For any business that aims to lower its emissions, carrying out a carbon footprint is a fundamental exercise. In this article, I will cover the basics of carbon accounting, how to conduct a carbon footprint, and the value this will bring your business.

What is a carbon footprint?

A carbon footprint is the total amount of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions that your business produces.1 The day-to-day running of your business will release GHGs into the atmosphere and there may be multiple sources of emissions, including fuel consumed in company vehicles and the manufacture of products.

The GHG Protocol, which sets the gold standard for companies worldwide to quantify and report their GHG emissions, defines three distinct categories (or ‘scopes’) of emissions. They are as follows:2^,3

Scope 3 emissions are typically the most challenging to calculate, largely because doing so involves collating data from your external partners across your value chain, but they are by far the most important — according to the GHG Protocol, scope 3 emissions can account for over 90% of a company’s carbon footprint. As they tend to make up the largest proportion of emissions, they present the most significant opportunities for a business to achieve large GHG emission reductions, ensuring resources are allocated to where it can have the greatest impact.4

What does a carbon footprint involve?

Following global best practice in the form of the GHG Protocol, the approach to conducting a carbon footprint consists of five key steps:5

Why should my business carry out a carbon footprint?

Quantifying your emissions can have many benefits for your business:

There are many other reasons to care about carbon footprinting, but I hope these give you a flavour of the potential risks and opportunities that are associated with it.

Final reflections

Carbon footprinting is the cornerstone of any credible approach to achieving net zero. By revealing the most emission-intensive parts of your business, you will be able to allocate resources efficiently and maximise your positive impact. Aside from reducing your GHG emissions to support the environment, measuring and disclosing your emissions can help meet regulatory demands, identify cost-saving opportunities, and strengthen relationships with your key stakeholders.

At Elder Environmental, we can help you to build a comprehensive picture of your emissions profile. If you’re unsure where to start, book a free 30-minute call and we’ll work it out together.

It’s hard to avoid net zero being mentioned nowadays in any discussion about climate change, but what does it actually mean and what does it require of your business? In this short article, I hope to shed some light on this for you.

What is net zero?

Put simply, net zero refers to a state where greenhouse gases (GHGs) released into the atmosphere are balanced by their removal out of the atmosphere.1

In case you weren’t sure, GHGs trap heat within the Earth’s atmosphere and include carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane (CH₄) and other gases.2 The greenhouse effect is essential to the survival of life on Earth, but human activities have led to excessive levels of GHGs in the atmosphere, disrupting the delicate balance. This is causing the Earth’s average surface temperature to rise, which is why the phenomenon is called ‘global warming’.3 Global warming and climate change are often thought to mean the same thing, but they are not: the progressive heating of the Earth’s surface (i.e. global warming), which has been observed since the pre-industrial period (between 1850 and 1900), has brought about a widespread and long-term shift in weather patterns that now define local, regional and global climates (i.e. climate change).4

As climate change is having devastating effects worldwide, including extreme flooding and wildfires, net zero aims to address it. The science shows that to prevent the worst effects of climate change and maintain a habitable planet, global warming needs to be limited to 1.5℃ above pre-industrial levels. To do this, the emission of GHGs needs to be reduced by 45% by 2030 and reach a state of net zero by 2050.5

What is the difference between net zero and carbon neutral?

Net zero and carbon neutral tend to be used interchangeably, and while there is some overlap, they mean different things. The process of balancing GHG emissions can be achieved by reducing emissions and removing GHGs from the atmosphere, such as via carbon capture and storage. According to the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) — its frameworks are considered to be the gold standard for setting net zero targets aligned to climate science — for a business to achieve net zero it needs to reduce its GHG emissions by at least 90% and neutralise (by the permanent removal and storage of CO₂ from the atmosphere) any residual GHG emissions on an ongoing basis.6^,7

‘Carbon neutral’, on the other hand, generally refers to a state where an entity — whether that be an individual, business or country — balances the amount of GHG emissions they produce through the use of carbon offsets; carbon offsetting involves investing in projects that remove carbon from the atmosphere, thereby counteracting some or all of the GHG emissions. As a result, when an entity claims carbon neutrality, it does not necessarily mean that direct emission reductions have occurred. Claims of carbon neutrality also do not necessarily include GHGs other than CO₂. Notably, the SBTi does not validate carbon neutrality claims and does not allow the use of offsetting because it does not align with the action required to ensure global warming is limited to 1.5℃.8

Why is any of this relevant to my business?

Every business emits GHGs into the atmosphere through its activities. Emission sources will vary from business to business but can include fuel combustion in company-owned vehicles, the use of electricity to power offices, and the manufacturing of products.9 To play your part in tackling climate change, addressing your emissions is no longer optional. Measuring and reporting your emissions may also be a legal requirement for your business. For example, the UK’s Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting (SECR) regulation requires certain businesses — based on various criteria being met, including number of employees and turnover — to disclose energy and emissions data in their annual accounts.10 Investors, suppliers and consumers are increasingly scrutinising the climate action that businesses are taking, making emissions management as much a commercial imperative as a regulatory one.

What can I do to help?

As a starting point, the most significant step your business can take is to quantify its emissions. This exercise is called a ‘carbon footprint’. By understanding your emissions impact, especially the areas of your business that produce the most emissions (known as ‘emission hotspots’), you will be better positioned to take necessary action to address it. The data from your first carbon footprint can serve as a baseline, which will enable you to monitor emission changes and set emission reduction targets. In a follow-up article, I will go into more detail about how to go about carrying out a carbon footprint.

Final reflections

For net zero to be achieved by 2050, businesses worldwide have a significant role to play. Although multinational corporates have a larger environmental impact, it is still important for start-ups and SMEs to account for and report their emissions. This will not only appeal to increasingly climate-conscious consumers, but it will also help your business to be more resilient in the face of a worsening climate.

At Elder Environmental, we pride ourselves on our expertise in helping start-ups and SMEs to understand their emissions impact and devise net zero targets that align with climate science. If you’re unsure where to start, book a free 30-minute call and we’ll work it out together.

It is vital that businesses get a hold of their scope 3 emissions to achieve net zero. However, it can be tricky to know where to start. This article aims to improve your understanding of scope 3 and give you a better idea for how to address them.

What are scope 3 emissions?

As mentioned in my other article on carbon footprinting, the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol – it provides the world’s most widely used standards and guidance for measuring and managing GHG emissions – divides emissions into three scopes: 1, 2 and 3.1

Scope 3 emissions are those that emanate from a company’s value chain, which means the sources are owned or controlled by other entities. These could be materials suppliers, waste management providers, employees and/or customers. And this is exactly where the complexity comes in: to measure scope 3 emissions, your business will need to engage with these other entities to collect relevant data. Although this may be difficult to achieve, it is critical that you do; this is because they usually account for the largest proportion of a company’s carbon footprint, and in some cases, they can account for over 90% of emissions.2

Scope 3 reporting is also increasingly expected from a regulatory standpoint. For example, the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) requires value chain emissions disclosure for in-scope businesses, and while the rules are still changing, the direction of travel is clear.3

The GHG Protocol defines 15 scope 3 emission categories. However, don’t worry – not all of them will apply to your business. As you can see in the diagram, emission categories are classified as ‘upstream’ and ‘downstream’ of the reporting organisation. Upstream emissions are related to the purchase or acquisition of goods and/or services, whereas downstream emissions are related to goods and/or services that your business sells.

In case it’s not 100% clear from the diagram, the scope 3 emission categories are as follows:

Emission location	Scope 3 category
Upstream	1. Purchased goods and services
	2. Capital goods
	3. Fuel- and energy-related activities (not included in scope 1 or 2)
	4. Transportation and distribution
	5. Waste generated in operations
	6. Business travel
	7. Employee commuting
	8. Leased assets
Downstream	9. Transportation and distribution
	10. Processing of sold products
	11. Use of sold products
	12. End-of-life treatment of sold products
	13. Leased assets
	14. Franchises
	15. Investments

So with any goods and/or services that your business purchases, upstream emissions occur up to the point that you receive them. Downstream emissions, on the other hand, occur after your business sells its goods and/or services, where control of them is transferred to another entity, such as a customer.4

As giving descriptions of each scope 3 emission category would be a tad heavy for this article, please get in touch if you would like to learn more about them.

How do I go about measuring scope 3 emissions?

Once you’ve determined which of the 15 scope 3 categories are relevant to your business, it’s then a case of collecting data to quantify emissions. Your business will likely need to engage with its employees, suppliers and other external partners to collate relevant data.

Your business can use primary and/or secondary data to calculate emissions. Primary data are from specific activities within your value chain and are provided by suppliers or other partners related to these activities. Secondary data are not from specific activities in your value chain and can come in different forms, including industry-average data (e.g. government statistics), financial data, proxy data and other generic data.

To help your understanding, let’s use a hypothetical scenario where ‘business travel’ (category 6) is deemed relevant to your business. This category captures emissions associated with the transport of employees for business-related activities in vehicles owned or operated by third parties, including aircraft and trains. During the reporting period, some of your employees travelled by train for business-related purposes. To measure associated emissions, train ticket receipts can be collected to calculate the total distance travelled (e.g. in km) by these employees using this mode of transport. This distance data is a type of primary data. If this type of data was not available, then secondary data could be used – the distance travelled by your employees by train could be estimated using industry-average data.

