The unfortunate side effect of carbon offsetting schemes, is that they've become the quickest shortcut to going green.
A company that loudly declares it is 100% carbon neutral was once seen as the pinnacle of enviro-conscious businesses, and it still largely is. But there are several conflicting ways to achieve that, and people are catching on when it's purely through offsets.
Carbon offsets are great in the absence of a better option, or in the interim of shifting to a better option.
To me, it's about how loud and proud you are of your offsetting.
Super loud: "We're proudly 100% carbon neutral"
...if all you do is buy carbon credits, you're leaning too heavily on them to conjure up a green image, rather than working to genuinely reduce your emissions. It's the lazy option and you're gonna be called out for it, probably sooner than you think. However, if you're carbon neutral through emission reductions, get loud baby!
Soft and humble: "We offset all our emissions as a minimum, but we've got more work to do"
...show that your efforts are a work in progress, and that offsets aren't the entirety of your strategy. Share links to reports, show progress on applications or the current status of a department in change.
Transparency for the win - it's what your customers are looking begging for.
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