In a sustainability “first,” BCD Travel joins global initiative for climate action

BCD, now the first global TMC to join the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi), has also released its 2021 Sustainability Report.

BCD Travel is the first travel management company to join the Science Based Targets Initiative (SBTi), a campaign to increase corporate participation on climate action in line with the Paris Agreement. BCD supports science-based targets aimed at reducing greenhouse gases and has set a goal to significantly reduce its own CO2 emissions by 2030.

The Paris Agreement is a legally binding international treaty on climate change. Science based targets are goals that are developed to provide a clear plan of action to reduce greenhouse gases. An emissions reduction target is science based if it’s in line with the scale of reductions required to keep global warming below 2 degrees Celsius (35.6° F) from pre-industrial levels.

BCD is also contributing to its clients’ sustainability. SolutionSource®, the company’s proprietary platform, connects clients to leading third-party technology partners, like Climate Neutral Group and ClimatePartner, which provide services to measure and reduce CO2 emissions to achieve climate neutrality, among other benefits. BCD is working with these SolutionSource partners to offset a part of its own internal emissions.

“Climate change and global efforts to fight it will see a renewed focus in 2021. Climate change was identified as a long-term risk decades ago, but global action has not yet met the need to reduce environmental impact,” said Sharon Dirks, Director of Sustainability at BCD Travel. “As a global company, we acknowledge the need to act urgently to reduce the global threat of climate change to ensure a sustainable future in the communities where we live and work.”

Clients are taking note. UCB, one of BCD’s global pharmaceutical clients, launched a carbon maturity level survey, based on their own SBTi targets, to rank its suppliers on their environmental ambitions and strategy. BCD received an A-level rating, the highest score.

“We are very pleased to collaborate with an A-level supplier and congratulate BCD for their great environmental engagement,” said Bals Sébastien, Head of Procurement at UCB. “Together we will limit the impact of our business activities on climate change.”

BCD’s consultancy, Advito, also works with clients to set and track science-based targets. Advito’s proprietary ISO-certified emissions scale, GATE4, assists customers in tracking emissions across air, hotel, rail and car travel to gain a holistic picture of their program’s environmental impact and identify where to make meaningful changes.

BCD’s recently published 2021 Sustainability Report outlines the travel management company’s activities, achievements and progress on its entire sustainability goals including reducing carbon emissions significantly by 2030. As a member of the United Nations Global Compact since 2008, BCD publishes this report annually to illustrate the company’s support of the Global Compact’s 10 principles and Sustainable Development Goals.

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