By purchasing what is known as carbon offset credits. Carbon offsetting is a reduction in emissions of carbon dioxide or other greenhouse gases made in order to compensate for emissions made elsewhere.

The revenue from the purchases of carbon offset credits are invested in projects elsewhere in the world that either sequester, reduce or prevent the emissions of carbon dioxide or other greenhouse gases. 

Examples of these projects include reforestation initiatives, renewable energy projects, and providing efficient cookstoves to rural communicates. In other words, the purchase of a 1 tonne carbon credit offsets 1 tonne of carbon dioxide (or the equivalent in other greenhouse gases) emitted by your company.

The purchase of carbon credits should be seen as a last resort or as a way to internally put a price on your emissions to create an incentive to reduce them over time.

The more you reduce emissions each year, the less carbon credits you’ll need to buy. Carbon offsetting should only be used for emissions that have not been reduced yet or for emissions that are impossible to eliminate (e.g. for unavoidable flying).

There are many companies who claim to be carbon neutral without fully understanding what this means or how to properly achieve this, which has resulted in these claims being discredited and damage to their reputation.

By achieving certification through a well-renowned certification programme, such as the CarbonNeutral® initiative, you can be assured of achieving genuine and credible carbon neutral status.