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WASHINGTON, DC, April 27, 1999 -- As part of increased global climate protection efforts, the World Resources Institute (WRI), an international research organization focusing on issues of the environment and sustainability, announced today our commitment to reduce our emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) to zero or better by 2005. The institutional decision for a zero net emissions commitment was made following a vote by WRI staff.

Although we do not have smokestacks or large industrial machinery, our office electrical use, travel, commuting, paper use, and other activities, all lead to emissions of CO2, the primary agent of human-induced climate change (the "enhanced greenhouse effect"). By going to zero net emissions, we hope to demonstrate that significant and early action on climate change is technically and economically feasible. To help ourselves and others to track our progress, we will annually measure and publicly report our emissions, starting in October, 2000.

WRI is already starting on the emissions reductions options that we can control in our own offices, including the installation of energy efficient lighting and equipment (for more information, see the WRI website at http://www.wri.org/wri/office/co2comm.html). These efforts include:

• Ensuring that office equipment is turned off each night (a computer and monitor can each use 200 watts per hour; by turning them off each night, about 2.5 tons of CO2 emissions can be prevented annually, and $150 saved each year).

• Reducing paper use (WRI used about 3,750 reams of paper last year; by cutting use by 10 percent, we would save over $1,300 and reduce the related CO2 emissions by about 4 tons).

• Looking farther ahead, we'll replace some of our travel with videoconferencing (for short trips by air, for example, roughly 40kg, or 88 pounds, of CO2 are emitted for each 100 miles of travel by one person).

• Beyond our own walls, we'll work on options like urban forestry projects, and assist in making green power (electricity from renewable and low-carbon sources) available in the Washington, DC, area.

We have taken the first step toward our goal by completing a preliminary estimate of our 1990 and current CO2 emissions. Going forward, we will reduce our emissions to 7 percent below our 1990 levels by October, 2000. This milestone reflects the reduction commitment that the United States would assume if it ratifies the Kyoto Protocol. By October, 2005, we will reduce to zero net emissions or better, meaning that we would achieve a net sink of CO2 (i.e., more carbon sequested than emitted) through emissions reductions and offsets. We will include greenhouse gases other than CO2 in our goal as we further develop our program.

WRI will pursue this goal in ways that maximize the impact of our commitment beyond our own walls. Specifically, as part of our measurement and reporting efforts we will develop guidelines to help similar, small- to medium-sized organizations and businesses measure their own emissions. We will share this and other information through our website. We will pursue emissions reduction options that enable other organizations, businesses, and households to cut their own emissions. For example, we are looking into how we might help make green power available in our region, or help make efficiency improvements in lower-income housing in the area. And finally, we will integrate our practical lessons from this effort into our work with other organizations and businesses on climate change.

Anticipated outcome and impact on sustainability

Significant global reductions in greenhouse gas emissions are necessary to stabilize atmospheric concentrations and reduce the risks of human-caused climate change. By eliminating our own emissions, we will make a small contribution to the kind of emissions reductions that will be necessary to minimize the negative health, sea level, economic, and weather changes that would be associated with such climate change. Our estimated 1990 carbon dioxide emissions were over 1,500 tons. (The equivalent to burning about 170,000 gallons of gasoline. WRI's current emissions are about 1,663 tons -- the equivalent to burning about 188,000 gallons of gasoline.) By going to zero net emissions, we will be making a reduction to the U.S.'s greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to keeping 300 cars off the road each year, or saving more than 680 tons of coal annually.

All of WRI’s emissions are indirect, meaning that they come from services and products that we purchase from others. As a result, WRI will need to work closely with our property manager (Trammell Crow Real Estate Services, Inc.), our current power company (Potomac Electric Power), other power companies, providers of shipping services, and community organizations in the Washington, DC, area in order to reach our zero emissions goal. The United States Postal Service is helping WRI estimate the emissions associated with our shipping, and has expressed interest in establishing their own reduction goal. WRI is also committed to working with organizations like the Climate Neutral Network and companies like Interface that are successfully tackling this challenge, and to supporting a wide range of other organizations in making similar reductions commitments.

This effort builds on and will contribute to work within WRI's Climate Protection Initiative, which has included efforts such as the Safe Climate, Sound Business collaboration among BP Amoco, General Motors, Monsanto and WRI. All partners in the collaboration agreed to pursue a seven-point action agenda to address climate change concerns. WRI's reduction effort will address several points on that agenda, and we will share our learning with these partners and others. For example, WRI and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development are building a multi-stakeholder collaboration to design and disseminate an internationally accepted standard for measurement and reporting corporate greenhouse gas emissions.

Finally, we hope that our own effort will inspire reduction commitments and action by others. As explained above, we will pursue reduction options and share information from our efforts in ways that enable others to take action. While we can not quantify the impact of these outreach efforts, we believe that we can play an important role in helping other organizations -- especially similar small- to medium-sized enterprises -- to achieve emissions reductions as well.

For more information, contact:

World Resources Institute
Paul Mackie, senior media officer, +1(202)729-7684, pmackie@wri.org