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‘Dangerous climate change cannot be avoided solely through high-level international agreements; it will take behavioural change by individuals and communities, particularly in relation to their housing, transport and food consumption decisions.’
The Stern Review: The Economics of Climate Change, 2006.

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Success Stories

What’s your carbon footprint?

One way of assessing the impact we as individuals have on climate change is to look at greenhouse gas emissions per person. According to the World Resources Institute, per capita emissions went from 4.06 tonnes CO2e per person in 1990 to 3.97 tonnes CO2e per person in 2002.

At the same time, emissions per capita vary hugely between countries and regions. In Chad, Mozambique and Uganda for example, the figure is less than 0.1 tonnes of CO2 per person. In the US it’s 20 tonnes. And in Qatar it’s 44.4 tonnes of CO2e per person. There are many carbon footprint calculators available to get an idea of yours – and tips on how to reduce it.

A growing awareness of carbon footprints

To tackle climate change, individuals need to change their attitudes and behaviour and take responsibility for the impacts their choices have on the environment. In September 2006, The °Climate Group worked with research company Lippincott Mercer to see whether there was a market for ‘climate-friendly’ products and services. The results showed a climate-conscious consumer: 28% of consumers in the UK and 19% in the US said they were ‘strongly concerned’ about climate change. A 2007 survey by Accenture, covering 7,500 consumers in 17 countries across North America, Europe and Asia, found that 64% of people were happy to pay an average of 11% extra for products and services that had a lower carbon footprint.

This has big implications for governments and particularly for business. It suggests that there is a large potentially a much larger market base than the initial markets for organic and Fairtrade products. It also suggests that sustainability is a consumer trend businesses cannot afford to ignore.

See also

Make sustainability mainstream

The UK’s Sustainable Consumption Roundtable stated “Government and business must focus fairly and squarely on mainstream consumers, rather than expecting the heroic minority of green shoppers to shop society’s way out of unsustainability.” The report “I Will if You Will” produced in 2006 showed that consumers want to see business and government start taking action before they make changes themselves.

Understand your customers

Understanding different consumer segments and how they respond to different messaging is essential. Our 2006 ‘Consumers, Brands and Climate Change’ research with Lippincott Mercer identified six different categories, based on people’s view of climate change, and the impact this has on their consumer choices. The six groups are:

  • Campaigners, who accept the issue, know what to do, are ready to change, but are pessimistic about success
  • Optimists, who are like campaigners but more optimistic about success
  • Followers, who are ready to change to fit in and look good, despite not fully accepting the issue
  • Confused, who are neutral on most factors but don’t know what to believe or do
  • Unwilling, who accept the issue but are not prepared to change
  • Rejecters who are well informed, but have made a considered decision to reject the idea and not make changes

Understand the carbon footprint of your business, products and services

Taking a “cradle to grave” approach to measuring the environmental impact of a product may show the majority of its greenhouse gas emissions come from supply chains and people using the product once it’s been bought. These are called indirect or ‘Scope 3’ emissions, and understanding them is an essential part of becoming a greener business. For more information, see our See our Supply Chains overview.

Measuring Scope 3 emissions can be complex, and requires a concerted effort throughout a business from the top down. Scope 1 and Scope 2 emission (emissions under the direct control of the business) should be the priority. However, going through a Scope 3 analysis can provide considerable insight into where companies might best focus their efforts. For more information, see our Management strategies overview.

Get your message across

Even when companies are making their products greener (which many are), their customers don’t necessarily know about it. In 2007, The °Climate Group launched the UK’s first ever Climate Brand Index, which tracks year-on-year, perceptions of how brands are performing on climate change. It found that, without being prompted, 69% of people in the UK and 74% in the US couldn’t think of a single brand that was leading the fight against climate change.

Get your message across: Eco-label your products

In 2007, The Carbon Trust launched its ‘Carbon Reduction Label’. This shows how much CO2 and other greenhouse gases are emitted when a product is made, distributed, used and then binned. It covers products from bank accounts and light bulbs to orange juice and potato chips.

More and more companies are eco-labelling their products using schemes like these – particularly in North America, Japan and Europe. The more information consumers have, the more they can make shopping decisions based on environmental credentials. And the more likely they are to do so. (See our Timberland and Tesco case studies.)

Get your message across: but don’t exaggerate your credentials

There has been an explosion of companies making green claims for their products which are often misleading, vague or even untrue. One common example in the US are companies marketing their CFC-free products as being good for the environment - while CFCs were banned from use in all products 30 years ago. Adopting anything less than a rigorous approach risks accusation of “green washing”, damage to the brand reputation, the potential to be sued and, of course reduces consumer confidence for those companies striving to make legitimate claims.

Get your message across: Join an umbrella scheme

The Consumers, Brands and Climate Change’ research found that people are more likely to trust the word of companies when they’re part of an ‘umbrella’ scheme. Joining one of these schemes has several other advantages too, like awareness-raising. Take Together, The Climate Group’s own consumer initiative. Together works with businesses to deliver practical, credible solutions and make them affordable and appealing. This makes it easier for people to tackle climate change rather than just telling them what to do. Since its launch in April 2006, the UK campaign has saved over half a million tonnes of CO2 and over £100m from household bills. The US campaign launched on World Environment Day 2008 and the Australia version in July. China is soon to follow.

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