Kick The Habit: A Un Guide To Climate Neutrality

CCCC KICK THE HABIT A UN GUIDE TO CLIMATE NEUTRALITY This is a United Nations Environment Programme publication, written and produced by GRID-Arendal at the request of the Environment Management Group. Copyright©2008 UNEMG, UNEP/GRID-Arendal ISBN: 978-92-807-2926-9 Printed with plant-based ink on 100% recycled paper at PROGRESS PRESS LTD – MALTA This publication may be reproduced in whole or in part in any form for educational or non-profit purposes without special permission from the copyright holders, provided acknowledgement of the source is made. UNEP and EMG would appreciate receiving a copy of any material that uses this publication as a source. No use of this publication may be made for resale or for any commercial purpose whatsoever without prior permission in written form from the copyright holders. The use of information from this publication concerning proprietary products for advertising is not permitted. UNEP promotes environmentally sound practices globally and in its own activities. This publication is printed on fully recycled paper, FSC certified, post-consumer waste and chlorinefree. Inks are vegetable-based and coatings are water-based. Our distribution policy aims to reduce UNEP’s carbon footprint. Disclaimer: The designations employed and the presentation of the material in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the United Nations Environment Programme concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries Mention of a commercial company or product does not imply endorsement by the cooperating partners. We regret any errors or omissions that may unwittingly have been made. Moreover, the views expressed do not necessarily represent the decision or the stated policy of the United Nations Environment Programme, nor does citing of trade names or commercial processes constitute endorsement. CCCC KICK THE HABIT A UN GUIDE TO CLIMATE NEUTRALITY WRITER Alex Kirby UNEP/GRID-ARENDAL EDITORIAL TEAM Jasmina Bogdanovic Claudia Heberlein Otto Simonett Christina Stuhlberger CARTO-GRAPHICS Emmanuelle Bournay COPY EDITING Harry Forster, Interrelate Grenoble A CLIMATE NEUTRAL BOOK... The production and transport of each copy of this book has released about 5 kilos of CO2 equivalent into the atmosphere. This value is comparable to the amount of CO2 generated when burning 2 litres of petrol. Factors that have been taken into consideration for this calculation are shipping (40 per cent), staff and editorial board travel (20 per cent), paper (20 per cent), printing (13 per cent) and energy consumption for office and computer use (7 per cent). The use of sustainably produced recycled paper and plant-based ink helped to lower the climate impact, whearas the transport of 500 copies to New Zealand for book launch is responsible for the biggest chunk of emissions. In order to compensate the total amount of 26 tonnes CO2 equivalent generated by the project, we purchased the according amount of carbon offsets with the help of the Swiss non-profit foundation myclimate. The money will be invested in the Te Apiti wind energy farm in New Zealand, a Gold Standard Joint Implementation project. KICK THE HABIT CCCC 11 INTRODUCTION 29 THE PROBLEM 45 THE ACTORS 53 THE REDUCTION CYCLE 58 COUNT AND ANALYSE 80 ACT 94 REDUCE 159 OFFSET 183 EVALUATE Foreword Addiction is a terrible thing. It consumes and controls us, makes us deny important truths and blinds us to the consequences of our actions. Our society is in the grip of a dangerous greenhouse gas habit. Coal and oil paved the