Ultimately, the accuracy of your scope 3 emissions calculation will depend on the quality of the data used. The use of primary data will yield more accurate emissions than secondary data, so collecting this type of data should be the priority. However, as primary data may not be available, not be of sufficient quality and/or be too challenging to obtain, the use of secondary data is perfectly acceptable. Importantly, collecting data, evaluating data quality and enhancing data quality is an iterative process. This means that, while you may initially rely heavily on the use of secondary data, it should become easier and less costly to obtain primary data with time.5

Final reflections

I cannot overstate how important it is for your business to account for its scope 3 emissions. They will likely constitute the largest proportion of your carbon footprint, so without getting to grips with them, you will struggle to make any significant reductions in your GHG emissions. If you have plans to achieve net zero, you will need to understand your scope 3 emissions. Once you have a clear picture of them, you can set meaningful reduction targets, which is a key step on the road to net zero. For more on what net zero means and how to get there, see my article ‘What does net zero actually mean?’. I hope that this article has shown that measuring them may not be as tricky as you first thought and that doing so will bring substantial value to your business.

At Elder Environmental, we can help you to build a comprehensive picture of your emissions profile. If you’re unsure where to start, book a free 30-minute call and we’ll work it out together.

As the sustainability reporting landscape is evolving rapidly, it can be hard to know what is relevant to your business. In this article, I will provide an overview of key sustainability reporting requirements in the UK, which will hopefully give you a better idea of what your business needs to do.

Are there any mandatory requirements I should be aware of?

Depending on the size of your business, it may need to comply with three key sustainability-related regulations in the UK: Streamlined Energy and Carbon Reporting (SECR), Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (ESOS), and the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD).

SECR

SECR was implemented on 01 April 2019 when the ‘Companies (Directors’ Report) and Limited Liability Partnerships (Energy and Carbon Report) Regulations 2018’ came into force. It requires eligible organisations to disclose energy consumption and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions data in their annual reports, with the aim of encouraging businesses to improve their environmental impact.

SECR applies to quoted companies, large unquoted companies (including charitable companies) and large limited liability partnerships (LLPs). According to SECR, companies and LLPs are considered ‘large’ if they meet two or more of the following criteria:

• Turnover: £36 million or more
• Balance sheet total: £18 million or more
• Number of employees: 250 or more

If eligible, then your business will need to disclose its energy use and associated GHG emissions – scope 3 is voluntary – and potentially some other types of data, depending on the nature of your business. There can be penalties up to £7,500 for non-compliance, so it is worth staying on top of this.1^,2

ESOS

ESOS requires large UK organisations to conduct audits every four years of the energy consumed by their buildings, industrial processes and transport. A ‘large’ organisation is any UK company that either:

• Employs 250 or more people, or
• Has an annual turnover in excess of £44 million, and an annual balance sheet total in excess of £38 million

The ESOS scheme is intended to help businesses identify energy-saving opportunities, which in turn will deliver emissions and cost savings.

An ESOS assessment consists of the following steps:

1. Calculate total energy consumption – covering buildings, industrial processes and transport.
2. Identify significant areas of energy consumption – these must account for at least 95% of total energy use.
3. Appoint a lead assessor – an employee or external contractor registered with an approved professional body – to conduct or review the assessment.

Once complete, you must notify the Environment Agency and retain an evidence pack as proof of compliance.

As with SECR, the Environment Agency can impose fines up to £90,000 for non-compliance, depending on the nature of the penalty. Businesses that are non-compliant may also be named, which could result in significant reputational damage.3^,4

TCFD

Climate-related financial disclosure has also been mandatory for certain large UK organisations since 2022, under the Companies (Strategic Report) (Climate-related Financial Disclosure) Regulations 2022.5 These requirements apply to:

• UK-traded companies (i.e. those listed on a UK or overseas regulated market), banks and insurers with 500 or more employees
• Large UK-incorporated private companies with 500 or more employees and a turnover of £500 million or more

Qualifying organisations must disclose information on the climate-related risks and opportunities facing their business within their annual strategic report, structured around the four pillars of the TCFD framework: governance, strategy, risk management, and metrics and targets.6

So what sustainability reporting is voluntary in the UK?

There are numerous voluntary reporting frameworks to help businesses measure and disclose their sustainability-related information, such as the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). Although their application is optional, they provide a way to enhance the relevance, accuracy and transparency of disclosures, which would enable your business to maximise its positive impact on the environment and society.

Have there been any recent developments in the UK that I should be aware of?

On 25 February 2026, the UK Government formally published its inaugural sustainability reporting standards (collectively known as the UK Sustainability Reporting Standards [UK SRS]), which will serve as the UK’s framework for sustainability disclosures. The aim of the UK SRS is to support a wider global movement, led by the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB), to create a comprehensive global baseline of sustainability disclosures, thereby enabling investors and other stakeholders to make informed decisions.

