Travel influences our environment, societies and viewpoints and everyone has responsibility to reduce CO2 emissions and protect the earth. And this means focusing on sustainability across business travel.
Business travel and events can often be a large part of a company’s Scope 3 CO2 footprint. Yet they are also one of the most easily addressed within the day-to-day operations of a business.
However, travel is, in general, one of the harder emissions to reduce. That’s due to a reliance on fossil fuels, certainly in the near term. So, at Reed & Mackay, we monitor and measure all company air, rail and hotel CO2 emissions. This is done via our carbon emissions dashboard, which are reported in our proprietary technology suite.
Within the past year we have deployed granular CO2 calculations within our booking portals. This aims to encourage the choice of lower-carbon options across all booking commodities to help towards reducing emissions. And it will further enable us to control, report and analyse our travel emissions. We’ll also be using these mechanisms to build out our Net Zero plans, which we’ll be publishing later this year.
Helping clients with their sustainability goals
To match our own certifications and internal goals, we’re encouraging and working with clients to manage their own. Our plan to continually enhance sustainability support includes:
• How to incorporate client sustainability goals into travel policy and processes through strategic business planning
• Providing formal CO2 emissions reporting and data for inclusion in annual company statements to shareholders and governance bodies
• Leading supplier negotiations to create environmentally friendly travel programmes, including advice on hotels, electric cars etc
• Educational webinars, in-person events and communications. These aim to raise awareness of company responsibilities and opportunities for sustainability within managed corporate travel programmes
• Providing the most current, credible, granular CO2 data and messaging at point of sale. This allows travellers/bookers to take advantage of the opportunities available to reduce the carbon footprint of their travel, as well as make more eco-friendly hotel choices.
Our commitment to supporting clients with their sustainable business travel will soon take another step forward. The next in a series of technology innovations in this area will launch at the Global Business Travel Association Convention 2024.
Our industry and the wider world
Furthermore, we strive to support and amplify the efforts of initiatives and companies that champion the cause of decarbonising the travel sector, along with businesses and industries worldwide.
Our participation in the UN Global Compact underpins all of these efforts. It gives us the opportunity to engage in the promotion of, and collaboration towards, shared solutions on a global and cross-sectoral scale.
Additionally, we aim to use our expertise and experience to collaborate, as well as identify and help amplify the efforts of any other companies with environmental missions that resonate with our ethos.
These vary from philanthropic partnerships with environmental non-profits and enterprises, to promoting innovative businesses, projects and climate solutions in need of investment, to all of our stakeholders.
In addition, we will complete our third response to the Carbon Disclosure Project (CDP) with the aim of receiving an ‘Awareness’ level score.
