2023 @ CarbonBetter

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SUSTAINABILITY REPORTING OVERVIEW

Sustainability reporting serves as a valuable tool to achieve corporate commitments and better manage climate-related business risks. This white paper walks you through what’s typically included and what should be considered.

FW Sustainability Report

Learn more about how Fierce Whiskers has made sustainable choices every step of the way by downloading its full sustainability report.

Voluntary Carbon Market Clarity: Making Sense of the Trends

In this webinar, we provide an overview of the current state of the VCM, including both challenges and why it’s an essential tool for businesses on the path to decarbonization. We will explore the significant drop in carbon prices over the last year, why price per tonne can vary significantly across registries and technologies, how to assess quality of a carbon credit, removals vs avoidance credits, and more.

Who’s a Modern Planeteer?

The 90s cartoon Captain Planet is an unexpected part of CarbonBetter’s origin story. Our founder, Tri Vo, was inspired as a child by the “Planeteers,” who fought eco-villains that were trying to destroy the planet. He learned that everyone can make a difference and every step in the right direction matters. Today, the business that Tri built helps companies in all industries decarbonize, and we’re not alone in doing our part to fight climate change. In this series, we feature modern day Planeteers—heroes who are working to save our planet. You can be one too!

2023 CarbonBetter Impact

For the 2023 calendar year, we quantified our carbon footprint for Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3 emissions, totaling 60.93 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO₂e). Scope 3 for 2023 is limited to flight emissions.

Our Scope 1 emissions, primarily from natural gas usage at our headquarters, amounted to 0.017 metric tons of CO₂e. Scope 2 emissions, derived from electricity consumption, totaled 15.00 metric tons of CO₂e, using data from our utility bills and emission factors from the EPA’s e-GRID database. The significant portion of our footprint, Scope 3 emissions, totaled 45.91 metric tons of CO₂e, which consisted of team travel on airplanes.

In line with our commitment to environmental responsibility, we offset a total of 61 metric tons of CO₂e to achieve our carbon-neutral goal for 2023 through carefully selected credits from projects that not only align with our sustainability ethos but also contribute to broader environmental and social benefits.


Here’s more about the projects we invested in to offset our 2023 emissions:



• The Phlogiston Phase I Project is a groundbreaking initiative at the Ascend Performance Materials plant in Cantonment, Florida. By implementing an enhanced thermal reduction unit, the project successfully destroys N₂O emissions, significantly reducing greenhouse gases (GHGs) and contributing to improved air and water quality. This initiative also aligns with several UN Sustainable Development Goals, including responsible consumption and production, and climate action.
• The Raura Hydro Electric Power Project in India is a small, run-of-river hydroelectric power plant that significantly reduces the environmental impact typically associated with dams while also minimizing the reliance on fossil fuels for the regional grid. By generating clean energy for northern India, the project not only addresses the urgent need for renewable energy sources but also contributes to several UN Sustainable Development Goals, including affordable and clean energy, clean water and sanitation, and climate action.
• The Shaan Seet Improved Forest Management Project helps to preserve over 8,900 acres of old-growth hemlock-spruce forest in southeastern Alaska while ensuring long-term natural forest growth and protecting this vital area from aggressive commercial timber harvesting. This approach aligns with several UN Sustainable Development Goals, including combating climate change and its impacts and sustainably managing forests.
• The Manantiales Behr Wind Farm is a 99-megawatt (MW) wind farm, registered on the Verra Carbon Standard (VCS) Registry, that is helping Argentina work toward achieving its target of 20% non-hydro renewables by 2025.

We’re here to help solve your sustainability and energy challenges. Get started today.

2023 Earth Day Impact

On Earth Day 2023, we estimated the one-day emissions of participating businesses and collectively offset 1.04 metric tons of GHG emissions related to natural gas and 1.72 metric tons related to electricity, totaling 2.76 metric tons of CO₂e. To offset these emissions, we purchased and retired 2.76 metric tons of carbon offset credits.

The carbon offset projects we supported through this initiative included the BaumInvest Mixed Reforestation in Costa Rica, which focuses on reforesting previously deforested land; Climeworks’ Direct Air Capture technology, which removes CO₂ directly from the atmosphere; and the Phlogiston Phase I project in Florida, which destroys nitrous oxide produced during nylon manufacturing.

