United Nations Office of Project Services (UNOPS)
www.unops.org
HQ: Copenhagen, Denmark
Number of staff: approx. 2,548
Number of locations: 25 (5 regional offices)
Key figures
Total emissions: 11,054 tonnes CO2 equivalent
Emissions per staff member: 4.3 tonnes CO2 equivalent
Emissions from air travel: 4,565 tonnes CO2 equivalent
Air travel as a proportion of total emissions: 41%
Air travel per staff member: 1.8 tonnes CO2
Building-related emissions: 76 kg CO2 equivalent per square metre
“UNOPS is determined to do its share in the fight against climate change, and demonstrate that it is possible to operate a business model which is respectful of the delicate balance of our planet’s climate system.”
Jan Mattsson, Executive Director (UNOPS)
Executive Director's Message
UNOPS is determined to do its share in the fight against climate change, and demonstrate that it is possible to operate a business model which is respectful of the delicate balance of our planet’s climate system.
UNOPS is a decentralized organization with diverse field locations around the world. Yet we are eager to take up the challenge of climate neutrality and lead by example to show the world that an economic and social model based on sustainable consumption and production is not only a possibility but a necessity.
We continuously strive to improve our environmental management, become more sustainable and reduce emissions in all our activities and operations.
Jan Mattsson
Mission
UNOPS mission is to expand the capacity of the UN system and its partners to implement peacebuilding, humanitarian and development operations that matter for people in need. Our partners range from UN organisations, international financial institutions to governments, non-governmental organisations and intergovernmental organisations and our services include project management, procurement, human resources management and financial management. Working in some of the world’s most challenging environments UNOPS vision is to always satisfy partners with management services that meet world-class standards of quality, speed and cost effectiveness.
Experience so far
UNOPS has taken a pragmatic approach to its environmental impacts and is approaching emission reduction at a range of levels:
• An Emission Reduction Strategy setting out general principles for the organization has been drafted and is currently undergoing an internal review process.
• A network of environmental focal points has been created around the world to measure our progress using the greenhouse gas emission inventory.
UNOPS is also conducting a number of ad hoc projects on different aspects of sustainability, such as sustainable procurement capacity building, green transport, cleaner energy and sustainable buildings.
Reduction efforts
UNOPS is focusing on sustainable procurement and green infrastructure as catalysts of emission reductions. Some examples of specific activities include:
• incorporating significant environmental aspects when planning the UN City in Copenhagen and the UN Regional Hub in Panama
• providing training on sustainable procurement to staff
• adding environmental considerations to the UNWebbuy catalogue
• adopting a Flexible Working Policy, which aims at improving the work-life balance of staff and at generating positive effects in terms of environmental sustainability, such as reducing emissions from commuting
Duty stations are being encouraged to undertake initiatives to improve their sustainability profile, even before the formal adoption of emission reduction plans. An example of this is the recycling programme put in place by the UNOPS office in Peru, in cooperation with local NGOs. Another example is the upcoming waste management policy for the organization, currently under development.
Offsetting
UNOPS intends to concentrate on the improvement of its data quality and coverage before initiating an offsetting programme. Details and methodologies for the eventual offsetting of emissions will be those collectively agreed with other agencies within the Environmental Management Group.
Emission reductions will be pursued to the maximum possible extent, before considering the option of offsetting the remaining emissions.
Next steps
UNOPS greenhouse gas inventory 2009 indicates a composite picture, where duty stations are at different levels of the mapping/inventory/reduction cycle.
Considering UNOPS decentralised structure, the different level of maturity of duty stations has to be taken into account. Our climate neutrality programme will now devote attention to bringing all duty stations to a harmonized level. Three priorities have been identified:
• an initial focus on identifying duty stations that so far have not participated in the inventory and involving them in the process
• a second activity will focus on focal point training and data quality improvement
• the last activity will be the development of reduction plans for individual offices which have already completed their first inventory, within the general framework of UNOPS Emission Reduction Strategy
