Carbon reduction plan

Overview of the organisation

Name: Society for the Study of Addiction

Employees: Seven full-time members of staff and one part-time (0.6 FTE) member of staff

Offices: No offices, all staff work remotely

Website: 6,500 page views/month

Events: Two annual, in-person conferences

Total emissions by scope

There are three scopes identified within the Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Protocol’s standard framework, which help organisations understand where their emissions come from and how they can reduce them.

Scope 1 covers direct greenhouse gas emissions that occur from sources that are controlled or owned by the organisation. At baseline* (the year 2024), scope 1 emissions were 0 kg CO₂e. Staff work from home, and the organisation doesn’t own any vehicles, doesn’t burn fuel on-site, and is not responsible for refrigerant systems.

Scope 2 includes indirect greenhouse gas emissions associated with the purchase of electricity, steam, heat, and cooling by the organisation. At baseline, scope 2 emissions were 0 kg CO₂e. The organisation doesn’t own or lease a building and doesn’t pay for electricity, steam, heat, or cooling.

Scope 3 describes all sources not within scope 1 or scope 2. At baseline, scope 3 emissions were 150,369 kg CO₂e. Sources include homeworking, venue hire, travel for meetings and events, contracted professional services, digital and cloud-based services, and journal publishing.

*Baseline emissions are a record of the greenhouse gases that were produced prior to the introduction of any strategies to reduce emissions. Baseline emissions are the reference point against which reductions can be measured.

Commitment

The Society for the Study of Addiction (‘the Society’) is committed to reducing its environmental impact while continuing to pursue its mission to advance the scientific understanding of addictive products and behaviours and the use of this knowledge in policy and practice.

The Society has developed a plan to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2040, in line with the UK Government’s target of becoming net zero by 2050.

Emission reduction targets

Planned reduction measures

The Society has a small team of staff, who all work from home, so emissions related to the day-to-day running of the organisation are relatively low (~3% of total emissions). The Society’s primary contributor to its greenhouse gas emissions is travel and events (~90% of total emissions).

In the next year, the Society will focus on improving the accuracy of estimates of emissions, and reviewing its policies around travel and events. Thereafter, the Society will implement policy changes that will reduce the environmental impact of its work.

Measures to reduce emissions will include:

• Exploring alternatives to travelling scholarships
• Reducing the need for travel (e.g. through investigating the feasibility of hybrid events, and encouraging online meetings)
• Choosing meeting/conference venues with strong sustainability credentials
• Investigating the feasibility of plant-based meals at events
• Working with contracted professional services to better understand and reduce their emissions
• Undertaking training in sustainability (e.g. sustainable marketing)
• Appointing a Sustainability Officer

Declaration and sign off

This carbon reduction plan has been completed in accordance with PPN 06/21 and associated guidance and reporting standard for carbon reduction plans. It has also been reviewed and approved by the Board of Trustees/Directors and Chief Executive Officer.

Signed: Professor Owen Bowden-Jones (President)

Signed: Dr Rob Calder (Chief Executive Officer)

Date: 5 June 2025

Additional information

The following shows a breakdown of scope 3 emissions by source for the year 2024: