Triple Bottom Line Accounting is offering impact measurement and narrative services to our clients. Alongside the traditional accounting “Bottom Line”, we can help you measure your CO2e emissions and your impact on society! People and Planet alongside Profit.
With the help of Alasdair Wilcock, decarbonisation expert and owner of Maple Cone, TBLA is now certified PAS 2060 Carbon Neutral. We are ready to help our clients start a similar process. Massive thanks also to Charlie Harris and Joe Simmons of Octopus Hatchery for use of their carbon calculator and data for the PAS 2060 report.
PAS 2060 is an internationally recognised standard designed to verify the accuracy of carbon neutral claims and help companies achieve true carbon neutrality. It’s important to note that companies cannot receive PAS 2060 certification by merely offsetting and that offsets must meet certain criteria.
Developed by the British Standards Institution and implemented in 2010, PAS 2060 presents four key stages to carbon neutrality — measurement, reduction, offsetting and documentation.
Measurement
We calculated the 2020 TBLA carbon footprint in January 2021.
Reduction
The TBLA team came together in March for a target setting workshop facilitated by Alasdair Wilcock, where we agreed our targets and actions for reduction.
Offsetting
We have used a Gold Standard project to offset our 2020 emissions.
Documentation
You can read our Procedures statement for emission calculations here.
You can read our carbon footprint report here.
The Triple Bottom Line Accounting Carbon Management Plan:
Target
The annual target for reducing the carbon emissions for TBLA will be 7% per year. The stretch target is 10% per year. This is expected to generate an overall reduction of 50% by the year 2030 in line with the SME Climate Change Commitments. This was agreed in the TBLA target setting workshop by a consensus.
Actions
Working from Home: Energy Consumption (including electricity and heating)
All employees will consider the consumption of energy in their homes in order to reduce carbon emissions where they can. This might include moving to a green electricity supplier or a supplier that helps to offset the carbon from gas heating by tree planting.
Commuting to the TBLA office
The team will consider individually and as a workforce what is best for the employee in terms of social interactions, getting work done and professional development. This will involve ongoing discussions on what works for the company regarding productivity, team meetings, costs, office use etc.
Several of us walk, cycle or take public transport to get to the office.
We discussed a salary sacrifice to support the lease of an Electric Vehicle (EV). This needs to be equitable and fair, particularly for those who can walk or cycle to the office and do not need an EV. It might be that a pool EV will be leased by the company to be used by those who have to commute (due to lack of regular public transport). The EV can be charged at work for the minimal cost of £8 a month under the current rates of The Enterprise Centre car park. This will be discussed again in team meetings over April and May 2021. Two of the company directors currently lease one EV through the business which is their only vehicle.
Review of suppliers and Purchases
Triple Bottom Line Accounting has introduced a new sustainable purchasing policy. This can be viewed on our website: https://triplebottomlineaccounting.com/sustainable-purchasing-policy/ We will be reviewing current purchases and subscriptions and lobbying our main suppliers.
Software purchasing
Triple Bottom Line Accounting subscribes to a range of cloud accounting software packages and bookkeeping packages to meet the range of clients’ needs. Throughout 2021 there will be a rationalisation to reduce the number of platforms that employees need to learn. This rationalisation should improve efficiency as well as enable reductions in carbon emissions. To start this off, we will write to software suppliers asking for their carbon reduction commitments or if they are already carbon neutral. Their answers will inform our choices moving forward. We will prioritise and promote to our clients suppliers who host software in data centres that use renewable energy, ideally in the UK.
Personal Commitments and Individual Climate Advocacy
Triple Bottom Line Accounting will continue to educate all employees about the climate emergency, climate action, mitigation and adaptation. We will regularly discuss personal commitments and pledges following guidelines such as those outlined by Imperial College. The company recognises that one of the most powerful actions is to share knowledge and CO2e reduction targets and activities with others.
Corporate Climate Advocacy
Triple Bottom Line Accounting will publicise its carbon-neutral status. It will share positive actions taken and pledges agreed via its website, social media platforms, and ongoing discussions with clients and suppliers. The TBLA Impact Narrative has been published and will be regularly updated. The company has just launched a new service to help clients measure and improve a range of ESG impacts and write their authentic narratives to share their story. We hope this will set up a chain of positive actions to reduce emissions and even draw down carbon from the atmosphere. We believe that contributing to social justice by subsidising our not-for-profit clients, who are helping the vulnerable and under-represented people within their communities, will have an indirect but positive impact on mitigating the inevitable consequences of the climate emergency.
If you would like us to help you gain PAS 2060 certification for your business please contact us for more information.
Get access to a range of tools to plan how you’ll get to net-zero by joining the SME Climate Hub.
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Peter Ellington is the Founder of Triple Bottom Line Accounting. He has a Doctorate in Education and campaigns for social and environmental justice.
