Compensating CO2: How it works

We’ll show you how you can offset CO2, live sustainably and easily do something to protect the climate! Let’s go!

Most likely, the word climate crisis is already hanging out of your ears. “Haven’t we endured enough?” you might be thinking. Yes, it’s been a tough few months. The corona crisis led to countless lockdowns, personal strokes of fate and general uncertainty. But all the more important to become active and do something for your future and the future of others. After all, every day you have the opportunity to work for climate protection. From small decisions such as eliminating packaging waste to big steps such as compensating for your holiday in Tenerife.

Because even if the past year was overshadowed by the corona crisis, this does not mean that new rainforests are sprouting from the ground or the glaciers are melting less. A sustainable and conscious life is still essential to stop climate change and enable a long-term and beautiful life on earth.

For this reason, we have decided to work together with
mindful mission
CO2 and thus make a contribution to climate protection. Compensate? Yes, that’s right. In this article, we will show you how CO2 compensation works and how you can actively do something for your footprint.

The CO2 footprint

To understand how compensation works, you first need to know that every living being and every product has a CO2 footprint.

Your footprint is made up of all your activities or actions that you directly or indirectly cause. It is, so to speak, your overall CO2 balance. This includes products you consume or the type of mobility you use. Your apartment, the electricity you use or the furniture you buy also count towards your footprint.

Depending on the activity,
points are distributed to calculate your overall balance
, which are then converted into X tons of CO2 in the next step. As a rule of thumb, 10 points correspond to about one ton of CO2.

For example:

• If you cycle to work, this corresponds to about 5 points per year.
• If you fly once or three times a year within Europe, this corresponds to 20 points per year.
• If you eat meat every day, you get 15 points a year.
• If you consume sparingly, your consumption behavior amounts to 6 points per year.

The German average is about 85.5 to 110 points per year, which roughly means 9.5 tons of CO2 per person per year. That’s an enormous amount of CO2 that can be reduced by simple behavioral changes or the possibility of compensation.

How to offset CO2

As you’ve already seen, every decision in your everyday life has a direct impact on your individual footprint. It makes a big difference whether you start your holiday trip by train or opt for an intercontinental flight.

One way not to have to do without your long-awaited holiday or a relaxing bath is to compensate CO2. Companies such as
mindful mission
allows you to calculate your individual footprint based on scientifically sound questions and thus determine your total CO2 balance. This total balance is then converted into an amount of money that mindful mission needs to promote climate protection projects according to your emissions and thus reduce CO2. The climate protection projects are certified by the United Nations and promote, for example, wind power in India or the protection of the Amazon rainforest. With a contribution of about 8 to 12 euros per month, you compensate for unavoidable emissions and thus reduce your individual CO2 footprint.

Of course, offsetting CO2 is not a free pass. In principle, when it comes to climate protection, the following applies: avoid unnecessary emissions and treat yourself and your environment with care.

Sustainability does not mean having to do without

Living sustainably and consuming consciously does not mean having to entrench yourself and give up your well-deserved luxury. There are many ways to do something for the environment and at the same time not have to do without cosmetics, clothing or a cocktail on the beach. For example, numerous cosmetics companies rely on zero-waste products that do not contain packaging waste or environmentally harmful ingredients such as palm oil. Also, more and more companies produce their clothes under fair wages within Europe. We have also decided to compensate our online live sessions and thus reduce our CO2 footprint.

In addition to the possibility of offsetting your CO2, it is worthwhile to think outside the box and inform yourself. Discover alternative opportunities, cool start-ups and support not only the environment, but also diversity. This is not only fun, but a real difference!

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