The eagle-eyed amongst you may have noticed some words on our website about environmental sustainability and net zero. You might be seeing this kind of thing much more often from a range of companies worldwide.
To the okoHaus team, these are not just words. When we started the business, we genuinely wanted to build something to help the environment rather than hurt it. Though, with the day-to-day pressures of building and running a business, it is very easy to lose sight of any big-ticket objective.
We have therefore decided to outline what we are actually doing to get closer to our objectives, challenge ourselves and hold ourselves and our suppliers accountable for environmental matters. This can also be a place where you can feed back to us on ideas you might have on how we can improve or to hold us accountable.
We have already set out an ambitious but achievable Environmental Policy, focussed on seven key deliverables:
Supplying products that have a positive impact on the environment
Using the ‘Reduce, Reuse, Recycle’ principles minimises our negative environmental impact. We reduce waste as far as possible as a priority and recycle as a last resort
Working with suppliers who hold similar values, and who live by those values
Aiming for 100% responsible sourcing – every choice we make as a business should be the best choice for the environment
Aiming to achieve net zero CO2 emissions by 2025, earlier if possible
Constantly challenging the status quo – if we spot a better way to do something, we are not afraid to try it
Engaging with our local community to find ways to make a positive difference
We are making progress on all these points, but in this blog post, we will specifically focus on point 5, aiming to achieve net zero CO2 emissions by 2025.
Introducing C Free!
We are pleased to announce that following an introduction by our friends at Box Clad, we have started a partnership with C Free. C Free is a specialist in accurately calculating the amount of carbon we are using as individuals and businesses and suggesting improvements to get the amount we produce down. They also research and find high-quality Gold Standard-certified projects to offset unavoidable emissions.
They have three basic programmes:
1. Tree planting
2. Carbon-neutral workforce
3. Carbon-neutral business
As of June 2021, we are engaged with them on their tree planting and carbon-neutral workforce initiatives, whilst we actively work towards achieving the carbon-neutral business standard.
This means two things: we can now genuinely claim to have a certified Carbon Neutral Workforce, and we commit to planting one tree for each window or door sold from June 2021 onwards. Actually, just by signing up with C Free, they have planted 100 trees for us already!
Buy one, get one tree 😊
As we work from home, our employees' daily lives make up quite a substantial amount of our emissions. To achieve Carbon Neutral Workforce certification, we have calculated the carbon footprints of our employees' lives at work and at home, provided information on how to reduce them, and are offsetting the emissions that they cannot reduce by supporting Gold Standard certified projects.
Eddie at C Free said, “We’re really excited to start working with okoHaus, it is rare that we come across a company so committed to doing good for the planet and we are happy to help them on their journey to Net Zero”.
As UK woodland cover stands at about 13%, compared to the EU average of 38%, we have plenty of scope to increase woodland on our own shores before considering projects abroad.
This gives us the added benefit of supporting relatively local companies and economies. So, with the help of C Free, we have decided to support The Future Forest Company with its Brisbane Mains planting project in Scotland. You can find out more about Brisbane Mains in the video below.
In this project, The Future Forest Company are using a range of techniques to maximise the impact of their work. Reforestation combined with biochar and enhanced weathering technologies allow them to sequester up to 10 times more carbon per hectare of land. You can find out more detail at The Future Forest Company's website.
Additionally, to achieve our Carbon Neutral Workforce certification, we are supporting the Vichada Reforestation Project in the Orinoco River basin, Colombia. It combines reforestation with biodiversity protection and ecosystem restoration, whilst contributing to the mitigation of the climate crisis.
The rainforests of South America have been in retreat for centuries. This project is changing that. In addition to the reforestation of the savannah, the project protects the remaining patches of native vegetation and creates additional conservation areas on the banks of rivers and other watersheds.
The project will plant more than 80 million trees (offsetting more than 1.5 million tonnes of CO2) to offer a natural habitat for native animals and plants, protect and enrich the soil, save and filter water, and contribute to mitigating the greenhouse effect.
We will be back to update you on progress towards our net zero target, but for now, I’d like to leave you with a quote from Greta Thunberg, which we’ve found inspiring:
‘The climate crisis has already been solved. We already have all the facts and solutions. All we have to do is to wake up and change.’
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