In line with global trends on increasing transparency and quality of carbon emissions reporting, and for UNGCNS to demonstrate leadership, we continue to report all our emissions for all three Scopes on continuous improvement basis.
In 2023, UNGCNS office and related activities generated 38.37 tC02e. with the highest emissions coming from Major Events (73.6%), Overseas Travel (11%) and Office Utilities (9.3%). Compared to 2022, where 13.7 tCO2e was reported, the main increases were due to Events organised by UNGCNS.
TOTAL 38.37 tCo2e
Looking at it from a Scope 1/2/3 perspective per GHG Protocol, the majority of our emissions are attributed to Scope 3, accounting for 90.7%, while Scope 2 represents 9.3% of our overall emissions. There are no currently attributable Scope 1 emissions.
Significant emissions were attributed to major events this year, constituting 73.6% of our total emissions. There were more in-person events in 2023 compared to 2022, both major events such as the Youth Forum and SME Series, as well as Sustainability and Carbon capability building courses. A more comprehensive tracking of all our events’ carbon footprint was also undertaken this year, which contributed partly to this increase.
Significantly, the Youth Forum transitioned from a virtual format in 2022 to an in-person event in 2023. This attracted 278 participants, of which 23.4% were from nearby ASEAN countries. The associated air travel contributed largely to the event’s footprint – approximately 39% of the total UNGCNS emissions.
Air travel accounted for 11% of our emissions this year, representing a notable increase from previous years. 72.3% can be attributed to the Youth Forum, as mentioned above.
The remaining 27.7% of air travel came from staff business trips. This was 292% higher, partly contributed by one trip to Indonesia that was via a private jet rather than a commercial flight.
We implemented a waste collection project aimed at estimating the volume of waste produced in our office. By collecting waste data over two typical weeks, we determined that the total waste generated in 2023 amounted to 82.1 kilograms.
For events and training sessions, we employed a similar approach, making rough estimates based on observed waste generation during several sessions. These averages served as proxies for waste generation across all other events and training programmes throughout the year.
The office utilities emissions saw a slight increase,
attributed to the Energy Use Intensity (EUI) of the SBF
Centre, as per data from the Building and Construction
Authority (BCA) on building energy and performance.
In 2023, a significant change occurred in employee commuting habits, with a higher proportion (78%) choosing MRT travel compared to 2022, when bus travel was predominant (50%). This shift led to reduced overall emissions, attributable to the lower emissions per kilometre associated with MRT travel compared to buses.
