Member Article

World leaders emit 331 tonnes of carbon through air travel to COP26

Ecologi, a global community of individuals and businesses funding effectual climate solutions, has today announced it has offset the carbon emitted by a hundred and ninety seven Heads of Government expected to fly to COP26 this weekend.

The total figure of three hundred and thirty-one tonnes(2) of emissions was calculated based on estimated air travel routes from the location of each attending country’s seat of government to Glasgow airport. This amount of carbon dioxide - the equivalent of the emissions from consuming over thirty-seven thousand gallons of petrol(3) - was then offset by Ecologi through their portfolio of Gold Standard and VCS certified projects, including generation of electricity from wind power in Bulgaria.

The aim is to show support for the world leaders coming together to discuss the climate crisis and commit to significant action, while also highlighting the carbon impact generated by getting them there. Attending COP26 in person presents a huge opportunity for world leaders to collaborate, negotiate and agree on the policies required to limit warming to 1.5 C, as set out by the Paris Agreement back in 2015.

In addition to offsetting the flights, Ecologi has planted a hundred and ninety-seven trees - one for each participating country - in a tree-planting site near Glasgow. Ecologi hopes that the new forest will serve as a physical reminder of the promises made in Glasgow and the legacy of COP26. Each of the a hundred and ninety-seven Scottish trees represented on Ecologi’s COPSE26 virtual forest displays a photo of the tree, as well as its species, its exact location and the country it has been dedicated to. These are the latest of over twenty million trees that have been planted by Ecologi.

Elliot Coad, CEO of Ecologi commented “It’s great that more people are taking steps to reduce their emissions like limiting air travel, because cutting emissions is always better than offsetting. However, given the importance of COP26, we wanted to show support for our world leaders coming together to tackle climate change. We hope this gesture mitigates some of the negative impacts associated with the flights they’ve taken to get there, while also helping to raise awareness around air travel emissions more generally.

“Ecologi’s mission is to reduce fifty percent of current global emissions by 2040 and reverse climate change - but we’re counting on world leaders to take this opportunity to step up and take responsibility for the other fifty percent. Immediate and concrete steps must be taken towards decarbonising global industries. Our message to them is clear - make COP26 count.”

Travel has brought about huge social and economic growth, allowing us to visit new places, make new connections or even come together to solve world problems, but it remains a significant source of carbon emissions.

Globally, transport is responsible for twenty four percent of greenhouse gas emissions(4), with aviation causing 5%(5). Travel by plane is the least climate-friendly method of travel but air travel has been steadily growing over the past few decades. Excluding the recent impacts of the pandemic, figures show that typically over 4 billion passengers fly each year(6), often over long distances, and this number is projected to increase to 8 billion by 2035(7).

To date, the business has offset over eight hundred thousand tonnes of carbon emissions. This equates to roughly thirty two percent of Glasgow’s annual total carbon emissions(8).

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Company .