from the atmosphere.
  • Jobs are created in forest management and biodiversity monitoring for local community members.

What our speakers have to say about our carbon neutral scheme