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26/05/2026

War, AI, crisis, costs – and then CO₂ on top of that

War, AI, crisis, costs – and then CO₂ on top of that

War, AI, crisis, costs – and then CO₂ on top of that

Why CO₂ accounting is becoming the standard for companies despite crises, costs and bureaucracy – and how medium-sized businesses can record their CO₂ data pragmatically.

Why CO₂ accounting is becoming the standard for companies despite crises, costs and bureaucracy – and how medium-sized businesses can record their CO₂ data pragmatically.

Why CO₂ accounting is becoming the standard for companies despite crises, costs and bureaucracy – and how medium-sized businesses can record their CO₂ data pragmatically.

No

Thoughts of

Street scene in Togo with an International Red Cross vehicle, motorcyclist and market stall – representing global connections, supply chains and corporate responsibility.

In this post

Between costs, crises and customer pressure

CO₂ data becomes corporate information

Why CO₂ footprinting is still needed

Between costs, crises and customer pressure

Between costs, crises and customer pressure

Between costs, crises, and customer pressure, sustainability often seems like just another issue. Yet, the CO₂ footprint is precisely what is becoming the standard – completely without any obligation for enthusiasm.

War in Ukraine. War in the Middle East.

Uncertainty in the Red Sea. Hormuz as a word that hardly anyone in medium-sized businesses used before, and today suddenly has to do with energy prices. The IMF describes energy prices, supply chains, and financial markets as key transmission channels of the Middle East conflict. UNCTAD points out how sensitive global trade routes are to disruptions at maritime bottlenecks.

China. Taiwan. USA.

Tariffs. Sanctions. Counter-sanctions. Supply chains that were actually supposed to become more robust and are nevertheless stuck somewhere again.

Energy prices. Electricity prices. Gas prices.

Grid fees. CO₂ price. Diesel. Toll. Transport costs. Material costs. Wage costs. Social security contributions. Rents. Interest rates. Insurance. Software subscriptions that used to cost 49 Euros and are now called "Enterprise Pricing".

Skills shortage.

Or no skills shortage because no one is hiring right now. Or a skills shortage in exactly the one position that is urgently needed. Accounting. IT. Sales. Machine operator. Project management. Energy officer. Sustainability too, please, but only on the side.

AI. ChatGPT. Copilot.

Prompts. Automation. Data quality. Cybersecurity. Deepfakes. AI Regulation. AI training. AI strategy. AI in sales. AI in marketing. AI in controlling. AI in every second presentation. And yet, no one can find the current electricity bill.

What is happening in parallel

CO₂ data becomes corporate information

CO₂ data becomes corporate information

CO₂ data becomes corporate information

CSRD. ESRS. Omnibus.

VSME. DNK. GHG Protocol. Scope 1. Scope 2. Scope 3. PCF. CCF. CBAM. EUDR. LkSG. CSDDD. Taxonomy. Double materiality. Single materiality. No materiality, please, it's the end of the quarter.

Reporting obligation.

Not subject to reporting. Maybe subject to reporting later. Not subject to reporting, but the customer asks anyway. Not subject to CSRD, but there is a mandatory field in the supplier portal. Not affected, but please fill in by Friday.

Banks. Ratings. Loans. Interest rates.

Collateral. ESG questions in the financing meeting. "Do you have a carbon footprint?" "Are there climate risks?" "What measures are you planning?" "Who is responsible?" "Can you prove that?"

Tenders. Mandatory fields. Procurement platforms.

Login details. Password forgotten. Certificate expired. FSC yes. PEFC maybe. ISO somewhere. Carbon footprint from 2022. Current figures to follow. Final version is called final_final_new.

Customer portals. Supplier questionnaires.

Code of Conduct. Self-assessment. Human rights. Anti-corruption. Data protection. Information security. Occupational health and safety. Environmental targets. Complaints procedure. Supplier evaluation. And somewhere the question: "Please describe your sustainability strategy in a maximum of 500 characters."

Political uncertainty. Change of government. Reforms.

Relief packages. Special funds. Infrastructure. Bureaucracy reduction. More bureaucracy reduction announcements than bureaucracy reduced. New forms for fewer forms.

Economy. Weak demand. Customers deciding later.

Quotes that sit around longer. Margins getting smaller. Investments being postponed. Machines that have to last another year. Projects that are "fundamentally interesting". Which usually means: not right now.

Digitalisation.

ERP. CRM. DMS. BI. API. Interfaces. Excel. Still Excel. One file on the server. One file locally. One file by email. One file that nobody wants to open because it contains macros.

And yet, everyone wants CO₂ data, even if they don't actually want it. Certainly not as a favourite topic, but very certainly as normal corporate information.

And yet, everyone wants CO₂ data, even if they don't actually want it. Certainly not as a favourite topic, but very certainly as normal corporate information.

And yet, everyone wants CO₂ data, even if they don't actually want it. Certainly not as a favourite topic, but very certainly as normal corporate information.

In everyday business life

And then, of course, the completely normal things.

And then, of course, the completely normal things.

And then, of course, the completely normal things.

Climate change. Heat. Heavy rain. Drought.

Water. Insurance. Delivery failures. Crop failures. Cooling. Climate adaptation. Employees in halls where things don't get any better in summer. Locations that suddenly need risk maps.

Communication. Green claims. Greenwashing.

Climate neutral. CO₂-neutral. Offsetting. Contribution claim. Reduction first. Proof, please. No exaggeration. No false promises. But please still sound positive.

Annual accounts. Inventory. Payroll accounting.

VAT. Quotes. Invoices. Payment reminders. Holiday planning. Sick leaves. Customer appointments. Trade fair preparation. New website. Old website. Google Ads. LinkedIn. Newsletter. Sales. And of course: "Can't we just quickly post something about sustainability?"

A quick question in the meantime

Do you have a carbon footprint?

Do you have a carbon footprint?

Do you have a carbon footprint?

01

Do you have a carbon footprint?

02

Are there climate risks?

03

What measures are you planning?

04

Can you prove that?

Contextualise CO₂ data

Why CO₂ footprinting is still needed

Why CO₂ footprinting is still needed

Why CO₂ footprinting is still needed

After a list like that, you can understand why many companies don't immediately stand up and applaud at the word sustainability.

Not because they don't care about anything. But because a great deal is happening at the same time right now. And yet, everyone wants CO₂ data, even if it is not actually wanted. Certainly not as a favourite topic, but very certainly as normal corporate information. Just like annual accounts, stocktaking or payroll. You don't do that out of enthusiasm either. But you do it because it is needed.

With a partner like us by your side, even a dry topic like CO₂ accounting becomes somewhat more manageable.

We bring structure to your data, sort the requirements and translate the whole thing so that you can work with it. Thoroughly. Pragmatically. And with enough humour so that it doesn't get any tougher than necessary.

Street scene in Togo with an International Red Cross vehicle, motorcyclist and market stall – representing global connections, supply chains and corporate responsibility.