This collaborative effort not only offset nearly three metric tons of estimated GHG emissions but also funded meaningful carbon offset projects globally. Our Earth Day 2023 initiative is a testament to the power of collective action and the positive impact businesses can have when they come together for a common cause.

2023 Provision Impacts

Between October 2020 and December 2023, Provision customers funded 111,981,000 Kilowatt-hours (kWh) of clean energy, offset 79,959 tons of carbon, and planted 85,930 trees since. These efforts equate to avoiding nearly 205 million miles of driving! Provision funded a mangrove restoration project in Kenya, providing coastal protection, biodiversity benefits, and economic opportunities for the local community.

2023 Stories

Our team authored 54 blog posts in 2023, covering a range of topics about the voluntary carbon market, upcoming and proposed legislation in the United States (US) and in the European Union (EU) that would affect US businesses, and more, with some of our most popular posts listed below:

• Sustainability Reporting Frameworks, Standards, and Protocols: A Complete Guide
• SEC Climate Disclosure Rule: What’s in It?
• Carbon Emissions Intensity Explained
• Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR) vs. Other Carbon Credits
• EU’s CSRD: Implications for US Businesses
• Criteria for High-Quality Carbon Credits
• Permanence Considerations When Buying Carbon Credits
• Additionality of Carbon Offset Projects
• CSRD Prep: ESRS Draft Act Released (June 2023 Update)
• An Introduction to Climate, Community & Biodiversity (CCB) Standards

2023 team Photos

2023 Webinars

We hosted five webinars in 2023, which can be found below:

• Want to Achieve Net-Zero by 2040? Learn Your 2023 Action Items
• New US Climate Regulations—Are You Ready?
• Ask Us Anything: Kickstart Your Sustainability Journey
• From Awareness to Action: How Brands Can Meet Consumer Demand for Plastic Reduction
• Sustainability Now, Net Zero by 2040: A Guide for Businesses

2023 Events

SXSW

At SXSW 2023, we hosted a panel with alcohol industry leaders discussing their innovative sustainability efforts. They shared strategies like integrating environmental systems into business operations and adopting regenerative agriculture. Topics like renewable energy, sustainable practices in traditional industries, and eco-friendly packaging also came up. A highlight was the introduction of Fierce Whiskers’ carbon-negative bourbon, illustrating the evolution of traditional products for sustainability. The panel emphasized collaborative efforts in reducing packaging waste and the crucial role of data in sustainability initiatives.

Climate Conversations

Our first Climate Conversations events happened in 2023. We started these events to gather like-minded individuals, regardless of background, job role, or industry, to share sustainability insights, best practices, and innovative strategies while networking. We’ve learned a lot and have met friendly, well-informed people at each one. We look forward to hosting more in 2024!

Naturally Network Sustainability Summit

In April, Nicole Sullivan, our Director of Climate Services, represented CarbonBetter at the Naturally Network’s Sustainability Summit, a hub for professionals passionate about creating a more sustainable consumer products industry. Nicole took part in the first session, Keynote: State of Sustainability.

Earth Day 2023

To celebrate Earth Day 2023, we held a meetup at Central Machine Works for our Climate Conversations in-person event on April 25, 2023. These events are always a great time to learn about the intersection of sustainability across industries and job roles, and this one was no exception.

SPC Impact 2023

Tri Vo, Founder and President of CarbonBetter and Co-Founder of Fierce Whiskers, spoke at SPC Impact 2023 to talk about sustainability choices the distillery has made, including trade-offs and considerations when making a water-intensive product. Fierce Whiskers released a carbon-neutral rye whiskey in 2023 after releasing the world’s first carbon-negative bourbon in 2022. There was also a tour with a Q&A at the distillery.

Carbon Newbie Summit & NYC Climate Week
We were a founding member of the Carbon Newbie Summit, which took place during NYC Climate Week. Tri Vo, Founder of CarbonBetter, attended Climate Week with our Director of Climate Services, Nicole Sullivan, who was a speaker at Carbon Newbie Summit.