How to address your carbon footprint with climate projects

November 10, 2022

Resources

Everyone has a carbon footprint—a term that represents the total amount of carbon or other greenhouse gases (GHG) that our actions produce. The single best way to fight climate change is to reduce the amount of harmful GHG emissions we produce, and to compensate for the carbon we simply can’t avoid.

But how do you address your unavoidable carbon footprint? By supporting climate projects. Supporting certified, high-impact climate projects is a win-win-win: it’s a great way to reduce or avoid carbon emissions, advance climate technology, and support communities around the world.

Types of climate projects you can support

Nature-based solutions are those which work to ‘protect, sustainably manage, and restore natural or modified ecosystems’ and which ‘address societal challenges effectively and adaptively, simultaneously providing human well-being and biodiversity benefits’, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). Nature-based solutions include afforestation, reforestation, and ecosystem restoration such as coastal mangroves (also called blue carbon). Learn more about nature-based solutions here.

Community-based projects centre and benefit local communities, while also taking climate action. The best community projects are participatory and employ the community's own knowledge and decision-making processes. These projects can include programmes offering access to solar-powered cooking stoves, “energy-free” water purification, and off-grid solar lighting and electricity. These projects are helpful for the people and the planet! Learn more about community-based projects.

Renewable energy projects are projects that create energy in a more sustainable way, meaning not through the use of burning fossil fuel. Renewable energy is derived from clean, inexhaustible sources like the sun or the tides, which means they won’t run out. These types of energies have the potential to greatly reduce CO2 emissions compared to traditional energy used. Renewable energy project examples include onshore wind power plants, solar photovoltaic farms and electricity from landfill gas. Learn more about renewable energy climate projects here.

Carbon capture, storage, and removal projects work to capture carbon emissions from high-polluting industries, including industrial processes, power generation, and industrial processes. According to the Clean Air Task Force, ‘global industrial sources such as chemical, cement, iron, and steel production account for approximately one-fifth of all CO₂ emissions, which cannot be mitigated through any other technology other than carbon capture and sequestration.’

Alternative fuel production means producing fuels from other sources than petroleum. One of the most well-known types of alternative fuels is Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), a clean substitute for conventional fossil fuel-based jet fuel. Producing more SAF is a great way to accelerate the transition to more sustainable—and eventually net-zero—travel. Learn more about how SAF is powering the travel industry’s sustainability revolution here.

Why should you support carbon projects?

By addressing your carbon footprint through online tools like MyCHOOOSE, WeCHOOOSE, or a company’s partner portal, you support climate projects around the world that are focused on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and mitigating climate change, which can range from purchasing Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), which can reduce emissions by up to 80%, to supporting local communities in remote areas with solar-powered cookstoves which reduce the need for burning wood or fossil fuels.

Projects that you can support differ depending on the provider. At CHOOOSE, our team of climate experts hand-picks all of the projects you can support, depending on their past performance, their methodology, and other factors.

How do you choose the right project? Read our in-depth guide into what to look out for with different climate projects here.

About us: CHOOOSE™ is a venture-backed leader in technology-based climate action, building digital tools so that everyone, anywhere, can easily integrate climate action into everyday life and business. Through flexible integrations, customer-friendly interfaces, automated carbon measurement, and a connected marketplace of climate solutions, CHOOOSE delivers a complete platform that enables its partners to build and manage high-impact climate programs. Learn more at www.chooose.today.