Our carbon statement
Public Digital is committed to taking action to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions down to net zero as quickly as possible.
All of our work involves helping organisations use digital to deliver outcomes that measurably improve people’s lives. We promote conscientious design and development practices that produce good user experiences and high performance, and our approach is inherently mindful of social and ecological impact.
In order to progress towards being carbon net zero, we are undertaking a combination of emission limitation, reduction and elimination.
As a company we are committed to public disclosure of our emissions.
We began calculating, monitoring and publishing our emissions data in 2022, which we are using as our ‘benchmark’ year.
We are continuing to account for our emissions and progress in reduction and elimination on an annual basis. Using this data, we are reviewing our goals and actions each year in order to make our commitments stronger and our corresponding activities more effective.
Emissions in 2023
We have had a Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory carried out by an independent third-party expert (Groundwork East) covering January - December 2023. The results were as follows:
Year: 2023 | |
Emissions | Total (tCO2e) |
Scope 1 | 0.00 |
Scope 2 | 2.32 |
Scope 3 | 966.74 |
Total | 969.06 |
Baseline Emissions Footprint
We had a Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory carried out by an independent third-party expert (C-Free) covering January - December 2022, which serves as our Baseline emissions calculation. The results were as follows:
Year: 2022 (baseline) | |
Emissions | Total (tCO2e) |
Scope 1 | 0.00 |
Scope 2 | 4.69 |
Scope 3 | 402.07 |
Total | 406.76 |
Carbon Reduction Targets and Plans
Acknowledging the climate crisis and committing to net zero are important things to do. Achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions is practically very difficult, particularly for an organisation like ours where some air travel is unavoidable and there is not yet a dependable path to net zero aviation. We also want to eliminate our emissions without relying on technologies which take carbon out of the atmosphere, which are currently still at an early development stage.
In the immediate term, Public Digital is taking action to limit any increase in future carbon emissions, while using offsets to neutralise existing emissions.
We have decided to offset 100% of our estimated emissions. We are targeting becoming certified as a carbon neutral company (in line with PAS 2060) by 2025.
We have set an initial goal of reducing our emissions against each of our intensity metrics (per per client hour, FTE employee, and per £10k of turnover) annually. We will review this year on year with the goal of becoming net zero in advance of 2050.
Carbon reduction, offsetting and neutrality are positive steps on the journey towards net zero emissions. As our data and experience improve, we will tighten up our practices and push ourselves for more ambitious goals.
Our steps to reduce our carbon emissions are overseen by our Management Team, and are integrated into a holistic Environmental, Social and Governance efficiencies policy.
Other activities in our efficiency and reduction plans include:
Utilising our annual emissions data to develop science-based targets
Maintaining our use of office space that is powered renewable energy, including securing certification of the energy’s origin, and increasing the energy efficiency of hardware and software used in our delivery work
Minimising staff travel by delivering services remotely wherever suitable
Limiting air travel to long haul, using only public transport and electric vehicles for transit, selecting accommodation that can evidence sustainability practices, and exploring sustainable travel booking options
Identifying a reduction target for carbon emissions per employee as an intensity unit
Compiling advice and activities to support employees in making ethical and sustainable choices in the course of their work and personal lives, including switching to renewable energy providers and opting in to salary-sacrifice schemes
Developing our capabilities to advise and support clients in reducing the planetary impacts of their operations through technology and internet ways of working
Challenging our suppliers to provide actionable carbon data and reduce their carbon footprints
Exploring carbon syncing whereby emissions are absorbed at approximately the same rate as they are emitted by the company
We look forward to sharing our progress, and to collaborating and learning alongside our peers and our clients to improve our collective efforts toward healthier environments and fairer societies.
Declaration and Sign Off
This Carbon Reduction Plan has been completed in accordance with PPN 06/21 and associated guidance and reporting standards for Carbon Reduction Plans.
Emissions have been reported and recorded in accordance with the published reporting standard for Carbon Reduction Plans and the GHG Reporting Protocol corporate standard and uses the appropriate Government emission conversion factors for greenhouse gas company reporting.
Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions have been reported in accordance with SECR requirements, and the required subset of Scope 3 emissions have been reported in accordance with the published reporting standard for Carbon Reduction Plans and the Corporate Value Chain (Scope 3) Standard.
This Carbon Reduction Plan has been reviewed and signed off by the board of directors (or equivalent management body).
Date: 12/08/24