Our Commitment: Leveraging Remote Work for a Sustainable Future
Our Commitment: maintaining a fully remote workforce to minimize environmental impact on our net zero journey.
The way we work has changed dramatically in recent years, with remote work and reduced business travel becoming the norm for many organizations. While these shifts were initially driven by the need for flexibility and cost savings, they also present a powerful opportunity to make a meaningful impact on the environment.
As the world grapples with the urgent challenges of climate change, businesses have a unique chance to play a pivotal role in reducing their carbon footprints. At HigherEchelon, we embrace remote work and minimize business travel to support reduce resource consumption, and to contribute to a more sustainable future.
The Benefits of Our Commitment
Remote work inherently reduces emissions and resource use, making it a key strategy in achieving any organization’s sustainability goals:
- Reduced Commuting Emissions – By eliminating daily commutes, remote work significantly reduces fuel consumption and vehicle emissions, with transportation accounting for 27% of total greenhouse gas emissions according to the EPA, and a single remote employee saving an average of 3 metric tons of CO2 annually.
- Minimized Office Energy Consumption – Remote work eliminates the significant energy demand of traditional office buildings such as lighting, heating, cooling, and equipment, helping reduce the 28% of global CO2 emissions attributed to commercial buildings, as estimated by the International Energy Agency (IEA).
- Decreased Resource Consumption – Physical office spaces consume water, paper, and other resources. Remote work reduces this usage, promoting resource efficiency and minimizing waste. Fewer office buildings and on-site operations also mean less pressure on local infrastructure. This can contribute to a reduction in the environmental impact from the development and maintenance of urban areas.
- Minimized Travel Emissions – Limiting air travel reduces carbon emissions from flights, which are one of the most energy-intensive modes of transport. For long-haul flights especially, emissions are significant, and cutting back on them can make a huge difference.
- Use of Existing Infrastructure – By taking advantage of computing at scale, storing work in the cloud, and trading in-house servers for pre-existing infrastructure, we further reduce our resource consumption.
The Path Forward
At HigherEchelon, our commitment reflects our belief that every organization has a role to play in protecting the planet. Remote work is not just about flexibility, it is a tangible step toward reducing our carbon footprint. In addition to committing to remote work, we also commit to ongoing employee education regarding how individual employees can make their home offices, and lives, more sustainable. Together, we can lead the charge toward a greener world—where innovation and sustainability work hand in hand.
