FAQ

The member lounge provides information on your carbon emission reduction participation. Members can change their account details and view a history of Climakind participation. The member lounge includes charts that compare your Climakind carbon emissions reduction with global averages.

By being Climakind you are participating in the purchase and cancellation of carbon emissions credits. But you are really doing more than that, because the carbon emissions represented by the cancelled carbon credits will never occur. Effectively you are reducing the ‘cap’ in a ‘cap and trade’ scheme. You are helping stop damaging global climate change. In addition, your participation helps drive investment in low-carbon technology – the only way to a sustainable future.

Yes, absolutely. Already we are committed to a substantial rise in temperature as a result of human emissions of carbon dioxide, but we can avoid damaging climate change if we act now. Delays will significantly increase the difficulty and cost. If we do nothing, soon we will no longer have the option of avoiding damaging climate change.

When you join Climakind you choose a level of participation.  The level indicates the number of tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions credits you have cancelled.  The number of tonnes to cancel for each level depends on the membership type.  

For each membership type there are three levels of participation. They make being Climakind simple, accessible and affordable.  They also allow for members efforts to be easily recognised. 

Climakind Bronze is the entry level, Climakind Silver shows a substantial effort and Climakind Gold indicates a significant effort. 

The FAQ "How long does my membership status last?" indicates the number of tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions credits to cancel for each level.

The average personal controllable emissions of carbon dioxide for an individual in the western world are about 12 tonnes per annum. Family emissions are of course greater than for an individual, but some emissions are shared by family members. Consequently we do not simply add up the number of individuals in a household. For families of two adults and up to one child we use 21 tonnes, up to three children 27 tonnes, and four or more children 30 tonnes per annum.

There is not time limitation on your membership. However, there is a time limitation on the membership level. Your membership level is based on the total carbon emissions credits cancelled in the past twelve months.

Climakind has three levels of membership – Bronze, the entry level, Silver and Gold. Each level identifies an increasing commitment to carbon emissions reduction. The number of carbon emissions credits cancelled for a membership level depends on the type of membership – Individual, Family, Business, Government or Community Group. 

For example, an individual member’s current status remains Bronze until the total participation in the past 12 months is equal to six tonnes.  At six tonnes the membership level becomes Silver.  Once the individual member has cancelled a total of 12 tonnes in the past 12 months the level becomes Gold.

The table below shows the minimum participation for each membership type.

* The participation levels for business & government and community groups are not fixed because their annual carbon emissions can vary significantly.  Generally these groups can have a carbon footprint audit which will determine their annual carbon emissions.  Climakind uses the annual carbon emissions as a starting point to calculate the participation levels. 

To keep participation accessible to as many businesses as possible we use the same three levels, Bronze, Silver and Gold but change the number of tonnes in each level based on the following calculation. A Bronze level indicates at least one month of the annual carbon dioxide emissions has been matched by cancelled carbon credits.  A Silver level indicates at least six months of the annual carbon  dioxide emissions have been matched by cancelled carbon credits. A Gold level indicates at least one year of the annual carbon dioxide emissions have been matched by cancelled carbon credits.

Climakind uses this information in aggregate data to show trends. These trends provide a powerful tool to monitor the progress of carbon emissions reduction. As we indicate in the privacy statement we do not disclose details of your membership, other than those you opt to show in the Climakind Who’s Who tables.

No. Climakind Certificates represent a right-to-emit that has been cancelled. The cancelled credit is removed permanently from the market and can never be used for the emissions of carbon dioxide. That is the value of Climakind.

Consumers are the key to business success. Climate change has become a consumer purchase criterion. Many businesses are aware that consumer sentiment has shifted. Independent reports by international accounting firms such as Ernst and Young indicate that consumer demand has increased the importance of sustainability as an business issue (“Top of mind: ready or not, here comes sustainability” Nov-2008). Global corporations like Hewlett Packard have recognised that addressing sustainability can offer a distinct business advantage. "Customers and clients respond favourably, employees see it as an enhancement of the corporate culture."

These reports conclude that addressing sustainability has become increasingly important in recent years. This trend will continue.

The evidence is that a threshold has been reached in consumer awareness. More and more consumers are aware of a business's environmental concerns. Many consumers are sensitive to climate change. McCrindle reported almost 100% of Generation Y (aged 18 to 28), 91% of Generation X (aged 29 to 43), 85% of boomers (aged 44 to 62) and 50% of Builders (ages 63+) believe climate change is real. Roy Morgan research shows 84% of people believe that if we do not act now we will never control our environmental problems. Today’s purchasing decisions include an evaluation of the organisation’s efforts to reduce damaging global climate change. The day may come when, before making a purchase, a customer will ask, "Are you Climakind?"

Climakind has grouped governments and councils with businesses.

TravelMath.com is an excellent link for calculating the distance between cities. If you know the names of the cities you can click on the link below to calculate the distance travelled.

• Flights
• Driving

And don't forget the return trip!

In theory anyone could access the carbon market to buy carbon credits. Though for most people this would be impractical and costly. While the carbon market has similarities to a share market there are major differences, one of which is the accessibility to the public.

Climakind provides the interface for you and minimises costs by purchasing in large volumes.

In addition the Climakind website adds the ability to manage, monitor, compare and promote your emission reduction efforts. That’s even attractive to large organisations!