It all starts with knowing what our emissions are. We account for Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions. Including Scope 3 is extremely important, since the majority of our emissions (over 95%!) are there.
We calculate our carbon footprint every year with an extensive calculation model, and base our plans on our Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), which shows where the heaviest impacts are. The emissions that cannot be prevented will all be offset in the Indian clean cooking stoves project of FairClimateFund.
Next to the total footprint, we also calculate our carbon intensity every year. Since we are a growing company, our total footprint will increase. For that reason, it’s essential to measure our progress with carbon intensity, which shows our emissions in relation to our annual revenue in Euros.
Offsetting or compensating your carbon emissions means that you calculate them and invest the equivalent in euros in an accredited project, outside your supply chain, that captures carbon in for example vegetation and soils. This is an option that is often offered by airlines to customers booking flights, for just a couple of euros.
Insetting is when you take action inside your supply chain to directly eliminate emissions, for example by switching to a more sustainable mode of transport or having solar panels installed at all factories you work with.
We always prioritize insetting over offsetting. If a company is only offsetting, it is not making long-lasting changes in its operations that reduce carbon emissions in the long run. Although calculating and offsetting emissions is a good start, being carbon neutral by offsetting only is impossible - so O My Bag will not make that claim anymore. Instead, we focus on insetting, by amongst others: increasing sea shipments, replacing the fossil fuels used for our sea shipments with biofuels, limiting business travel, flying on Sustainable Aviation Fuel for business trips and searching for a more sustainable hardware producer.
