When you start calculating your individual carbon footprint, one question often comes up: should business travel be included in the total? Deliveries, travel to client meetings, seminars hundreds of kilometres away, field assignments... Should all these trips be included in the emissions reported when using a calculator such as Our Climate Actions? Here is what you need to know to accurately report your travel in the tool.
Are business trips included in your individual carbon footprint?
The answer is clear: **no, business travel should not be included **in the assessment of your individual carbon footprint on Nos Gestes Climat. In other words, travel related to your salaried or self-employed activity (e.g. delivering to a customer, attending a team meeting or participating in a professional seminar) is not included in the calculation of your personal carbon footprint.
Why is this excluded?
The emissions generated by these journeys are the responsibility of your company, association or local authority. These are collective emissions, directly linked to the functioning of an organisation and not to your personal choices. In many cases, you do not choose the destination or mode of transport—it is dictated by your professional activity. These journeys are therefore part of **the organisation's carbon footprint, **which is taken into account in professional or institutional carbon assessments, and are managed, measured and optimised at this level.
Why indicate commuting?
Unlike strictly professional travel, **commuting **is included in Nos Gestes Climat. Why the difference? Because, even though it is related to your profession, the type of transport used depends largely on your individual choice.
Whether you walk, cycle, drive, carpool or take public transport to work every day, each option has a very different carbon impact. In addition, your choice of where to live can also influence the distance you travel. If you live far from your workplace for personal reasons (property prices, preference for a certain lifestyle, etc.), this will affect your individual impact.
However, many people have no choice but to use a car, particularly in rural or suburban areas where public transport and teleworking options are limited, or when working hours are irregular.
A calculation that reflects the reality of your travel
The Nos Gestes Climat tool aims to provide a **personalised and realistic **assessment of your carbon footprint. That is why it distinguishes between emissions that you can influence as an individual (meals, housing, leisure activities and commuting) and those that depend on a structural or collective organisation, such as business travel or the use of public services.
Mobility constraints are not the same for everyone!
Living far from the city centre, working in a sector or profession that requires a lot of travel, not having a reliable alternative to the car... all of these factors limit the possibilities for reducing your impact, even if society must collectively address this challenge (development of public transport, support for teleworking, improvement of carpooling, etc.).
The calculator aims to shed light on your room for manoeuvre, to show where change is possible and where collective action would be necessary.
Examples of specific situations
- **Are you a sales representative who travels by car to visit your customers? **These kilometres should not be added to your individual carbon footprint, but will be taken into account in your company's environmental assessment.
- **Do you fly once a year to attend a professional conference? **Do not include this flight in Our Climate Actions: it is up to your employer to include it in their own assessment.
- **Do you travel 15 km to work every morning and have no choice but to drive? **These kilometres should be included in your assessment to reflect your daily reality.
A few tips: - Only enter your regular journeys between your home and your place of work (not occasional trips).
- If you have several activities or workplaces, estimate the average distance travelled over a week.
Individual vs collective carbon footprint
**Distinguish between what depends on you... and what depends on the collective. **The individual carbon footprint, as calculated by Nos Gestes Climat, aims to help each citizen understand and act on their own levers. But it does not ignore the importance of the collective dimension and the responsibilities of **organisations **(employers, local authorities, politicians). Adding business travel to each employee's footprint would create a risk of double counting and would not reflect the reality of individual opportunities for action.
Conclusion
In summary, **do not enter your business travel **in Nos Gestes Climat: it is the responsibility of your company or organisation. **Only commutes (round trips) are taken into account, **as they are partly a matter of personal choice, even if these choices are often constrained by the context and mobility infrastructure. The aim is to enable you to identify the levers for action over which you have real influence, rather than making you responsible for emissions over which you have little control.
To find out more:
https://www.ge.ch/document/plan-actions-2025-2030-du-plan-climat-cantonal-2030
https://www.geneve.ch/themes/durabilite/climat/agir/deplacements-quotidiens#:~:text=Emissions de GES dues au déplacements de,de GES liées à la mobilité terrestre.