Work and Travel USA is officially
certified as a Low CO2 organisation.
This
means that we undergo regular carbon audits by the Carbon
Reduction Institute (CRI) in order to understand how
much CO2 emission we are producing. This allows us to investigate
opportunities to cut down on these emissions through more
efficient energy practices and staff education. We also
purchase carbon credits to help offset our emissions based
on the results of the audits.
In each of the programs that Work
and Travel USA offers the largest
producers of CO2 emissions are the
international flights to and from your destination.
As airfares are not included in our
program fees, we are happy to give
you the opportunity to offset the
greenhouse emissions from your flights
via the CRI’s
Carbon Offset Calculator. Offsetting
will make your program 100% carbon
neutral. The calculator will also
give you the option of offsetting
a variety of other activities which
you may be involved in. To visit
the Carbon Offset Calculator simply
click on the image to the right.
What We are Committed
to Doing
Work and Travel USA is committed to reducing
our carbon footprint to help contribute to a more sustainable
future. We do this by:
Using recycled materials for any hard
copy materials we use (eg posters, flyers, application
forms etc) within reasonable cost boundaries.
Offsetting our staff travel costs when
travelling interstate or overseas on business.
Offsetting all emissions from our business
activities and operations.
Conserving resources through the careful
management of water, energy, and paper consumption in
our office.
Ensuring that employees incorporate environmentally
friendly initiatives wherever possible in their daily
business activities, and encouraging them to continue
to do so in their personal lives.
Encouraging participants to carbon offset
their international flights.
Encouraging program participants to apply
environmentally friendly behaviour wherever possible.
For a range of other ideas which you could try and implement
in your household visit the Carbon Reduction Institute’s
page for individuals
and families.
Climate change is one of the greatest economic, social, and
environmental challenges of our time. Expert scientific evidence
confirms that human activity is altering the climate. This is
changing rainfall patterns, reducing water availability in Australia
and increasing the frequency of severe weather events such as
bushfires and storms. 1
Globally, 11 of the last 12 years have been among the 12
warmest in the history of global surface temperature records.
In Australia, the average maximum temperature rose 0.8ºC
from 1910 to 2004, with most of this rise occurring since 1950.
The UN's Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) attributes most of this temperature
rise to human activities that release carbon dioxide and other
greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. 2
Temperature increases in New Zealand have followed a similar
pattern to Australia. Average temperatures in New
Zealand are projected to increase about 1°C by around 2040
and about 2.1°C by
around 2090. 3
Why
Should We Act on Climate Change?
For too long we have poured greenhouse pollution into the
atmosphere and we are continuing to do so at an alarming rate.
Science tells us that this pollution is causing climate change.
We are already starting to feel the effects of this pollution.
And projections show that if we don't act, it will only get worse
with changing temperatures and rainfall patterns, more droughts,
floods, water shortages, rising sea levels and extreme weather.
Australia - already the driest inhabited continent on Earth
- is particularly vulnerable to climate change. The longer we
wait to act on climate change, the more it will cost and the worse
its effects will be. 4
Australians are the highest per-capita greenhouse gas polluters
in the developed world. This is due to the fact that we generate
electricity largely by burning high-emission coal and we use energy
inefficiently.
Australia's total emissions are similar in magnitude to
those of the United Kingdom and France, yet those countries have
much larger populations. 5
In New Zealand likely climate change impacts include:
higher
temperatures, more in the North Island than the
South, (but still likely to be less than the global average)
rising sea
levels
more frequent extreme weather events such as droughts
(especially in the east of New Zealand) and floods
a change
in rainfall patterns - higher rainfall in the west
and less in the east.6
So, everyone should do what they can to help support
an ecologically sustainable future and minimise the impacts of global
warming.
Links for More Information on Climate Change:
If you’d like to read through some more information
on Climate Change and Global Warming you may find the following
sites to be a good start.
