What documentation is needed for GoClimate's automatic climate calculations?

GoClimate's integration for accounting systems automatically calculates a company's climate emissions based on its accounting records, making it an easy tool for companies wanting to kick off their sustainability work. The calculations are based on data collected from invoices and receipts, categorized according to their climate impact, based on the GHG Protocol. Here we have listed some points to consider to ensure the result is as complete as possible.

Last updated: 2024-08-05

1. Include documentation

Structured documentation (invoices and receipts) with specifications of what has been purchased makes detailed analysis possible.

2. For documentation on travel expenses:

Include information about the distribution between different types of travel expenses. When this type of information is missing, we assume that the cost is a distribution between different types of expenses, all with completely different climate impacts, for example:

a. Air travel b. Train travel c. Car travel d. Restaurant visits e. Hotel expenses f. Conference venue expenses g. Costs for activities such as external lectures and excursions

3. For air travel:

Include information about the departure and destination locations, how many traveled, and what type of tickets were involved (business class / economy class).

4. For receipts:

Clear images of non-crinkled receipts help. The automatic text reading process can better do its job if the text is clear, has good contrast, and if the background is neutral (e.g., other text in the background can make the image difficult to interpret).

5. For invoices on services that include material costs:

Include information about the distribution between labor and material costs. The more details about which materials were used, the better the analysis.

6. For expense reports:

Include structured information about which accounting lines correspond to which receipts. Alternatively, divide expense reports so that each voucher contains a single receipt.