Eco-Friendly Actions: How Companies Can Reduce Their Carbon

By offering an environmentally friendly cleaning solution and an alternative to disposable cups, Auum helps companies reduce their waste. But there are many other actions businesses can take to lower their carbon footprint in the workplace, whether in transport, IT and digital practices, or energy use. Let’s take a closer look.

Transport: good habits start on the way to work

According to ADEME, three quarters of commuting journeys are still made by car, most often with only one person in the vehicle. In France, private cars account for 54% of CO₂ emissions from road transport.

If you live less than 5 km from your workplace, cycling remains one of the best options. It is good for your health, as 30 minutes of physical activity a day can reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease. It is also good for your well-being, as you avoid traffic jams and the sometimes frustrating search for a parking space. Finally, it is good for the planet, because unlike cars, bicycles produce neither pollutants nor greenhouse gas emissions during use.

Other solutions are available for people who live farther away. Those willing to cycle longer distances can opt for an electric bike, with financial support available in some cases from the French government or employers through schemes such as sustainable mobility allowances and environmental incentives. Others can rely on public transport, which generally produces fewer emissions than individual car journeys.

And when your workplace is genuinely too far away to cycle to and is not served by public transport, carpooling remains an option. Dedicated car-sharing platforms have helped make this practice more popular, reducing traffic as well as pollutant and greenhouse gas emissions. Even so, ADEME points out that only 3% of commuting journeys currently involve carpooling.

IT: how can companies reduce waste?

Did you know that the manufacturing of a computer accounts for 73% of its carbon footprint over its entire life cycle? This makes it essential for companies to take environmental impact into account when developing their purchasing policies.

Businesses can now rely on certain labels, such as TCO or EPEAT, as well as repairability scores, to select devices designed to last longer.

Providing every new employee with a brand-new computer should not necessarily be automatic. When a colleague leaves the company, their computer can be cleaned, refurbished and restored to a level of performance comparable to when it was first used. It can then be reassigned to another employee or donated or sold to an organisation in the social and solidarity economy. This enables companies to extend the life cycle of their IT equipment. Another option is to purchase refurbished equipment directly. This approach is part of the functional economy, which prioritises the use of a product rather than the purchase of a new one.

Finally, since IT equipment accounts for 21% of a company’s electricity consumption, it is also important to adopt good energy-saving habits: use energy-saving and sleep modes, adjust screen brightness, switch off computers when away for more than an hour, and so on.

Digital technology: very real environmental impacts

Because digital activities are largely intangible, we still tend to underestimate their very real environmental impact. According to ADEME, digital technology could account for 4% of global greenhouse gas emissions by 2025.

A few simple habits can help reduce the impact of digital consumption. A good place to start is by regularly cleaning up your professional inbox: delete spam, unsubscribe from newsletters you no longer read, reduce the size of attachments and avoid automatically using “Reply all”.

Data storage is another area where action can be taken. To reduce unnecessary demand on data centres, storing files locally on a computer or external hard drive can sometimes be preferable to using a cloud platform. Regular sorting is also important to keep only what is necessary and avoid duplicate files.

Finally, if you regularly watch streamed video content, consider whether you really need to use the highest available resolution. In many cases, 720p — or lower — is more than sufficient.

To get a better idea of the impact of your digital habits, you can use the carbon footprint calculator developed by ADEME.

Energy: significant opportunities for savings

Heating accounts for 50% of energy consumption in offices, which is considerable. Whenever possible, remember to turn the heating down when leaving the premises and switch it off completely when airing out rooms. Even better, encourage your colleagues to adopt the same habits, or ask workplace managers to put appropriate measures in place.

The same applies to air conditioning, which accounts for 20% of energy consumption in large office buildings. Remember to switch it off when leaving in the evening. Better still, only use it when temperatures exceed 26°C, and keep the temperature difference to a maximum of 5 to 6°C to avoid thermal shock.

When it comes to lighting, there are also many simple measures companies can adopt to make significant energy and financial savings. These include making the most of natural light, choosing LED bulbs, installing motion-sensor lighting or simply reminding everyone to switch off lights when leaving a room. According to ADEME, 70% of lighting-related expenditure could be avoided by applying these basic measures.

Beyond reducing waste, more and more companies are choosing to switch to a green electricity supplier. This enables them to support the energy transition while contributing to lower greenhouse gas emissions. Some suppliers now even offer energy sourced entirely from renewable sources, such as elmy in France or Ecotricity in the United Kingdom.

Ultimately, while everyone can help protect the environment and reduce their carbon footprint at home, the same is also true at work. Don’t hesitate to discuss it with your colleagues over a coffee. They may already agree with you — and if not, perhaps they just need a little convincing!

Source: Écoresponsable au bureau, ADEME, 2022.