8 Tips for Organizations Just Starting Their Net Zero Journey

Recently, investment management corporation BlackRock announced that by 2030, at least 75% of its assets managed on behalf of clients will be invested in issuers with science-based net zero emissions targets or equivalent. That means that many more organizations will be embarking on net zero journeys, which can be a daunting process. Where and how should you begin? In this article, we’ll list our top 8 tips for organizations just starting their net zero journey.

Tip 1: Get A Handle on Your Current Emissions

You can’t manage what you haven’t measured. Before you can begin your net zero journey, you need to understand what your current carbon footprint is. This will allow you to benchmark and measure your success going forward.

Tip 2: Break Your Emissions Down Into 3 Scopes

You can break your emissions down into three parts or scopes:  Scope 1, i.e., emissions that come from sources your organization owns; Scope 2, i.e., emissions from your organization’s energy usage; and Scope 3 emissions from sources you don’t own or control, which are produced as a result of your organization’s actions. Breaking things down in this way will give you a clear picture of where the bulk of your emissions are coming from (and where you should concentrate your efforts).

Tip 3: Utilize Software to Calculate Your Emissions

Energy and sustainability management software can track and calculate your organization’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as well as your organization’s global warming potential. You can use software to gather your energy and emissions data all into one place, or you source the data from your providers and enter the data into spreadsheets. We recommend the former option, however, as it is much less tedious and complicated (and more accurate).

Tip 4: Develop A Net Zero Plan

Once you have your emissions data analyzed, you can identify which actions will have the most impact on those emissions. We suggest drafting a solid plan that will help guide you and give your efforts structure. Actions in your plan could include switching to LED lighting, updating the HVAC systems in your facilities, or switching to electric vehicles to decrease emissions across your supply chain. If you’re wondering where to start, reference the SBTi’s new net zero standard. Finally, remember that you can break your plan down into multiple phases of adoption if doing everything at once feels too overwhelming.

Tip 5: Consult With Stakeholders

Before you implement a net zero plan, consult thoroughly with customers, investors, employees, and other stakeholders. They may very well have ideas to contribute, and at the very least will be able to tell you what actions they do and do not want to see from you.

Tip 6: Begin Implementing Changes

Once you have a plan laid out, you can begin implementing efficiency projects. Remember that you do not need to do everything at once. In fact, we strongly advice against rushing the process as that could result in issues like key areas being missed or projects botched.

Tip 7: Measure and Verify Your Impact

How will you know if your net zero plan/efficiency projects are working and having the desired impact? We recommend utilizing measurement and verification (M&V) to check the effectiveness of your efforts. Click here to discover more about M&V.

Tip 8: Keep Looking Forward

Your net zero journey should not be a case of “set it and forget it.” Rather, you should continually be looking at trends in the field and searching for ways to improve your process or make your goals more ambitious as technology advances. Make sure to continually review your data – it is your best guide – and sit down with leaders and drivers in your company to determine the best path for the future.

How WatchWire Can Help

Earlier, we mentioned that energy and sustainability management software can help your organization track and calculate emissions, global warming potential, and more. WatchWire’s energy and sustainability management platform can do all these things, as well as:

• Ensure your energy, sustainability, and emissions data is automatically collected and organized all in one place.
• Provide you with actionable insights, not just more data to sort through.
• Audit and verify the correctness of your energy, sustainability, and emissions data.
• Integrate with most sustainability and ESG reporting frameworks, allowing for seamless reporting if you decide to disclose/publicize your sustainability efforts.
• Measure and verify your efficiency projects and optimizations utilizing IPMVP and ASHRAE Guideline 14

Interested in learning more about WatchWire’s sustainability features? Request a free demo or visit our resource library.

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