Says Phillip Perkins, CEO at Itec SA, “There is no doubt that South African businesses can no longer dig their heads in the sand about the impact of organisations, products and services on the environment. In fact, we are already seeing a shift in many industries such as construction, retail, motoring and the like however, in our industry there has not been as much focus, and so we are proud to be able to offer our clients this type of solution without affecting their digital expenditure.”
Furthermore, the South African government has committed to carbon reduction targets of 34%, from 2010 levels by 2020, indicating a real need for businesses to step up to the plate and provide tangible working solutions to reduce carbon emissions and practice responsible business – this is even more important for the producers, manufacturers and providers that are at the source of carbon emissions output.
“For Itec, this is a no brainer and we are committed to reducing not only our own, but very importantly, our customers’ carbon emissions,” adds Gavin Meyer, executive director at Itec SA.
“Just think about the impact of such a move; based on last year’s figures, we offset 594 977kgs of CO2-e – which is the equivalent amount of carbon that would be sequestered by over 15,000 tree seedlings grown for 10 years. And this represents only a portion of our customers, where going forward our full customer base, as well as future customers, will all make use of this benefit,” states Perkins.
Supported by environmental agency, impactChoice, Itec SA’s carbon offset will be audited each year to ensure validity of the initiative so that customers can be assured that their solution is in fact 100% carbon neutral. To this end, Itec SA will be awarded a certificate that will indicate the carbon offsets purchase.
Says Peter Newell, general manager at impactChoice: “Having worked with Itec SA on their Carbon Neutral programme for the past six years, we are proud to see the organisation taking an even larger leap towards environmental sustainability and are glad that we get to be part of this fundamental business journey.”
“Today, to succeed in business, it is all about demonstrating not only new products and solutions but also about being a role player in critical issues that face the country and the globe. We believe that the Carbon Neutral initiative demonstrates just this; our commitment to our customers and the larger environment in which we all operate,” concludes Perkins.
