A guide to switching to green suppliers

Unless charities have an environmental object – a commitment to the environment in their governing documents – they have no legal responsibility to be green. But reaching net zero to address the climate crisis is a collective, moral responsibility.  

Guidance from the Charity Commission advises that charity boards should consider costs when making decisions about switching to green suppliers. In some cases, making the switch will reduce costs. In others, it will increase them.  

When switching to a green supplier could increase costs, the Commission says trustees should consider the balance between the additional costs against other possible benefits, such as increased donor confidence or appeal to younger audiences.  

What are other non-environmental charities doing? 

Marie Curie has committed to be net zero across all their operations by 2050. Their plan is to reduce their carbon footprint as much as possible and offset any remaining emissions. Some of the changes they have already made include: 

Charities can find out more about Marie Curie’s environmental journey in our podcast, How to create an environmental policy. 

Understanding your organisation’s impact on the environment 

If your charity does decide to become more sustainable, the first step is to understand the organisation’s current environmental impact.  

The most widely used measure for this is the Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHG Protocol), which has several standards. The corporate standard is the most suitable for charities and covers reporting on seven greenhouse gases included in the Kyoto protocol including: 

There are tools, based on the GHG Protocol, that can help calculate your charity’s carbon footprint, such as Persefoni, as well as free options like BEE from the Change Climate Project.  

Once you have a sense of your current emissions status, you can begin reducing it.  

What to look for in a green supplier 

In the charity sector we have an advantage when it comes to green suppliers: colleagues working directly on climate change and the environment have already been through due diligence processes with some suppliers. For example, Friends of the Earth has advice and recommendations on green suppliers to switch to.  

There are also certifications you can look out for when you are considering working with a new supplier, such as ‘B Corp’ or ‘Fair Trade Certified’ that indicate the company has already been assessed on some sustainability standards.  

Work with each area of your organisation to identify when each supplier on their lists could be switched, if needed. This should be based on the terms of their existing contracts and how business-critical each supplier is.  

Set up milestones  

If, like Marie Curie, you are setting a net zero goal several years into the future, consider setting up some milestones along the way. You can use the supplier lists from each team to help make these milestones realistic and achievable. The milestones should give a sense of purpose and momentum to the whole project.  

Where charities can make the switch 

There are organisations that can help charities to make informed decisions about switching to green suppliers, especially when it comes to utilities like energy.  

 Reaching net zero will take active participation from all individuals, organisations, and governments. With a clear goal, a planned approach and supplier assessment using expert sources, it’s possible for charities to play an active role in the sustainability movement.