In 2023, the BRS Conventions Secretariat joined the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Environmental Management System (EMS). This framework enables the Secretariat to systematically improve its environmental performance through a structured and documented set of processes.
In its approach, the Secretariat has been guided by the:
The first cycle (2020–2024) focused on identifying the main environmental risks arising from Secretariat operations and developing EMS Action Plans to mitigate those risks. These Action Plans addressed key areas, including event management, facilities, information and communications technology (ICT), and supply chain management.
Following an evaluation of progress achieved during the first cycle and the consideration of emerging environmental risks, a second cycle covering 2025–2030 is currently under development.
The Secretariat’s carbon footprint and climate neutrality
Air travel accounts for the largest share of the Secretariat’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, increasing from 73 per cent in 2021 during the COVID pandemic to 98 per cent in 2023.
Total emissions from air travel are higher in years when the Secretariat organises its Conferences of the Parties, such as 2017, 2019, 2022 and 2023.
The emissions reduction targets established under UNSCAP are a 25 per cent reduction by 2025 and a 45 per cent reduction by 2030, using 2010 as the baseline year. This is consistent with the approach adopted by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and reflected in UNSCAP.
From 2011 to 2024 (non-COP years), greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions decreased by 29 per cent, while from 2010 to 2023 (COP years), emissions declined by 49 per cent. These figures do not yet differentiate between personnel travel emissions and participant travel emissions; however, this distinction will be incorporated in future reports.
Climate neutrality
2024 has marked 11 years of climate neutrality for the Secretariat. To maintain this status, the Secretariat offset its 2024 emissions equivalent to 441 tonnes of unavoidable CO2 emissions through the UN voluntary cancellation platform in the Clean Development Mechanism Registry.
Efforts to reduce the Secretariat’s environmental footprint
The Secretariat has implemented a range of measures to enhance its environmental sustainability across key operational areas.
In the area of event management, meetings organized by the Secretariat are paperless and, where feasible, plastic free. The meetings of the Conferences of the Parties held in 2019, 2022 and 2023 were plastic free, exemplifying this commitment. In 2024 the Secretariat further strengthened this approach by drafting a Sustainability Policy for Events.
Regarding its facilities management, the Secretariat operates from the International Environmental House in Geneva. An internal Environmental Management System (EMS) audit conducted in 2026, based on ISO 14001:2015 standards and on ISO 19011:2018 auditing guidelines, found that the facility demonstrates a mature environmental management culture and strong alignment with the environmental sustainability objectives of UNEP and the UN Secretariat. See: Energy Policy of the Foundation for Buildings for International organizations, which manages the International Environment House.
In the area of water management, the Secretariat promotes the use of tap water and raise awareness of its environmental benefits.
In the area of procurement, it has used, when possible, the toolkit “Environmental Specifications for UN Procurement”. This toolkit has been designed by the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) and the United Nations Office in Geneva (UNOG) to help UN personnel to formulate, integrate and strengthen environmental criteria in procurement exercises.
For further details on the Secretariat’s environmental performance and ongoing sustainability efforts, please visit the Greening the Blue website and explore the UN system’s environmental footprint, including the contribution of the BRS Conventions Secretariat through the Greening the Blue 2025 report.
Baseline sustainability reports
Reports of the Secretariat’s sustainability team established in 2011 to work on sustainability performance aspects: