Cognitant is committed to achieving Net Zero emissions by 2030, twenty years ahead of the government target. We are currently working to develop a full implementation plan which will allow us to bring this target further forward.
The carbon footprint of Cognitant has been calculated using the SME Carbon Footprint Calculator. This Carbon Footprint Calculator has been designed to help UK based SMEs measure their corporate emission footprint following GHG Protocol Guidance, including direct emissions from fuel and processes (Scope 1 emissions) and those emissions from purchased electricity (or Scope 2 emissions) for the assets they operate.
In order to calculate Cognitant’s footprint, we originally looked at information for the year of 2021, 01 January 2021 to 30 December 2021. Baseline emissions are a record of the greenhouse gases that have been produced in the past and were produced prior to the introduction of any strategies to reduce emissions. These include:
Our reported data covered the chosen 12 months of data. In some cases we did not have exact data for the whole year, so we estimated the consumption using the average energy or fuel consumed per month.
Baseline emissions for the year of 2021 (baseline year)
Scope 1 emissions (direct energy and processes): 115 kgCO2e
Scope 2 emissions (indirect impact from electricity): 41 kgCO2e
Scope 3 emissions (vehicle emissions from commuting, waste generation, business travel, employee commuting): TBC end June 2023
Total emissions: 155 kgCO2e
As our operations were affected by the Covid-19 pandemic and significant organisational changes were made during 2023, we committed to recalculating our baseline emissions to reflect a full year of our current usual operations for 2023.
Baseline emissions for the year of 2023
Scope 1 emissions (direct energy and processes): 113 kgCO2e
Scope 2 emissions (indirect impact from electricity): 121 kgCO2e
Total emissions: 234 kgCO2e
We have based calculations on actual data as far as possible rather than average data methods to ensure we have a more accurate calculation.
To continue our progress to achieving Net Zero, we have adopted the following carbon reduction initiatives: