Sebastian Holmström, works as Sustainability Manager at Inrego.
Inrego wants to change buying behavior and promote circular IT as a competitive advantage.
Laptops, computers, mobile phones, and other IT products can be reused just like cars, boats, or bicycles.
“After 28 years in the industry, we know that a reconditioned product lasts just as long as a new one, so we offer the same warranty as for new products.” says Sebastian Holmström, Sustainability Manager at Inrego.
“It is important for us to show that there is a difference between reused products that have not been worked properly on and reconditioned products that have been upgraded and are sold with a warranty.”
Sustainability plays a crucial role in being an attractive employer
Sebastian has experienced that the market for reused electronics is thriving since a few years back, for several reasons – not least because of how sustainable business practices strengthen the brand.
“We see that circular IT has become a competitive advantage, where sustainable IT management is crucial to attract young talent to the company. Sustainability plays a crucial role in being an attractive employer, and the demand for reused products has increased significantly for this reason.”
Ensure maximum performance and durability of your equipment
Provide maintenance for existing equipment
If something is broken, the possibility of repairing or replacing a component should always be considered.
See if it makes financial sense to do so. Sometimes repairing is more expensive than new equipment, In this case, the decision to repair could still be valid if the life expectancy is still significant.
Purchases should be based on actual (not perceived) needs
Have a good inventory.
Reassign equipment among colleagues.
Avoid buying new equipment if not needed.
Replacement policy
Do not have an automatic 2-3 year replacement, make it optional for employees to replace at that time if they see the need.
Consider the manufactures guidance for when equipment should be replaced but bear in mind that well-taken care of equipment can last longer.
Consider buying refurbished electronics
Companies such as Inrego or Swappie sell refurbished equipment that had a previous owner and now has been repaired for others to use it.
If they have equipment that serves your needs consider buying from them instead of brand new equipment
When buying new equipment
Look for environmentally certified products such as the Green Electronics Council EPEAT Registry or TCO Certified.
Buy from brands that account for their carbon footprint and energy efficiency
Look for energy efficiency ecolabels such as Energy star or the one created by the EU where A means most efficient. Applies to monitors, computers, and servers.
The afterlife of your equipment
Sell your old/unused equipment to Inrego or iPhones to Swappie.
Despite the rapid modernisation in China’s cities, a visit to the country’s rural areas would tell a very different story. Many families still rely on coal stoves to boil water for purification, to cook their daily meals and to heat their homes.
This project has enabled rural households to efficiently substitute fossil fuel (coal) used in daily cooking and water boiling with solar energy, avoiding CO2 emission that would be generated by the burning of fossil fuels. A total of 49,000 solar cookstoves will be distributed to families in 8 rural villages across Henan province – cutting emissions, improving air quality and saving families valuable time and money.
Our team member Tove worked in fashion for many years, previously running a fashion PR agency in London before joining GoClimate. From living and breathing fashion and consumption, to start working to fight climate change – how did that happen?
“I really loved working in fashion and am proud to have been involved in building several fantastic brands internationally. My agency focused on sustainability since the start in 2008 – but back then I basically thought sustainability was more or less equal to using organic cotton in the production, or doing a sustainable capsule collection now and then.”
“Over time, I learned more, and was increasingly horrified by how dirty the fashion industry is. As I started to transition to a personal life that did less harm on the planet, there was something about my professional life that didn’t sit right with me. While I was spending lots of time and effort in my personal life adopting healthier consumer habits, my job was to drive consumption by getting people to buy as much of our clients’ products as possible. It just didn’t fit with the way the world looks today, the future I hope for our children, or my personal values. I felt a need to start spending my time solving the problem instead of contributing to it.”
Want to buy something? – Sleep on it!
“I still love fashion and occasionally find it hard not to be able to enjoy certain trends in the same way as before. I always try to find specific garments or accessories that I’m after second-hand, but I’m honestly not great at thrifting. So I still buy newly produced garments – but in a completely different way than before. Back then, I could buy something to wear once or twice, or on impulse. These days I only buy things I need or to replace something that is broken beyond repair, and always after considering it carefully. Sleeping on it often removes a large part of the feeling that I ‘must’ have something – the brain catches up and I often realize that it is not only unnecessary but also very rarely worth using up the planet’s resources.”
“I also create a list of things I need at the start of every season or year – it makes it easier not to be tempted to buy something just because I want to, because I have my list of things that I need. Instead, I can spend time finding the item that I really love and that will last, rather than buying what trends and the world around me says I “should” have. Because I buy fewer things, I can spend my money on brands that are doing a good job with their sustainability – and stay away from fast fashion.”
“My advice for those who want to enjoy fashion more sustainably, apart from the obvious – buy less, and buy second-hand, is to take the time to find and get to know brands that have a good sustainability policy, both in terms of people and climate. Once you have done your research and have a couple of brands in mind where you both like the design and know that their production is fair to both planet and people, you know where to go when you need to replace an item.”
“And it’s important to understand the problems with fast fashion. Once you understand how poorly both the planet and people are treated in the process of producing that piece of clothing you want so badly, the shine quickly fades.”
Tove’s list for conscious consumption
Sleep on it. It often creates a distance to that “I have to get this”-feeling.
Make a list for each season. Write down what you really need and stick to it, it makes it easier not to be tempted to buy something just because you want to.
Spend time on research. Find a piece that you really want and will last a long time.
Spend money on high quality brands. Check their sustainability policy before making a purchase and stay away from fast fashion.
Mend and alter items that have broken or are no longer the right size. A good tailor can often bring new life to clothes!
We talked about sustainable fashion with Anna Blom, a journalist and speaker with a passion for fashion and sustainability.
Anna’s interest in sustainable fashion started many years ago, with a major turning point during a press trip she took to Shanghai in 2016 to write about a sustainability award.
“That the fashion industry is such a major climate culprit had been unknown to me, as a fashion journalist, until then – and the trip was an eye-opener to say the least. I was both enlightened and devastated. How could all these wonderful things cause SO much harm?”
“We can help save the world through our clothes”
“Our consumption of clothes and textiles causes 4% of the total greenhouse gas emissions in Sweden, and clothes and shoes cause about 2-8% globally. So somewhere around 2-8% of our emissions come from textiles – and partly from our wardrobes. One can feel helpless, even apathetic, in the planetary emergency we find ourselves in. What does it matter what I do?”
“BUT I believe that it does matter! We CAN all help to save the world through how we look after our clothes! It may sound silly, but that spirit is important to me. I believe that you and I can make a difference. We make choices every day and how we ‘vote with our wallets’ – what we spend our money on – has a global impact.”
“I admit, that sometimes I lose interest and feel ridiculous dragging another bag of odd socks to the textile collection. What does it matter what I do? How do I know that my old socks won’t end up in a landfill in Ghana?”
“Navigating the jungle of different sustainability messages is difficult. And it’s difficult, if not impossible, to decipher the sustainability promises brands make to us. But I have learned to stop listening to that inner critical voice. Doing something is better than doing nothing.”
Believes in sustainable development
On her own approach to fashion and consumption, Anna is making it clear that she is far from perfect herself.
“I buy new clothes. I fly. I believe that economic growth and environmental issues can be combined in sustainable development. But it’s HOW we do it… Today I buy fewer garments and have a dream of a small but useful capsule wardrobe where everything can be combined. I’m not there yet, but I’m on my way. I also shop much more secondhand nowadays.”
“To understand how and where I can make the biggest difference and whether it matters if I buy those ballerina shoes this fall or not, is key. On the whole, of course, it does not matter, but to link back to what I said earlier, I think it is more about adopting a mindset. It all adds up.”
Anna’s best tips to enjoy fashion more sustainably
“Use the clothes you already have in your closet. If you need to buy something new, think about how many times you will use it. When shopping, choose second-hand over new purchases. To save climate impact when shopping second-hand, you need to replace a planned new purchase. Compare this to, for example, when you ‘save’ money by buying on sale. You don’t, of course, because you spend money if you buy a jacket on sale.”
“But if you replace buying a jacket at full price, then you actually save money if you find it at half price. This is important to say as second-hand has somehow come to be seen as a write off, seen as you’re doing something good without thinking the whole process through. We must replace a planned new purchase in order for it to have a positive climate impact.”
What do you wish everyone knew about sustainable fashion?
“That the biggest negative climate impact of a garment is in its production (80%). If you use a garment for twice as long, you reduce its negative climate impact by about half.”
“My feed gives you tips on how to be more stylish without being a professor of sustainability. My driving force on Instagram is to make difficult facts simple and usable. If I can inspire someone along the way, that’s a bonus.”
If you are curious about Anna and the work she does in sustainable fashion, you can find her at @msannablom or www.annablom.se/en.
Gurgin Bakircioglu. Photographer (image to the left): Willy Hedberg
Gurgin Bakircioglu is highly involved in several current social issues, including climate and animal rights. We spoke to him about his approach to plant-based eating.
“It is an issue that touches my heart since I witnessed the slaughter of a goat in Kurdistan. After living in denial for many years, I could no longer turn a blind eye to the goat’s suffering. The initial shift happened in me then, but was followed by another decade of active denial before I finally chose to stop eating meat in 2011 and later went vegan in 2016.
I came to the realization that animals, these amazing creatures that share our earth, are meant to live in freedom and harmony, just like us humans. It became clear to me that it is not right for me to deprive them of their right to life and dignity for the sake of my taste buds or old habits.”
To Gurgin, the hardest thing about veganism is the environment.
“To see the most intelligent people around you trying to defend something so wrong and indefensible is hard. Being vegan in a world that doesn’t always understand or support this lifestyle can be difficult. But whether you’re Kurdish or Swedish, the choice to be vegan is, actually, simple and achievable.”
Gurgin trains Crossfit 6-7 days a week, and realized that it’s possible to combine athletic ambitions with a plant-based diet.
For people who are curious about eating more plant-based but may not be ready to take the plunge, Gurgin says:
“Be open to learning more! There are incredible health and climate benefits to a vegan diet. I started my vegan journey for the sake of animals and then discovered the connection to climate change. Now, as I train crossfit 6-7 days a week, I have realized that you can actually have elite athletic ambitions with a plant-based diet. It is amazing to be able to build a strong body and endurance without having to eat anything that has had eyes, ears, nose, mouth – or a mother.”
Practice dumpster diving
In addition to going vegan, Gurgin has been continuously “dumpstring” food for four years.
“Our inefficient food system has a huge leak where huge amounts of food are thrown away every day, while people go to bed hungry. If food waste were a nation, it would be the third largest source of greenhouse gas emissions globally, after China and the US. We often approach food waste from the wrong end of the stick, trying to promote awareness, support initiatives to reduce food waste and improve the distribution of food to those who need it most. But we need to start at the other end: with production. We need clear laws and rules to follow if we really want a sustainable and fair food system.”
Gurgin with his findings in dumpster diving – not only food but also plants!
When asked what changes Gurgin would like to see in society to reduce meat consumption, he wants to focus on healthcare, education and social services.
“Every day, almost every third Swede eats at least one meal provided by healthcare, school and care, which means that every day there is an opportunity to reduce three million people’s emissions with the help of a vegan, climate-smart, public meal. Remove animal products from all public meals. A plant-based meal is not only sustainable and nutritious, it also saves time and money as it eliminates the need of “special diets”. A vegan meal is halal, kosher and free of milk, eggs, fish, seafood and can easily be made free of peanuts, soy, nuts, seeds and other allergenes. There are only benefits to this, from economic ones to health related wins.”
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*Dumpstring comes from the English word “dumpster diving”, which means taking care of things that have been thrown away.
Long-time GoClimate client Netlight, an IT and Management consulting company providing services for leaders in the digital industry, is characterized by an open, encouraging, and prestige-free culture. Netlight has repeatedly been awarded for growth as well as for successfully working with gender equality.
