89up is today making a commitment to become the world’s first full supply-chain Net Zero communications and PR agency. It comes as scrutiny increases on standards setting bodies for their failure to act on fossil fuel investment.

As part of 89up’s transition to Net Zero, the agency has recently departed from using Barclays for its role in financing fossil fuels. In a process started in early 2023, 89up has now moved both its bank account and reserves to banks that are committing to not financing fossil fuels.

The move from the company’s existing bank and reserve accounts has been estimated to save the equivalent of 98 tonnes of CO2 emissions, equivalent to 420 flights from London to Rome. 

The company has also offset its entire carbon footprint for 2023 using carbon credits provided by its client, agritech startup Mootral, which reduces the methane emissions from cow burps. 

In September 2022, the company moved to its new premises in central London, with a EPC rating of B, reducing the company’s emissions by 5.4 tonnes of CO2 a year. 

Mike Harris, the CEO of 89up said:

“Since the 2015 Paris Agreement, the world’s 60 biggest banks have poured $3.8 trillion into fossil fuels. One of the quickest ways to reduce your carbon footprint is to switch banks and pension providers for your staff. It isn’t good enough that our money is being used as capital reserves for lending by big banks to build coal mines or drill oil wells. Our commitment is to true net zero. By reducing our carbon footprint by over 100 tonnes of CO2 per year since 2022, we’re on a pathway to true Net Zero.” 

89up has also moved our client’s websites on to more efficient cloud computing providers, reducing our server (and energy) intensity by as much as 12x, and moved our servers to locations with a high proportion of renewable energy. The company is working with its pension provider to ensure that the default investment option is improved. 

The company has put in place strong travel policies, and is looking further into supply chain carbon reductions in the coming year. 

Data on bank carbon emissions provided by Mother Tree: https://www.mymothertree.com/bank-league-table

The estimated KG carbon emissions per m2 from our previous office were 54.5. Our new office EPC estimates emissions at 18.7.