As one of Europe's leading e-commerce fulfillment companies, we at byrd understand our significant responsibility towards both our customers and the planet. Research from MIT’s Supply Chains Initiative indicates that goods transportation contributed around 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions in 2021, rising to 11% when including warehousing and port emissions. We are dedicated to minimizing and offsetting our emissions to continuously improve our environmental footprint.
For a company like byrd, the question arises: “How can we contribute to a more environmentally friendly industry?”
Our strategy for reducing and offsetting CO2 emissions involves four key steps:
In partnership with ClimatePartner, we collected extensive data from January 1 to December 31, 2023, including energy consumption, business travel, material use, waste production, and transport routes. These data were independently verified by ClimateParter to ensure precision. With this data, they created a comprehensive CO2 balance. For transparency, we want to explicitly note that these emissions are attributed to byrd and do not include the emissions of our warehouse and shipping partners.
We produced 163,985.73 kg of CO2 emissions and added another 10% safety margin to the calculation leading to a total offset of 180.400 kg CO2 emissions.
Our emissions are distributed across the different scopes of the GHG Protocol as follows:
These include all direct emissions from sources owned or controlled by byrd, such as company vehicles, heating, or cooling systems.
This category accounts for 3.6% of byrd’s emissions - approximately 6 tons of CO2 in 2023.
Scope 2 includes purchased heating or cooling, such as electricity and gas.
This category represents 15.2% of byrd’s emissions, totaling nearly 25 tons of CO2 in 2023.
Scope 3 encompasses all other indirect emissions within the company’s value chain, including business travel (flights, trains, hotel stays, rental and private vehicles), employee commutes, home office emissions, purchased goods and services (catering, electronics, water, office supplies), fuel and energy-related emissions (pre-chain electricity, pre-chain heat, pre-chain fleet), and operational waste.
Scope 3 is the largest factor in our company, contributing 81.1% of our CO2 emissions, or 133 tons of CO2.
This evaluation provided valuable insights for ongoing improvement. We identified significant areas for enhancement:
Positive developments should also be acknowledged. Our provision of annual public transport tickets and the excellent connectivity of our offices result in relatively low emissions in this area. Additionally, our offices have implemented measures to establish more sustainable practices (e.g., waste reduction and separation, mindful heating and air conditioning management).
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| 180.400 kg carbon emissions offset |
Jan 2023 - Dez 2023 analysis period |
2 offset projects |
Despite ongoing measures, we still produce (too much) CO2 emissions, which is why we’ve chosen to support two projects to offset these emissions:
This is a project that compensates for approximately 406.846 t CO2 emissions annually - byrd contributes with financing 90.200 kg
This project aims to establish new supply chains in remote regions of India by providing microloans for solar lamps and water filters, particularly benefiting women in these areas. This initiative improves living conditions and reduces reliance on fossil fuels, offering a dual benefit of emission compensation and social contribution to regional development.
As an e-commerce fulfillment company, we understand the importance of reliable and sustainable supply chains. Supporting this project helps us reduce CO2 emissions while promoting economic independence and access to essential resources for disadvantaged communities, aligning with our values of ecological and social responsibility. At the same time we can do a little part in supporting women empowerment and entrepreneurship in this area.
More information about the project
This is a project that compensates for approximately 446.777 t CO2 emissions annually - byrd contributes with financing 90.200 kg
This project supports various solar and wind energy initiatives across Africa, including:
By supporting the emPOWERing project, we aim to contribute to the global energy transition and help create sustainable jobs. For a European fulfillment company like ours, it is crucial that the global supply chain is based on sustainability and responsibility. Investing in renewable energy projects not only aids in reducing CO2 emissions but also supports economic stability and development in various African regions.
More information about the project
As an innovative company aiming to revolutionize the fulfillment industry, sustainability must be a key pillar of our strategy. We are aware of this responsibility and continuously strive to improve our climate footprint. This project, where we offset our company’s emissions and office consumption, is just one of many steps toward making a positive impact.
Moreover, the operational sector holds significant potential for emission reduction. Our vision is to make the fulfillment process as climate-friendly as possible. We offer e-commerce companies access to “green” shipping options, consciously reduce plastic in packaging, and already provide 100% recyclable packaging material in Germany. Additionally, we actively support our customers in minimizing returns.
Our business model naturally contributes to sustainable practices in e-commerce. Through our fulfillment center network with warehouses in all major European markets, we enable merchants to store their products as close as possible to online shoppers, drastically shortening shipping routes that typically have a significant impact on the climate.
However, we understand that there is still a long way to go in optimizing all areas for climate-friendliness. We are committed to working step-by-step to improve internal processes and make conscious decisions regarding our partners.
tickets for public transportation.
Sustainability and corporate responsibility are byrd’s core building blocks since day one, and moving towards reducing and avoiding carbon emissions of our corporate activities is a natural step forward.
- Alexander Leichter, CEO of byrd