Two standards were published: UK SRS S1 and UK SRS S2.

• UK SRS S1: sets out the general framework for applying UK SRS and requirements on the disclosure of general sustainability-related risks and opportunities.
• UK SRS S2: outlines requirements on the disclosure of climate-related risks and opportunities.

Although use of the UK SRS is currently voluntary,7^,8 early adoption would signal a serious commitment to sustainability and better position your business for the regulatory changes ahead. The UK Government has indicated its intention to consult on mandating the standards for certain large companies, so this is a space worth watching.

Final reflections

There are a wide range of corporate sustainability reporting frameworks that are either mandatory or voluntary. Although your business may not currently have any legal requirements, it is important to be aware of them to ensure that you are ready for when your business qualifies. It may feel like adopting any voluntary reporting framework is too much of a hassle, however, their use can help you to better meet the needs of your key stakeholders, potentially yielding significant benefits.

If you would like to better understand what sustainability data your business needs to or should disclose, and how best to do it, book a free 30-minute call and we can work it out together.

First celebrated on 22 April 1970, today marks the 56^th year of Earth Day. A time when people around the world come together to acknowledge how special our planet is.

The idea behind Earth Day is certainly well-intentioned. But this year, I find it hard to feel much cause for celebration. This is because the two most significant crises of our time, climate change and biodiversity loss, are worsening.

Since global records began in 1850, 2025 marked the world’s third warmest year, concluding at 1.41℃ above the pre-industrial (1850–1900) average.1 The 10 warmest years have all occurred since 2015, with the world exceeding the 1.5℃ threshold – climate scientists consider this a critical tipping point to avoid devastating consequences – for the first time in 2024.2 Although one year above 1.5℃ does not signal the start of an apocalypse, the rising temperatures place our lives, life-supporting ecosystems and economies at a greater risk of harm.3

The way we treat our planet, particularly the use of land for food production, is causing a catastrophic decline in the variety of life on Earth (also known as ‘biodiversity’). We depend on healthy ecosystems for our food, clean air, clean water and countless other essential services, so their breakdown poses an existential threat.4 The scale of the loss of biodiversity is stark: according to the WWF, the average size of wildlife populations worldwide has dropped by 73% between 1970 and 2020.5 The trend is similar in the UK, with a 19% reduction in species abundance since 1970.6 Furthermore, because of human-induced pressure, species are becoming extinct at alarming rates; it is estimated that the rates of extinction since 1500 are 100 or more times higher than in pre-human times.7

There’s no hiding the fact that the situation is bleak. However, all is not lost and there is good reason to feel hopeful; the solutions exist, including renewable energy, low-carbon transport and meat-free alternatives. A fundamental shift in how businesses account for their environmental impact is also critical. What is needed now is not more discussion but action.

How can businesses help?

Businesses have a massive role to play in tackling climate change and halting biodiversity loss. This is largely because they are the source of most of the world’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, which is one of the main drivers of global warming. Therefore, if businesses don’t play their part, then emission reduction targets set by governments around the world will never be met.8

For your business to help protect and restore nature, it needs to understand and effectively manage its impact on the environment. There are many steps your business can take to enhance its environmental performance, including quantifying its GHG emissions, setting emission reduction targets, and developing a company-wide strategy to achieve these targets. I set up Elder Environmental because I believe the business community has a pivotal role to play, and too often lacks the support to take that first step. If you’d like to find out what managing your environmental impact could look like in practice, I’d love to have a conversation. You can book a free 30-minute call and we’ll work it out together.

Background

Elder Environmental is currently working with Meaningful Planet — a telecoms start-up that donates 10% of its profits to nature restoration projects across the UK — to conduct its first carbon footprint. The company is eager to do this to understand its emissions impact, serving as a fundamental step in setting credible science-based targets to achieve net zero.

Overview

Since December 2025, Elder Environmental has been working with Meaningful Planet to quantify their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for the FY25 reporting period (31 July 2024 to 31 July 2025). To calculate a complete and accurate carbon footprint, the framework provided by the GHG Protocol is being used, which is widely considered to be the gold standard for companies worldwide to account for and report their emissions.

Following the GHG Protocol Corporate Accounting and Reporting Standard, the approach consists of five key steps:

Once complete, Meaningful Planet will be able to focus on addressing its emission hotspots to deliver the largest emission reductions. It will also be able to set credible science-based targets to achieve net zero, using this carbon footprint as its base year to measure progress against.

If you’re interested in exploring how Elder Environmental can help you with your carbon footprinting needs, you can book a free 30-minute call.