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This carbon footprint takes into account the reported emissions generated by the activities of the institution over one year and was established according to international standards by Climate Services. Mobility takes into consideration business travels and commuting (on a survey basis). The CO2 impact of food includes the catering of the institution and individual consumption (on a survey basis) during working hours. Nevertheless the collected data of the 2050Today members resulting in each carbon footprint are not yet fully standardized nor entirely complete. Data collection is being progressively harmonized and improved. Therefore direct comparisons between tCO2 / employee among institutions – be it in general or per sector – are not yet possible nor relevant.
According to ISO 14064, the distribution of emissions is done by scopes.
Scope 1 represents direct emissions linked to the consumption of fossil fuels.
Scope 2 represents indirect emissions from the generation of purchased electricity, steam, heating and cooling consumed by the reporting company
Scope 3 includes all other indirect emissions that occur in a company’s value chain (i.e. purchased good or services, business travel, employee commuting).
If we were to give a concrete weight to this carbon footprint, it would represent the weight of the following number of elephants :
(average weight per elephant : 5’000 kilos)
This amount of CO2 was emitted in one year. How many century-old cedars does it take to absorb this carbon footprint in the same amount of time ?
(a 100 year old cedar absorbs on average 25 kg of CO2 per year)
The Permanent Mission of Switzerland integrates the importance of reducing the carbon footprint of its operations in all areas of its work. Various measures are therefore implemented to ensure positive impacts in reducing CO2 emissions. These measures refer to all sectors that impact the carbon footprint of the Mission’s activities, including energy, mobility, food, recycling and waste reduction, as well as new equipment.
Vegetarian menus and the use of local and seasonal products are promoted at the Mission’s receptions and events. The use of plastic bottles has been reduced to a minimum, in favour of glass and cardboard recipients. Mission staff are also encouraged to adopt an emission-reducing practice for individual consumption during working hours.
The Mission promotes the use of soft mobility for urban travel, such as public transport, bicycles, electric bikes and walking. Electric bicycles are provided for business use. With the return to a normalised situation, teleworking will continue to be implemented on a part-time basis to reduce commuting. For participation in events abroad, the Mission asks its members to take into consideration the impact of CO2 emissions. In line with the flight reduction policy of the Swiss Federal Administration, the use of the train is the priority when travelling in Europe.
The Mission has set up sorting centres to ensure better recycling and reduce the proportion of waste. All members are encouraged to keep printing to a minimum and to send and receive documents electronically.
