Creating a Climate-Neutral Organization

Under the leadership of United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, UN agencies and governments have advanced global efforts to combat climate change. The operations of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) achieved climate neutrality in 2015, five years earlier than the 2020 deadline for UN agencies. To maintain and foster its outstanding progress, UNFPA enlisted a Capstone team to generate a Referenced Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) report that presents a comprehensive look at the organization’s economic, social, and environmental sustainability. The completion of the GRI report involved a stakeholder analysis survey, one-on-one interviews, and an analysis of the organization’s carbon emissions data that was collected from over 140 UNFPA country offices. The GRI report will allow decision-makers within UNFPA to better understand and communicate their accomplishments, both internally and externally, and to identify opportunities to achieve its sustainability goal. Additionally, the report serves as an international, standardized record that further strengthens UNFPA’s commitment to remaining a climate-neutral organization.