Reducing Carbon Footprint: Northern Trust’s Path to Net Zero and Sustainability Initiatives
Northern Trust is actively working to minimize its operational carbon footprint. We have committed to reducing our greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 50% across Scope 1, 2, and partial Scope 3 by 2030, using 2019 as the baseline, with the goal of achieving Net Zero carbon emissions by 2050.
This reduction plan encompasses all Scope 1 emissions from sources under Northern Trust's control, as well as all Scope 2 emissions. For Scope 3, our current reporting focuses on emissions from purchased goods and services, fuel and energy, waste from operations, business travel, and employee commuting. In line with our commitment to the Science Based Targets Initiative's Sectoral Decarbonization Approach, we execute various energy efficiency projects each year to lower our energy use.
In 2023, we completed four LED lighting projects—three in EMEA and one in the U.S.—resulting in a reduction of about 60 tons of carbon emissions. These initiatives helped us lower energy consumption per full-time employee (FTE) by 27% and reduce absolute emissions by 3.4% compared to our 2019 baseline.
Additionally, we continue to support the development of carbon removal technologies through partnerships with organizations like Climate Vault. These efforts leverage carbon allowances to fund carbon removal initiatives through a bi-annual grant process.
We are also implementing Environmental and Energy Management Systems (EMS) at key locations to drive ongoing operational improvements. Each property has set annual energy reduction goals through low- or no-cost initiatives.
While more employees are returning to the office, business travel remains below pre-pandemic levels. Furthermore, emissions from remote work in 2023 were lower than during the pandemic years. We are also working to eliminate single-use plastics from our offices by conducting audits and systematically reducing plastic usage, while improving recycling and reducing waste across the business.
This reduction plan encompasses all Scope 1 emissions from sources under Northern Trust's control, as well as all Scope 2 emissions. For Scope 3, our current reporting focuses on emissions from purchased goods and services, fuel and energy, waste from operations, business travel, and employee commuting. In line with our commitment to the Science Based Targets Initiative's Sectoral Decarbonization Approach, we execute various energy efficiency projects each year to lower our energy use.
In 2023, we completed four LED lighting projects—three in EMEA and one in the U.S.—resulting in a reduction of about 60 tons of carbon emissions. These initiatives helped us lower energy consumption per full-time employee (FTE) by 27% and reduce absolute emissions by 3.4% compared to our 2019 baseline.
Additionally, we continue to support the development of carbon removal technologies through partnerships with organizations like Climate Vault. These efforts leverage carbon allowances to fund carbon removal initiatives through a bi-annual grant process.
We are also implementing Environmental and Energy Management Systems (EMS) at key locations to drive ongoing operational improvements. Each property has set annual energy reduction goals through low- or no-cost initiatives.
While more employees are returning to the office, business travel remains below pre-pandemic levels. Furthermore, emissions from remote work in 2023 were lower than during the pandemic years. We are also working to eliminate single-use plastics from our offices by conducting audits and systematically reducing plastic usage, while improving recycling and reducing waste across the business.
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