RALEIGH, N.C. — Carbon neutral is a phrase we hear a lot.

Essentially, it means that the carbon dioxide released into the atmosphere from a company’s activities is balanced by an equal amount being removed from society. This can be done by reducing emissions wherever possible and balancing the remainder of emissions by purchasing carbon offsets, such as investing in renewable energy and reforestation projects. 

What You Need To Know

The United States has pledged to become carbon neutral by the year 2050

The average carbon footprint for a person in the United States is 16 tons

Companies worldwide and many here in Raleigh are making efforts to lower emissions

Many large companies, such as Apple and Amazon have pledged to become carbon neutral. 

The goal of the Paris Agreement is to limit the average global temperature rise to well below 2°C and pursue efforts to limit this increase to 1.5°C by becoming completely carbon neutral as a society by 2050. 

However, according to the U.S. Small Business Association, small businesses generate roughly 50% of Gross Domestic Product in the United States, so many small businesses are also doing their part to limit emissions. 

“I think a lot of other small companies are realizing that they need to go carbon neutral as well if we're going to meet our goal as a country of being carbon neutral by 2040 or 2050,” said Jesse Lipson, founder/CEO of Levitate. 

In just a month's time, Levitate, a software company based out of Raleigh, lowered its company’s carbon footprint from 654 metric tons all the way down to net zero. They did this with the help of Green Places, a Raleigh-based company that helps identify a company’s carbon footprint and sets up a game plan to easily reduce and balance emissions. 

“When we started to talk to people, we found there were a lot who felt that this was the right thing to do for the environment and for their business. The response rate in the Triangle has been really, really good. My hope is that over the next five years we can really establish the Triangle as a center of climate technology and clean tech,” said Alex Lassiter, founder/CEO of Green Places.

Since launching in June 2021, Green Places has already partnered with 40 businesses nationwide — 18 of which are in the Triangle. So far, they’ve offset 7,527 metric tons of carbon, which is the equivalent of taking 1,579 cars off the road. 

Businesses aren’t the only ones with a carbon footprint — individuals have them too. The average carbon footprint for a person in the United States is 16 tons, one of the highest rates in the world. Globally, the average is closer to 4 tons. To calculate your individual carbon footprint click here.