Connectivity and dissemination, how do we approach a carbon-neutral society?

Ever since the internet existed, we have an immediate way to share information, data and even multimedia anywhere at any time. This has affected the way in which we grow as a society in different ways; from the outset, those of us who grew up with this technology and the generations that were born with it have become less patient. We rely heavily on immediate access to all types of information. If we need to know something we don't know, we're just a quick search in the palm of our hand. If we need to connect or hear from someone, we are an instant message away which reaches the other person in a matter of seconds. Clearly not everything is negative, this communication protocol and this new era of instant information has also made us more aware and empathetic to the events and situations that happen near and far from us. Since several years ago, many people have been informed and informed of the climate crisis we are facing, and as a result of this, an important movement of activist people has been formed that seeks the involvement of governments, companies and the rest of the population in taking climate action.

Is this all the publicity we can do about it? Are we exploiting our existing connectivity enough? From my point of view, the answers to these two questions are negative. In this article, I will elaborate a little more on this subject and it will become a little clearer the opportunity in which immediate connectivity and dissemination through digital media can help us to improve the climate actions we take.

How to bring individuals and companies closer to their carbon footprint?

One of the challenges we currently face as a species is for each of us to know and be aware of our environmental impact. We are all different, we have different habits and different consumption patterns. This means that our carbon footprint (the amount of greenhouse gases that end up in the atmosphere as a result of our actions) is of different magnitude. Unfortunately, we have reached a point where there is no return, we cannot stop life as we know it and expect the health of our planet to regenerate over time, and this is why we have a responsibility to know our environmental impact and to compensate for it.

Currently, there are rustic emission calculators that are easily accessible to anyone, however, there is not enough information and the global awareness we need has been generated for all of us to be involved in constantly measuring our carbon footprint and taking action in this regard. This is where I get to the first point of Pillar 1: Connectivity and Dissemination. What if measuring our environmental impact were something that is done automatically for us? I'm going to exemplify it to make it clearer.

A person's carbon footprint is comprised of different criteria, the most important of which are the following: flights, transportation, gas consumption, electricity consumption, housing, diet and consumption patterns of material goods. How can we measure the impact of all this without consciously doing so? Santiago, one of my partners and CEO of Toroto, is very fond of saying the following phrase: “You can't pollute without spending, nor can you spend without polluting”. From the first time I heard him say it, we began to discuss how a person can know their environmental impact through their expenses. We all already have an application from our bank where we control everything we buy and everything we spend our money on, there are even some mobile applications (from fintech companies or banks themselves) that already categorize our purchases for us, this they do so that we know exactly what we spend on and where our areas of opportunity to save are. What would happen if we oriented this functionality towards measuring our carbon footprint? In an ideal scenario, a person should know the carbon footprint of each object they buy, each service they purchase and, in general, everything they consume. Although the carbon market is a growing market and there is still not as much information about the carbon footprint of the products we buy and consume, we can estimate our impact based on the expenses we make. If we know the amount of electricity and gas bills, we can then estimate the amount of kW/h we have consumed, in the same way, if we know the amount of gasoline we buy then we could estimate the amount of CO2 that gasoline will release when consumed by our car. If we know the destinations of our flights, then we can also estimate the amount of CO2 that the plane will need to release to carry us. Although the previous proposal still has gaps (like everything purchased in cash) and opportunities, I think it would be a good first exercise to bring all people closer to their carbon footprint.

Until now, I have focused on measuring the carbon footprint of individuals and not of companies, this is because for companies there are international protocols that are used to measure the company's emissions inventory. Emissions inventory is the term used for the accurate calculation of a company's carbon footprint. Unlike estimating an individual's carbon footprint, a company's emissions inventory requires a significant degree of accuracy, and the categorization of emissions is different. For all of the above, companies' emissions inventories are carried out by teams who are experts in Carbon Management. In some parts of the world, there is a regulated carbon market and some companies have legal obligations to know their emissions inventory and to offset some part of it. The current trend tells us that eventually all companies must have their emissions inventory and know their environmental impact.

Both individuals and companies should have a mechanism or digital portal in which they can monitor the measurement of their carbon footprint, measure and share the progress they make to reduce their impact and finally have a viable option to compensate for the emissions they fail to reduce. If each and every one of us could be informed of our environmental impact just as we are informed of our bank account balances, or informed of the activities of the people we follow on Instagram, every day we would have the opportunity to improve our habits and even to take climate action from a device as everyday as our cell phone or computer.

In addition to the fact that we all know our carbon footprint, it is also necessary to normalize the measurements of the amount of CO2 in the goods and services we consume. I am sure that at some time not so far away it will be as common to know the carbon footprint of products, just as it is now the caloric content and nutritional information of the products. It will be extremely important to measure and disseminate the real environmental impact of everything we acquire. This is how the dissemination of information will be a key element in the transition to a CO2-neutral society.

When we manage to generate sufficient awareness about the problem we face as a species and we manage to add the largest number of people to take climate action, it will then be a matter of our own decision. If a conscious person has the option of deciding between two different products and one of the decision factors is the carbon footprint of both products, then there will be a tendency to only consume products with low or even zero environmental impact. This will generate a trend in the market and only the products with the least impact on the planet will survive.

To conclude, I would like to emphasize some of the key points of this Technological Pillar that will help us in the fight against the climate crisis. First, we have a communication tool like never before as a species and we must make the most of it possible to generate a future compatible with life. Creating a conscious society is everyone's job and we must be able to disseminate information, know and disseminate our carbon footprint and normalize environmental terms so that we can all take the climate actions that are of our choice. Second, banking and fintech companies will play an important role in the process of raising awareness and building the carbon footprint of individuals. We must put digital platforms in the palm of people's hands that calculate the environmental impact of our actions, habits and consumption patterns. The closer we can bring people and companies closer to their carbon footprint, the greater the incentive to reduce that environmental impact that each of us has. Finally, we must approach the dissemination of the carbon footprint of the products and services we purchase and eventually we must all be able to decide to support, buy or purchase products and services with the least amount of emissions generated. And that's how, through communication channels, we must be able to publicise And be Connected with not only the impact we have as individuals, but also the impact of everything we buy and do.