Carbon offsets can help you to make your business greener, making you a more desirable choice for many consumers and other business owners who are environmentally sensitive. Carbon offsets information is not that difficult to find and implement. There are more and more options made available to companies for offsetting the energy they use. Find carbon offsets in unlikely places with a little information and imagination.

You can use the carbon offsets information that your company is gathering to influence your marketing campaigns and send a message to your customers, employees and shareholders that you are an environmentally responsible company, doing all you can to lead the green campaigns that are becoming more and more ubiquitous in society today. Use carbon offsets information in a variety of situations.

1. Calculate your carbon footprint to initiate carbon offsets

2. Hire a carbon offsets provider

3. Purchase carbon offsets

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Measure your energy use to facilitate a carbon offsets list

Before you can offset the amount of energy that your company uses, you first need to measure your carbon footprint. There are computer programs and a plethora of avenues that you can take to begin this process. As you begin to gather the information, you'll have a clearer view of how much you need to change, what you can do internally and what is left over that you can go outside for offset options.

I recommend: Find an online calculator to measure your carbon footprint at Climate Care. Carbon Footprint is a carbon offsets provider that has an online calculator you can use before deciding how much of your energy use you want to offset.

Use a consultant to learn how to integrate carbon offsets information

There is so much carbon foot printing information out there that it could be prudent for your company to bring in an expert to filter through all the news and research that continues to emerge. There also are a slew of companies forming that claim to sell carbon offsets. You should use someone who knows the environmental landscape to help you sort through the experts and frauds.

I recommend: Climate Positive can come in a measure your energy use and recommend ways to offset your use. Carbon Passport sells carbon offsets after they come and provide the numbers that you need to know where your company stand in the environmental community.

Find carbon offsets through an online program

There are more and more avenues coming out all the time to give your business opportunities to offset your energy usage. You can do anything from sending a company money to plant trees, join a larger fund that supports clean energy research or send money directly to a recycling company.

I recommend: 3 Degrees offers businesses a variety of options where they can support environmentally enhanced projects to offset their carbon footprints. Carbon Fund is a nonprofit organization that provides businesses opportunities to join others in purchasing carbon offsets.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Research the carbon offsets provider you plan on using and ask for referrals. This is a very big arena open to fraud since the concept is so new.