Carbon footprint
Carbon-neutral yoga mats and props by the end of 2022
“I see climate policy as an insurance policy that, as a rational person, you must take out for your grandchildren and even for your children.”
– Marc Vanheukelen, Senior Adviser and Ambassador for Climate Diplomacy, European External Action Service
Under the Paris Agreement of 2015, governments have pledged to keep average global warming to “well below” 2°C above pre-industrial levels and to try to limit maximum warming to 1.5°C. The reality, however, looks quite different: The planet is already roughly 1°C warmer than it was in the late 19th century, global greenhouse gas emissions are still on the rise and national efforts to cut them fall short of what is needed to hit the 2°C target, let alone 1.5°C.
Despite political pledges and new technologies to turn down the global thermostat, greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels and industry totaled 36.8 billion tons in 2019, hitting the third record high in three straight years. The radical economic and industrial transformation urgently required to combat climate change has obviously not happened yet.
Interestingly, the impact of the yoga industry on global warming has never been quantified: What is the CO2 emission of a yoga mat produced using energy from coal-fueled power plants in Asia? What is the carbon footprint of a Kurma mat made in Europe – or the footprint of a cork block? We believe that the time has come for full transparency, and we are already working on obtaining scientific data to find answers to the questions above.
Based on independent data free from greenwashing, it is our aspiration to produce carbon-neutral yoga mats and props by end of 2022. All changes to the production, packaging and distribution necessary to achieve this goal will be shared with our customers on this site, as well as all obstacles that we will encounter along the way.
