EuroCharity’s portals become CO2 neutral

As part of its values, EuroCharity is dedicated to become a 100% climate neutral and zero-waste company. This vision refers to both its operations (e.g. office, logistics, staff movements) and its products/services (e.g. Web portals, exhibitions, events, EuroCharity Yearbooks).

In view of this commitment, EuroCharity has recently (in October 2011) neutralised its two popular portals at www.eurocharity.gr/en and www.eurocharity.eu and received the CO2 Neutral Seal, a certification providing an integrated GHG Management approach.

By implementing this integrated approach, the CO2 Neutral Seal certifies that the appropriate accounting procedure was used and ensures accuracy, consistency and transparency in the offset procedure.

EuroCharity’s portal www.eurocharity.gr/en is the first of its kind in Greece to be certified as being a “Carbon Neutral Web site”.

This innovative solution not only helps certify the climate neutrality of EuroCharity’s portals but is also a step forward for the social venture to becoming a climate neutral and zero-waste vision company.

The firm also plans to publish the 5th EuroCharity Yearbook entitled “Leadership for Sustainability,” to be released in June 2012, in a 100% carbon neutral – climate neutral way.

CO2 Neutral Seal

The CO2 Neutral Seal is an innovative range of fully-transparent, high-quality and reliable carbon management services, for GHG emissions created from corporate or private IT usage, events and business operations. The certificates that are being issued are generated based on holistic approaches, while the offsetting process is supported by the utilisation of renewable energy projects from which the offsetting is done, along with proof of the retirement that can be traced and verified.

Based on advanced open-source tracking and calculation methodology, the carbon footprint of the two Web portals have been measured by EuroCharity’s corporate member Green Evolution S.A. More specifically, through traffic data from Google Analytics and advanced calculations, Green Evolution has measured the carbon footprint of the computers visiting these two sites, the servers hosting the portals, and the networks that connect them. At the end of each month, CO2 Neutral Seal automatically neutralises the carbon emissions with high-quality carbon credits.

These emissions are continuously being fully offset from the issue date (October 20, 2011) through high-quality carbon credits generated by the 11.52 MW Hsikou Hydro Power project in Tainan, South-West Taiwan.

The impact achieved by this solution includes:

• Reducing GHG emissions / global warming mitigation
• Increasing awareness among portal visitors on climate neutrality and offset schemes to become carbon neutral
• Contributing to sustainable investment in a suburban region, which would not have happened in the absence of project activity. In this case: a small hydro project in Taiwan, a small island. The project is a run-of-river reservoir hydropower plant. The hydro power station was built into an existing irrigation system that belongs to a local farming cooperative. Hydropower is Taiwan’s key to a green future. One that will be free of coal and nuclear energy. Clean energy is vital in Taiwan while, overall, energy consumption is compatible with Western Europe.
• Clean electricity supply to the equivalent of 12,789 households per annum.
• Generating a cost-effective tool for achieving EuroCharity’s climate, environmental and energy efficiency targets.