The Ryte Carbon Neutral Program: Offset Your Website’s Carbon Footprint!

Contents

• Your Road to Carbon Neutrality

• Calculate your website’s carbon consumption

• Offset your website’s carbon emissions

• Carbon offset project

• FAQs

According to the BBC, the carbon footprint of our gadgets, internet and supporting systems make up around 3.7% of global greenhouse emissions - a similar amount produced by the airline industry. In 2017, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zürich found out that modern computers consume almost as much power as the first "home computers" did almost 30 years ago. This goes to show that just because modern computers are faster, it doesn't mean they're more efficient.

These facts show just how much the internet and digitalisation are contributing to global warming - something that many of us probably never thought much about. But the evidence is now simply too overwhelming to keep quiet about this issue. We need to face up to the fact that our daily working lives, our marketing campaigns, and our websites themselves are all contributing to global warming with their energy consumption. It’s finally time to do something about it.

Making a website carbon neutral is not something you can do overnight. It requires investment, expertise and time. But the first step to carbon neutrality is a small one: awareness. Being aware of your website’s carbon consumption can help you start a conversation with your colleagues, managers, and clients - leading the way to a greener future.

Let’s not forget the benefit this can bring to your business. It’s all about saving the planet, but acting as a leader in climate neutrality for websites can only improve perception of your brand among your customers. The number of people today who are environmentally conscious is on the rise, and this trend isn’t going away any time soon. Show your customers that you care about creating a better planet for future generations, before they turn to a competitor who is showing better and stronger leadership in climate action and website carbon neutrality.

Your Road to Carbon Neutrality

So what can you do to get started on your journey to carbon neutrality? This is where we can help - with our Website Carbon Neutral Program. Within this program, we calculate the estimated carbon emissions of your website so you can measure its carbon footprint, helping you understand its impact on the environment. Then, we provide you with the opportunity to offset this carbon consumption by taking part in a climate protection project led by ClimatePartner.

#1 Calculate your website’s carbon consumption

Our team of data scientists have developed a proprietary algorithm for calculating your website’s carbon footprint. The calculation is based on a number of factors that contribute to the carbon emissions of your website, including average page size and amount of website traffic. Using these factors, we provide you with an estimate of the carbon footprint of your website: the Ryte Website Carbon KPI. The calculation was developed in cooperation with ClimatePartner, a company committed to improving the living conditions of people, animals and the biosphere by taking ambitious climate action every day, globally.

#2 Offset your emissions

Based on the calculated result - the carbon dioxide in kg that your website is using, you have the opportunity to offset your website’s carbon emissions by investing in a climate project led by ClimatePartner. This Verified Standard Carbon project is certified by TÜV Nord and validated by the Rainforest Alliance. As a sign of your investment in this project, you gain a Website Carbon Neutral Badge that you can add to your website.

Carbon offset project: Bamboo for deforestation-free products

The carbon offset project, led by ClimatePartner, is based in eastern Nicaragua and involves planting native species of giant clumping bamboo, one of the most efficient biological tools for fighting climate change. So far, 1 million plants have been planted, covering 2,361 hectares while protecting an additional 1,000 hectares of old forest as a conservation zone. The project has transformed a degraded landscape into a flourishing and biodiverse ecosystem.

The Carbon Offset project (source)

FAQs

The Website Carbon Neutral Badge claims that a website is “Website Carbon Neutral”. What carbon emissions are neutralised exactly?

This Badge signifies that a Ryte customer has offset their website’s carbon footprint by participating in a Verified Carbon Standard (VCS) project: Bamboo for deforestation-free products. This project prevents deforestation and the release of CO2 to lower the temperature.

The website’s carbon footprint is based on a calculation developed by Ryte’s data scientists that uses factors including average page size and amount of website traffic to provide an estimation of a website’s carbon footprint: the Ryte Website Carbon KPI. This determines the cost of purchasing the Badge, thus participation in the carbon offset project.

How exactly do you calculate the website carbon footprint?

Websites generate carbon dioxide above all due to the energy they consume. Energy is consumed by the servers on which the website is hosted, by the network over which the data is sent, and through the device users are viewing your website on. We calculate a website’s carbon footprint on the basis of these factors, using the website data from our customers’ projects. The following factors are included:

• How large are the individual pages of your website (for example do they have large images or videos that must be loaded).

• How many visitors view your website – i.e. your website’s traffic.

With this information, we calculate how much energy your website consumes in total and how much carbon dioxide is produced.

With whom do you team up for the carbon offset project?

ClimatePartner, a company committed to improving the living conditions of people, animals and the biosphere by taking ambitious climate action every day, globally. Their carbon offset projects engage people and stimulate local development, on top of protecting the environment.

How long is the Badge valid?

We calculate the carbon emissions of your website for one year, therefore the Badge is valid for one year. After a year you can recalculate your website's carbon emissions.

Is the cost of participation deductible from my taxes?

As it is not a donation, the cost of participating is not tax-deductible.

Who can take part in the Website Carbon Neutral Program?

All Ryte users can participate. Customers will see the widget on their project Dashboard. If you’re not a Ryte customer yet, you can sign up for a Ryte Free Account to get access to our Website Carbon Neutral Program. If you have any questions, please contact our support team.

Let’s make the internet carbon neutral, together!

Climate change has never been such a big topic as it is now and it’s becoming clearer and clearer that digitalisation, websites, and online services are also playing a part in damaging the environment above all due to the energy consumed by servers, networks and devices. This is why we want to play a part in raising awareness for this issue by calculating the carbon emissions of websites and teaming up with ClimatePartner’s carbon offset project. Of course, offsetting your carbon footprint is just one step on the way to carbon neutrality. But we have to start somewhere!

Act as a leader and show active engagement in climate action by calculating your carbon footprint and offsetting the emissions. Show your customers you care about the planet, and not just about making money. Help us make the world a better place; help us to start the conversation; help us to make the internet carbon neutral.

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