Netlight’s former CEO, Erik Ringertz, explains how their strong sustainability focus started:
“It is difficult to date its origin as the idea of paying back (or paying forward) is deeply rooted in Netlight’s culture and always included society as a stakeholder. We always try to find initiatives that are close to our core business and therefore tangible. Our first bigger move was to balance our CO2 emissions as part of our traveling policy. That was back in 2015, when we decided to balance out not only current and future emissions, but also all past travel emissions.”
Victoria Cederberg, HR Generalist & Emma Ahlberg, Office manager, at Netlight.
Impactful policy: “Veggie First”
Victoria Cederberg, HR Generalist, and Emma Ahlberg, Office manager, tell us more about Netlight’s sustainability work, more specifically one of their most impactful policies implemented a few years back – “Veggie First”.
“All our internal policies are born from the endeavor to limit our climate footprint and increase our power to take climate action. Our Veggie First policy means that all events and meetings at Netlight have adopted vegetarian or vegan food as the norm, totally removing meat as an option.
Veggie Firstis an easy way to inspire our employees and clients to eat vegetarian meals to lower the environmental impact. By sharing vegetarian meals together, we can both measure and feel the impact that it has.”
“Many saw it as a good opportunity to try out new food”
Victoria Cederberg, HR Generalist & Emma Ahlberg, Office manager
“The initiative started back in 2016 after demands from the employees to have more vegetarian food options at the office – and in 2017 Netlight introduced the Veggie First as the norm. The policy gradually moved the company to 100% vegetarian food over the course of five years, where 2022 marked the first year of no meat options available at all. The policy has allowed Netlight to reduce its food emissions by 54%, and was well received by employees. The majority thought it was the right way for Netlight, as a growing and inspirational company, to go. Many saw it as a good opportunity to try out new food, a source of inspiration and not least a great way to reduce the company’s emissions. Of course, there were employees who were skeptical at first – some concerns were raised about if vegetarian food really would keep the same high standard as meat based options, and if it would be filling and nutritious enough. So Netlight put a lot of effort into making sure vegetarian food was the way ahead, and the few people who were hesitant at first, seem to have warmed to the policy without any problems.
Netlight spirit animal – the purple unicorn.
“A win-win situation for climate, the supplier and our employees”
Victoria and Emma continue on some of the challenges with implementing the policy:
“Back in 2016 the access to high quality vegetarian food options wasn’t great, and it could get very expensive. The Netlight event team put a lot of effort into finding great suppliers offering delicious and nutritious meals that would make the most adamant meat-eater happy. We see it as a crucial part in developing our Veggie First policy to put high demands on all our food suppliers to serve great vegetarian options. This is where we see ourselves being role models in the industry, where there is a win-win situation for both the climate, the supplier and our employees.”
On their continuous work with climate and sustainability, Victoria and Emma continue:
“At Netlight, we work actively to reduce our CO2 footprint through our initiative Climate First – the foundation of our environmental activities helping to create transparency and bring concrete results through a number of sub-policies – and leave nothing to chance. For example, the deliberately central locations of all Netlight offices makes it possible for employees to get to work via bicycle, walk or public transport, to keep overall emissions down.”
We would love to hear about other successful stories of how climate policies have been implemented in your company – please share in comments or via dm! And if you haven’t got round to setting your own policy and targets yet, we are here to help <3
Implementing a climate policy covering everything from how you travel to what demands you should put on suppliers in terms of their sustainability efforts, sets you up for success. Not to mention how much it will help employees in everyday decisions and create a great base for communication around your sustainability efforts.
MINK MGMT is a photographer and creative management agency founded in 2012 with offices in Stockholm and London. In addition to artist management, they also offer full production services, which is a great opportunity to set climate policies to ensure the environmental impact is kept as minimal as possible.
“We have always had an eco-friendly mindset and an inclusive way to work and do business. As we have grown with our clients, we have had the opportunity to work to positively influence industry change and manage the aspects of our industry that we are able to control and make more sustainable”, says Marie Jernström Linins, founder and CEO of MINK MGMT.
Focus on remote photoshoots
Since the productions MINK MGMT work with often involves international clients and a lot of travel, their climate policy efforts are mainly targetting that area. To keep travels down, video and phone meetings are prioritized where possible. When flying is the only option, all flights are offsetted through financing certified climate projects.
“We had live feeds from the stills and film cameras so that the client could see what was being shot live on their own screens”
Marie Jernström Linins, MINK MGMT.
“For overseas clients we offer them the possibility to shoot remotely to cut down on emissions. We have done several productions that way, just recently we shot two global campaigns for Adidas in Stockholm with the client in Germany and the advertising agency in New York. We had live feeds from the stills and film cameras so that the client could see what was being shot live on their own screens, an online meeting feed for each set to communicate, and go pro cameras in the studios so the client could follow everything remotely. Everyone pulled together to work on a time zone that would work for all, it turned out great – and with a lot less negative climate impact than traditional shoots!” says Marie Jernström Linins, MINK MGMT.
Marie Jernström Linins, founder and CEO of MINK MGMT, here with her dog.
With these smart biogas stoves we fight climate change while Improving health and quality of life for people living in rural uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra.
This climate project is Gold Standard-certified and through this project we have together prevented 32,688 tonnes of CO2e from entering the atmosphere!
The problem
The use of burning wood when boiling water and cooking food represents a big problem for many families and for the environment. It contributes to indoor pollution, causing severe health issues mainly among women and children, who are overwhelmingly responsible for running the household, and families have to walk up to 5 km to collect firewood and it is heavy on the families’ budget. The reliance on wood for cooking puts pressure on surrounding forests, leading to degraded lands and increased desertification.
How the project fights climate change
The digesters are fed with cow dung and organic kitchen waste to produce biogas, which is then piped to a thermal stove, providing thermal energy for cooking and boiling water, on demand. The biogas systems are long-lasting, easy to install and maintain, and do not cost money to run.
To date, this project has installed over 15,000 smart biogas systems to rural families across Uttar Pradesh & Maharashtra.
Investing in your company’s sustainability lets you enjoy the result of happier employees and an overall stronger offer and brand, while contributing to a healthier planet. Here are some of the most important things your company can do:
1. Calculate your company’s emissions
By calculating your company’s carbon footprint, you get an overview of your main sources of emissions, allowing you to take relevant action in the areas that will have the most impact. Try out our simple business calculator to get started!
2. Set a climate policy
Implementing a climate policy covering everything from how you travel to what demands you should put on suppliers in terms of their sustainability efforts, sets you up for success. Not to mention how much it will help employees in everyday decisions, as well as create a great base for communication around your sustainability efforts.
3. Go veggie first and reduce food waste
Serve vegetarian or vegan food as the norm. 35% of the world’s emissions stem from food, and eating less meat is one of the most meaningful changes people can make to cut greenhouse gas emissions and help reduce deforestation. If people in developed countries switched to more fruit and veg, emissions could fall a whole 29% by 2050. *
Half of the emissions from the food industry comes from food waste today. Reduce your company’s food waste by notifying coworkers when there is food left from events and meetings, to take home.
4. Buy second hand IT equipment and repair before buying new
Replace IT equipment only when it is no longer working, instead of as often as every third or fourth year, as is the current average. Buy second-hand equipment instead of buying new – and fix first! Always try to repair before buying new. Pro-longing tech items’ lifespan by just a couple of years can have a great positive impact on the climate.
5. Switch to renewable energy
Switching to renewable (green) electricity is probably the easiest way to make a significant difference to your overall emissions. Green energy comes from natural sources and is sustainably sourced – and the switch is a crucial step in reducing our dependence on fossil fuels.
6. Balance your emissions through certified climate projects
Taking ownership and reducing your overall impact on the planet is a crucial step in future-proofing your business. Balancing your emissions through financing climate projects is one way to take responsibility for your emissions on top of reducing them. GoClimate offers climate financing through certified Gold Standard projects, which on top of speeding up global climate action, contribute to local sustainable development by offering jobs, contributing to gender equality or improving air quality.
