Cotopaxi is Climate Neutral Certified

3 Years and Counting

Climate Neutral Cerftified

What does it mean to be Climate Neutral Certified?

Climate Neutral (CN) is a nonprofit that helps companies measure, reduce, and offset their carbon footprint. To become certified through CN, we follow a three-step process: measure, reduce, and compensate.

Why is certification important?

While Cotopaxi has its own reduction goals aligned with science-based targets, we feel strongly that carbon neutrality should be verified by a third party. This is the best way for companies to take immediate and complete responsibility for their footprints.

measure

Measure

The first step is to measure emissions across all of our activities, from direct emissions like operating a store (Scope 1), to energy we purchase (Scope 2), to the indirect emissions associated with our supply chain (Scope 3).

Our total 2022 footprint (in carbon dioxide equivalent): 30,704 tCO2e

*This estimate has still not received final assurance by an additional third party Cotopaxi's team has employed to ensure additional accuracy.

Emission Boundaries

Scope 1
Scope 1

0.41 tCO2e

Direct emissions under our control, such as natural gas used to heat our office or diesel burnt in fleet vehicles.

Scope 2
Scope 2

288.3 tCO2e

Indirect emissions form energy (such as electricity) that occur elsewhere but we consume at our company facilities.

Scope 3
Scope 3

30,415.11 tCO2e

All other indirect emissions, covering different sources within our supply chain.

Reduce

This year, we submitted an official reduction plan aligned with the Science Based Target Initiative. We’re focusing on decarbonizing our supply chain through renewable energy, using non-virgin and responsible materials in all products by 2025, and continuing to integrate more circular, low-footprint materials. We also eliminated all single-use plastics in 2022. 

reduce
compensate

Compensate

Once we know our footprint, we work with Pachama and Biodiversity & Ecosystem Futures to purchase carbon offsets from verified and vetted projects. By purchasing a carbon credit, one tonne of carbon is removed or prevented from entering the atmosphere. We purchase enough carbon credits to cover our total emissions in order to become carbon neutral.

Here are a few projects we purchase carbon credits from:

Unitor REDD+ Project, Brazil 
  • Empowering forest conservation in Brazil benefits communities, carbon, and biodiversity. This project protects native forests and allows regeneration of degraded forests, while significantly improving the lives of the local community. Unitor REDD+ also provides more robust monitoring and surveillance to prevent unsustainable activities from occurring on these lands.
Agrocortex Forestry, Brazil 
  • This award-winning project prevents deforestation in some of the most threatened forests on the planet. Focused on an important biodiversity corridor that connects the Andes to the Amazon, Agrocortex Forestry won best Carbon Offsetting Project of 2020 in the Environmental Finances Voluntary Carbon Awards. Benefits include the protection of 400 bird species, as well as positive social and economic impacts in one of Brazil’s poorest areas.
Manantiales Behr Wind Farm 
  • This high-impact wind project improves China's greenhouse gas bottom line, while creating a clean energy supply for communities and improving air and water quality.
Xinyang MSW Landfill LFG Recovery to Power Project 
  • Bringing economic development to a poverty-stricken region, this large-scale wind power plant created more than 200 jobs in Ningxia, one of China’s poorest regions. The construction of a road for the project also benefits the local community by allowing farmers to transport goods more easily into the city.

Learn more about Climate Neutral at:

ClimateNeutral.org