Icebug Becomes First Climate Positive Outdoor Footwear Brand
“The climate crisis can’t wait for us to become perfect. We need to act now” - Icebug CEO David Ekelund.
Icebug, the Swedish outdoor footwear company, has been manufacturing footwear to tackle slippery conditions since 2001. From their start as a company, Icebug has incorporated sustainability and eco-consciousness into their business practices. This past year, Icebug committed to – and succeeded at – implementing the United Nations Climate Neutral Now initiative, making Icebug the first climate positive outdoor footwear brand.
This initiative involves emission reduction through companies committing to three steps: 1. Measuring greenhouse gas emissions, 2. Reducing emissions as much as possible, and 3. Compensating emissions that can’t be avoided by using UN certified emission reductions (CERs).
Although Icebug has been working on reducing their emissions for several years, they sped up their process and officially became climate positive at the end of February 2019. “When we made the decision, we plunged into the unknown. We didn’t know if it would cost 20 cents or 20 euros per shoe, but we felt we had to take action. Our prior actions towards emission reduction certainly helped speed up the process, but we want other companies to know that becoming climate positive was easier than we thought,” says David Ekelund, CEO of Icebug.
Icebug’s biggest challenge was measuring production emissions. Since there is no simple process to measure emissions, Icebug purchased 30 percent more CERs than necessary to account for the margin of error.
“Climate action is urgent and requires everyone in society to participate. We are glad to see Icebug take a leadership position in pushing the climate agenda within its operations, and by supporting emission reduction projects globally. Through such actions, reduction at home and support for others to reduce further, we can accelerate the movement towards the Paris Agreement goal of a climate neutral global society,” said Niclas Svenningsen, Manager, Global Climate Action, UN Climate Change.
Currently, Icebug is the only climate positive footwear brand in the world. Icebug CEO David Ekelund now challenges his colleagues and competitors:
“As a society, we still have a lot of work left to do to reduce emissions. Simply offsetting is not a free card to continue business as usual. We want the maximum effect, and that can only be achieved if others follow suit,” Ekelund stated. “Now it’s time for companies to step up and take responsibility.”
For interviews or more information, contact David Ekelund at [email protected] or +46 70 497 69 10
Read more and be a part of the change:
Icebug’s Climate Footprint Facts:
· Icebug is estimating they emitted 3,637 tons of greenhouse gas for fiscal year March 1, 2018 – February 28, 2019.
· Icebug over-compensated an additional 30% to become climate-positive. Icebug offset 4,755 tons of CO2 equivalents through the UN Carbon Offset Platform on February 21, 2019.
Related links:
Read more about UN Initiative “Climate Neutral Now”
Read more about Icebug’s choice of project
The pledge itself, possible for individuals, companies, and organizations to take
About Icebug
Based in Jonsered, Sweden, Icebug designs and manufactures the world’s finest athletic traction footwear. Driven by innovation, creativity and integrity, Icebug’s passion is making functional and stylish footwear, while achieving climate neutral certification and leading the charge toward a climate neutral outdoor industry worldwide. More information on Icebug’s sustainability efforts and the entire footwear collection: icebug.com/sustainability.
