Carbon offsetting is the practice of supporting projects that reduce carbon use, encourage biodiversity or provide green power with the intention of countering your businesses carbon footprint.
Done right it’s a powerful tool that allows you to bridge the gap between what can be done to reduce your carbon footprint and true carbon neutrality. Even the most committed business would have trouble creating literally zero carbon while operating, and carbon offsetting is useful as a last step towards sustainability.
However in practice some businesses use carbon offsetting as a way to appear sustainable while taking little action to reduce the environmental impact of their operations, this is known as greenwashing and is unethical and bad business.
Carbon Offsetting is best used alongside a range of other more effective carbon reduction strategies, if your business has taken steps to reduce your carbon footprint already then you can use offsetting to reduce the remaining amount, thus becoming Carbon Neutral.
Carbon Offsetting isn’t a perfect solution, but as we head towards a more sustainable future it’s a way to bridge the gap between what can be done to be Carbon Neutral right now and what can be done in the future.