A new benchmarking study released by the GBTA Foundation highlights the best practices and insights from leading companies to decarbonize their travel programs. The report “Managing Emissions From Business Travel Programs: Overview of Corporate Best Practices” provides a valuable snapshot of purpose-driven companies addressing and mitigating their business travel emissions.

As companies strive to reduce their carbon footprint, the report examines which measures are most effective in reducing the climate impact of Scope 3 emissions from business travel and critical considerations for implementation and success. It provides a toolbox of action areas to efficiently reduce emissions while aligning with organizational budgets, available time, company culture, and other factors.

Developing a sustainable travel program involves a combination of measures at different levels and working with various stakeholders. The report outlines measures across four critical categories: travel decisions, emissions tracking, supplier engagement, and decarbonization.

Lowering the impact of business travel on the environment is an iterative process. The report identifies commonalities among interviewees, emphasizing the integral elements necessary to reduce emissions from business travel effectively. These include evaluating needs and return on investment before drawing from the toolbox, making a demand signal, striving to improve emissions data, combining quick wins with longer-term investments, and recognizing that sustainability is a shared effort.

The report’s benchmarking methodology consisted of interviews with a dozen sustainability leaders from global companies that rely on business travel to conduct their business successfully. Participants included the GBTA Foundation’s Sustainability Corporate Advisory Board members, collaborating with the GBTA Sustainability Leadership Council.

The report was released during Earth Month, emphasizing the importance of reducing corporate travel’s environmental impact. The GBTA Foundation will launch a new global “State of Climate Action” study in June 2023, following last year’s “State of Sustainability in Global Business Travel Study.” This report aims to measure the adoption of best practices for reducing Scope 3 emissions across the entire business travel community.

Corporate travel managers are uniquely placed to enable their companies to effectively reduce emissions from business travel because they understand the mechanisms better than anyone. The new report, which includes the collective insights of GBTA’s Corporate Advisory Board members, will support business travel professionals in their climate journey.

In conclusion, managing the climate impact of business travel requires a collective effort between corporate travel managers, procurement, sustainability, and employee travellers. Companies must recognize that sustainability is a shared effort and strive to implement measures across various categories to reduce emissions while aligning with their organizational goals efficiently.

Read the full benchmark report from the GBTA Foundation to gain insights into corporate best practices for managing business travel’s climate impact. Also, check out the GBTA Foundation’s Sustainability Toolkit to guide, inform, and empower corporate travel managers in reducing the climate impact of business travel in their organization.

Written by: Matthew Thomas

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