Reducing

Carbon Footprint

Global Warming

The earth’s climate is changing rapidly and these changes will have a direct impact on our environment and everyday life. By some predictions, our planet’s temperature will rise considerably this century, depending on the level of CO₂ emissions during the next decades. Most conservative estimates predict that if emissions remain constant, the world’s average temperature will increase by about 2-5°C in 2050 and by 5-10°C by the end of the century.

Among other gases (see illustrating graph), CO₂ is mostly responsible for global warming; it traps the sun’s heat and keeps the earth warm, but too much of it in the air leads to melting poles and rising sea levels, causing natural disasters from floods and hurricanes to heat waves and droughts.

Humans release CO₂ from activities like combustion of fossil fuels in cars, factories and electricity production. Other contributors include methane released from landfills and agriculture (especially from the digestive systems of grazing animals), nitrous oxide from fertilizers, gases used for refrigeration and industrial processes, and the loss of forests that would otherwise store CO₂.

Egypt and Global Warming

Of all countries of the Arab world, Egypt may be the most vulnerable to global warming; the rising sea level threatens to flood large swaths of the Nile Delta, undermining Egypt’s food security and threatening the livelihoods of millions of agricultural workers.

Financial institutions have a significant role

Providing capital for projects that create job opportunities, banks are the backbone of the economy. They affect not only spending by individual consumers, but also the creation and growth of entirely new industries.

As climate change, water scarcity and other pressing issues take stronger hold, the financial services sector play a vital role in creating a sustainable economy and dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions — that’s besides taking the initiative to reduce energy and water consumption by their offices.

Governments are developing initiatives to reduce the emission of greenhouse gases through national policies such as emissions trading programs; carbon or energy taxes; regulations and standards on energy efficiency and emissions, and due to changing economic and regulatory environments, more companies will adopt corporate strategies that include sustainability at the core.

Today, global warming and climate change are an integral part of any sustainable business development strategy. It is therefore crucial for companies to be able to identify, analyze and understand their CO₂ emissions in order to develop a sustainable risk management strategy. Only then can they succeed in a competitive business environment on the long run.

AAIB responds to nature’s call for action

Carbon Footprint

"You cannot manage what you cannot measure"

We can only control what we can measure, and being conscious of our carbon emissions is the first step towards a lower carbon economy. A carbon footprint is a measurement tool of Carbon Dioxide (CO₂) emissions and measuring it helps us understand our impact on the environment and hence reduce our impact on it.

AAIB’s Carbon Footprint Report 

In light of our ongoing commitment to corporate social responsibility, we calculated out carbon footprint within the Egyptian financial sector in 2013. This has helped us determine our ecological impact and helped us set a benchmark year where emission reduction measures/targets are set. To check the full report, please click here

Report findings