Photo credit: VivaTech
COP27 is officially underway in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt. The United Nations climate change conference brings together 120 heads of state, tens of thousands of delegates, as well as international media and NGOs working to avoid climate disaster.
World leaders will be discussing the best ways nations can curb their emissions. With the hope that bigger pledges are made (and kept) in the following year, what’s certain is that action needs to be taken on every level.
Business and civil society have their part to play. Some startups are taking on the challenge, aiming to help curb emissions by helping businesses and organizations measure, manage and reduce their carbon footprint. Here are 7 solutions that we think you should keep an eye on:
Photo credit: Urbanomy
Urbanomy
Urbanomy is a carbon and energy planning consultancy. The startup launched in 2020 after a year with EDF Corporate Ventures Incubator and now helps their customers to reach low carbon goals for their organization, real estate projects, or portfolio of assets.
The French startup uses a decarbonization methodology that can define a science-based pathway to net zero. Customers can monitor their progress and reevaluate their actions based on what’s working. In 2022, Urbanomy worked with VivaTech to consolidate our carbon reduction roadmap for the event!
Rachel Delacour, seated far-right, Sweep"e;s CEO on the VivaTech stage. Photo credit; VivaTech
Sweep
With carbon emissions getting out of control, Sweep saw an opportunity to act. The startup is an industry leader in measuring and reducing an organization"e;s carbon footprint. Their platform helps companies measure their emissions, take action to reduce their carbon footprint, and stay compliant with the latest reporting standards.
Companies like 2050, Swisscom, Prose, and Ubisoft have all measured their direct and indirect emissions through Sweep’s platform. They’ve implemented solutions including a platform that tracks all carbon data from the company and makes it available to every employee. Sweep and its partners have also created ways to involve employees in the emissions evaluation process and develop new low-carbon alternatives for products.
Presenting Carbo at VivaTech 2022. Photo credit: La Poste
Carbo
Personalized recommendations for decreasing our carbon footprint Sign us up. Carbo has created a web app for businesses and individuals alike to understand their carbon footprint that proposes personalized recommendations based on their current operations.
Optimization can include buying refurbished computer equipment, favoring public transport, electric vehicles, or carpooling for commutes, changing the website host for a more “Green” option, or setting up a waste recycling policy at the office.
Evolution Energie’s team and their stand at VivaTech 2022. Photo credit: VivaTech
Evolution Energie
Energy management systems are crucial for businesses to decrease their energy consumption. Startup Evolution Energie provides energy management software to energy suppliers and industrialists, helping them optimize their portfolios and make more informed decisions about their energy usage.
Evolution Energie software currently monitors 6% of the European Union"e;s energy consumption already. They are clearly plotting the path to lessen energy consumption and move towards a sustainable future.
The Greenly team and their stand at VivaTech 2022. Photo credit: Greenly
Greenly
Greenly is a Saas platform focusing on making carbon accounting easy and intuitive for SMBs. They integrate their solution with company software to fast-track the computation of CO2-inducing activities to allow them to start their climate journey. Major banks like BNP Paribas have included their all-in-one carbon accounting platform on their banking apps.
This green team is simplifying a very difficult task indeed!
The Plan A team. Photo credit: Plan A
Plan A
There is no “plan B” for our planet. That is why Plan A is helping businesses create a roadmap to build a better future. The German startup was created in 2017 in an effort to prevent the worst of the climate crisis while we can still act. They decided that using data to orient and focus on the sustainable transition was the fastest way to make things happen.
In 2020, they released a tool to help businesses calculate their carbon footprint and from that data, create a plan toward decarbonization. They are now working with companies like BMW, BNP Paribas, Trivago, Flixbus, and N26.
ClimateSeed’s stand at VivaTech 2022. Photo credit: ClimateSeed
ClimateSeed
Some CO2 emissions can’t be accounted for or solutions to avoid them aren’t available yet. Investing in carbon removal and avoidance projects is one way to contribute to carbon reduction. Startup ClimateSeed offers a way to buy carbon credits for certified carbon reduction projects to their clients.
Available projects include forest restoration, mangrove ecosystem restoration, providing clean water to households in need, methane gas capturing from landfills, and building renewable energy infrastructure.
Planet on fire
A UN report released this past week stated that the past eight years were on track to be the warmest on record. Our planet is "sending a distress signal," explained UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres at the opening of COP27.
There’s a lot of progress to be made to tackle the biggest challenges facing our planet. Technology that can help us measure, manage and reduce carbon emissions can help get us moving in the right direction.