Our path to climate neutrality

OUR PATH TO CLIMATE NEUTRALITY

OUR PATH TO CLIMATE NEUTRALITY

Extreme weather events, rising sea levels, ocean acidification, and declining biodiversity are alarming consequences of rapidly changing climate conditions. Climate change affects the entire world, affecting every one of us. This is why we must do everything possible to achieve climate neutrality by the mid-21st century and limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. This threshold, identified as safe by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, was adopted as a binding target by 195 countries in the Paris Climate Agreement.

The path to climate neutrality is straightforward: "Reduce & Compensate." We are actively taking responsibility as part of this global effort.

1. We minimize our company's CO2 emissions to the greatest extent possible.

Building on the construction and infrastructure initiatives already in place to reduce the CO2 footprint at our Gersthofen site, we are committed to long-term efforts to further decrease the carbon impact of our products. By increasing the use of recycled and bluesign® certified materials, alongside adopting sustainable technologies with a lower CO2 footprint, we are making significant strides. According to ECOS, extending product life cycles alone contributes 10% to footprint reduction, resulting in an 8% decrease in CO2 emissions, a 10% reduction in water usage, and a 9% reduction in waste—all while lowering resource consumption costs by 9%.

However, even with the greatest efforts, we cannot get a product to be climate neutral. That's why we offset selected products and our company site in cooperation with ClimatePartner.

2. We offset any remaining CO2 emissions that we are unable to further reduce.

When recording and calculating the remaining CO₂ emissions - the so-called CO₂ footprint - emissions from energy procurement as well as energy and fuel consumption are taken into account. In addition, emissions from upstream supply chains are recorded in order to be able to make complete product lines and production sites CO₂ -neutral. To this end, we work together with the experts at ClimatePartner. They identify and develop offset projects worldwide. For our current climate-neutral products, we have chosen three social and climate protection projects.

OUR CLIMATE PARTNER PRODUCTs

Women's fit Recycled

AC Lite 14 SL

4 Color variants

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Recycled

AC Lite 16

4 Color variants

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Women's fit

Traick 5 SL

2 Color variants

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Traick 5

2 Color variants

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New Recycled

Forest Fox 14

4 Color variants

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Kikki

6 Color variants

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New color

Updays 20

3 Color variants

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Women's fit New color

Updays 24 SL

3 Color variants

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OUR SELECTED OFFSET PROJECTS

wind energy in Piauí und Pernambuco, Brazil

Fourteen wind farms with 156 turbines are boosting Brazil's renewable, emission-free energy supply and enhancing both national and regional energy security. With a total capacity of 358.8 MW, the project prevents approximately 652,150 tons of CO2 emissions annually compared to fossil fuel-based electricity generation. Additionally, it creates jobs, improves local infrastructure, and provides access to education.

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coal exhaust with Biomass in Soacha, colombia

Biomass, like branches, sawdust, and coconut shells, can fuel modern, energy-efficient kilns, reducing harmful smoke and CO2 emissions during brick production. In the rapidly growing Bogotá region, this approach saves approximately 18,470 tons of CO2 annually, creates jobs, and sets a positive example for other brick factories in Colombia to follow.

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clean drinking water in Manica, Sofala & Tete, Mozambique

Two billion people lack access to drinking water, leading to deforestation and high CO2 emissions as water is boiled over open fires. The drinking water project aims to address this by providing clean water through chemical or mechanical treatment and well construction, benefiting 102,000 people, saving 180,000 tons of CO2, and preventing diseases.

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expansion of renewable energy in Asia

The demand for renewable energy is rising across Asia, driving climate protection projects that provide essential resources for expanding sustainable technologies. This portfolio supports initiatives in several Asian countries, including:

Wind energy projects in India, China, Indonesia, and Turkey
Solar energy projects in India and China
Hydropower projects in Turkey and Sri Lanka
Biogas and biomass projects in India, China, and Thailand

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Race to Zero: to protect what we love

Climate science findings show that the Paris Agreement target of limiting global warming to 1.5°C can only be achieved if carbon dioxide emissions are stopped and ‘zeroed’, since reduction alone is not enough. ‘Zero’ in this context means that all emissions released into the atmosphere by human activities need to be offset by removing or sequestering an equivalent amount of carbon dioxide or other greenhouse gases. This needs to happen globally and as soon as possible, but at the latest by the middle of the century.

Businesses, countries, regions and cities are being called upon to set ambitious net-zero targets and make faster progress than planned. Net zero means reaching a point where activities throughout the value chain do not have a net effect on the climate resulting from greenhouse gases. It’s a huge challenge, yet one that cannot - and must not - be tackled alone.

The ‘Race to Zero’ global campaign, backed by the United Nations, is the largest coalition of non-state actors to date, including companies, cities, regions and financial and educational institutions. Over 14,000 members are committed to take rigorous and immediate action to halve emissions by 2030 and achieve net zero by 2050 at the latest.

We too have committed ourselves to this important initiative and have set ambitious targets in our climate strategy based on the Science Based Target Initiative: By 2030, directly attributable emissions, such as those from the company fleet and company infrastructure, as well as any indirect CO2 emissions, such as those from purchased goods and services, upstream and downstream logistics, fuel and energy or waste disposal, are to be reduced by 42% compared to the base year of 2022. By 2050 we are also aiming to cut CO2 emissions by at least 90 % compared to the base year of 2022 and achieve net-zero emissions status.

This involves company-wide commitment, dedicated teams, ambitious plans, proper implementation of measures as well as regular checks and flexible adjustments to achieve our targets. Joining the SME ClimateHub is further evidence of how seriously we are committed. As part of this, we have publicly announced our participation in the Race to Zero campaign and are publishing reports on our targets.

By taking action and implementing targeted measures to protect the climate, we can help to create a more sustainable and fairer future for everyone. Because we want to protect what we love – both for us and for future generations to enjoy.