Foreign Ministry launches Carbon Footprint Measurement Program

Monday, August 8, 2011

This morning, Deputy Foreign Minister Fernando Schmidt led the launching ceremony of the Program for the Measurement and Verification Carbon Footprint of the Foreign Ministry, accompanied by the President of the United Nations General Assembly, Joseph Deiss.

Through a study commissioned to Fundación Chile, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will be able to estimate the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) produced in 2010 in several of its premises.

With regard to this initiative, Undersecretary Schmidt said: “We are reaffirming our deepest commitment to environmental care and we are giving an account of our international responsibilities as Ministry of Foreign Affairs.”

He then added, “Nowadays, green diplomacy is synonymous with modern diplomacy and carbon footprint represents a new standard that is already becoming requested in various areas, such as our exports.”

The President of the United Nations General Assembly, Joseph Deiss, highlighted this initiative noting that “the Carbon Footprint Measurement Program is a great example of Chile’s green diplomacy, of its intention to move towards a green economy and it is also an example of Chile’s firm determination as one of the countries contributing to the reduction of 0.2 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions, actively participating in the global response to climate change. “

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The places chosen to implement this project are:

• Carrera Building, headquarters of the Foreign Ministry
• September Palace , where the Andrés Bello Diplomatic Academy  is located
• Mission of Chile to the United Nations (UN)
• Mission of Chile to the European Union (EU)
• Embassy of Chile  in Brazil
• Embassy  of Chile  in China
• Consulate General of Chile in San Francisco

Several criteria were taken into account for the election of these diplomatic missions such as the geographic location, specific gravity, relative size and in the case of the Consulate General in San Francisco, its connection with the Chile -California Plan.

Through this study, the Foreign Ministry seeks to progressively incorporate in its operations the reduction and offsetting of its greenhouse gas emissions, reflecting the State priority in combating climate change.

So far, only the Ministry for the Environment had measured its carbon footprint in its facilities, making the Foreign Ministry not only one of the pioneers of this initiative in the public sector, but also among Foreign Ministries around the world.

The program, which was put out to tender in the “public market” by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, was awarded to Fundación Chile in $ 9 million. Moreover, according to the terms of the tendering procedure, Fundación Chile will provide 10 hours of training and dissemination to foreign ministry officials and advises us in measuring the carbon footprint of 2011.

Undersecretary Schmidt said that global warming has unforeseen consequences for the sustainability of human life. Therefore, climate change also implies a change in behavior; a major change in the way we conduct our everyday activities. Measuring the carbon footprint aims at these practical goals: raising awareness on how our current behavior damages the environment and finding the solutions within our reach to help, in a concrete way, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.