Zero Emissions Day On September 21

 

CLC’s purpose is to help its members to develop and innovate more climate-friendly products and services, and so to increase their positive carbon handprint. On Zero Emissions Day, on September 21, we highlight these solutions. 

Everyday choices made by ordinary people hold the key to our efforts to reduce emissions and find more sustainable solutions. Recently published IPCC Working Group III report “Climate Change 2022: Mitigation of climate change” highlights that:

    • We need immediate and deep emission reductions across all sectors for limiting the global warming to 1.5°C
    • Demand-side measures (changes in infrastructure use, end-use technology adoption, and socio-cultural and behavioural change) and new ways of enduseservice provision can reduce global GHG emissions inend-use sectors by 40-70% by 2050

Zero Emissions Day started in Nova Scotia, Canada, 2008. CLC began organising the event in Finland in 2017. Zero Emissions Day has been designed to give the world a break from fossil fuels and to raise awareness about the harm caused by carbon emissions. The goal is to engage people towards more climate-friendly choices in their personal life. 

In 2022 the Zero Emissions Day was celebrated by CLC with two events: one in New York, the other one in Lempäälä. Also, CLC member organizations organized their own events and campaigns during the day. 

EVENT IN NEW YORK

In New York CLC handed out world’s first International Carbon Handprint Awards during Climate Week NYC Conference.

EVENT IN LEMPÄÄLÄ, FINLAND

During the Zero Emissions Day the parish of Lempäälä organized an event with several actors from Lempäälä, where the activities and solutions of local actors from individual measures to larger entities are presented. The event was in the Ideapark shopping center. The event included presentations, a panel discussion and an opportunity for audience questions. Actors participating in the event were: the parish of Lempäälä (release of an environmental diploma), CLC, Climate warriors of Lempäälä High School, Lempäälä Lämpö Oy (smart energy solutions), Lempäälä Municipality (carbon neutral Lempäälä 2030), Tampere University and Ideapark Oy. The aim of the event was to raise the awareness of citizens, decision-makers and parishioners about environmental issues and emission reduction opportunities, to disseminate information on solutions and activities being developed, to promote the possibility of climate partnerships and to strengthen the effectiveness of working together. 

ZERO EMISSIONS DAY FOR SCHOOLS

Otaniemi Upper Secondary School organized an event for students. The event was streamed on the Youtube channel of Lukema.

Climate seminar and golf tournament at Meri-Teijo Golf

Suomen Golfkentät ry organized a climate seminar, which discussed the possibilities of golf courses to mitigate climate change and promote biodiversity. After the seminar, the Zero Emission Challenge golf competition was played.

CAMPAIGNS BY MEMBER ORGANIZATIONS

Fiskars Group 

On Zero Emissions Day, we asked our employees to make climate-friendly choices and to think improvements also on the company level. The tips were shared internally, and we encouraged everyone to explore new habits and routines.

Ilmarinen  

Ilmarinen’s office building and the properties we manage switched to fossil-free electricity in 2021. We have created a climate roadmap for our investments to lead the way to a carbon-neutral investment portfolio by 2035. The roadmap for real estate covers the buildings’ entire life cycle, from city planning to demolition. Our target is energy-efficient buildings that generate renewable energy and whose energy generation is higher than their consumption. By 2030, the district heating we use will also be CO2 free.   

We also encouraged our employees to choose more climate-friendly ways of getting around. According to our calculations, we managed to reduce our CO2 emissions in 2021 by a total of around 11,200 kg, thanks to the more than 100 active Ilmarinen employees who cycled altogether more than 64,000 kilometres in the “Kilometrikisa” bicycle competition. 

Kojamo  

We continuously strive to improve energy efficiency of our buildings. In addition, we also want to give the residents of Lumo homes the opportunity to participate in climate action by compensating for the carbon footprint of heating. We also offer a carbon footprint test to our tenants and everybody who is interested in assessing their own carbon footprint. There are tips and services linked to the carbon footprint test that help residents to reduce their own carbon footprint. With these new services, we want to continue our efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change throughout our value chain. 

S Group 

S Group’s customers can use our carbon footprint calculator of the My Purchases service in S-mobiili to monitor the climate impacts of their own food basket in a product category-specific manner. The service has been developed in cooperation with experts from Natural Resources Institute Finland and with consumers. Using the carbon footprint calculator, our customers can make comparisons between different product categories and think about ways to influence the carbon footprint of food. 

VTT  

VTT helps energy companies to ensure the continuity and sustainability of their business through science and technology. In order to combat climate change, the energy industry must quickly adopt new carbon-neutral solutions. Pioneers and developers of clean energy systems are brilliantly placed to leverage the growing market of smart, efficient and clean energy solutions.