According to a new study, the carbon footprint of remote workers could be 54% lower compared to those who report onsite. Work arrangements and lifestyle choices both play a role in determining how remote or hybrid work can benefit the environment.

Remote Work Can Reduce Carbon Footprint When Done Right

The study also examined how hybrid work could affect the environment. Researchers discovered that those who spend two to four days working from home can decrease carbon footprint by a range of 11% to 29%. On the other hand, those who spend one day a week working from home can reduce the footprint by just 2%.

Fengqi You, the senior author of the study and an energy systems engineering professor from Cornell University, explains that remote work does not equate to zero carbon and that hybrid work benefits are not flawlessly linear. While remote work rids people of the need to commute daily, there are still lifestyle and other factors that play significant roles.

According to the study, the main carbon footprint contributors for both hybrid and onsite workers are office energy use and travel. While this may not be a surprise, the researchers from Cornell University and Microsoft made use of survey modeling and data to factor in often overlooked factors, including non-commute distance, mode of transportation, residential energy use, and office configuration.

The researchers observed that non-commute travels became more significant as remote workday count went up. They also found out that sharing seats for hybrid workers could lower down carbon footprint by 28%.

Aside from this, they also noted that the commute for hybrid workers tended to be farther compared to onsite workers due to housing choice differences.

Interestingly, hybrid and remote work effects on communication technologies, including computer and internet usage, did not have any significant impacts on the general carbon footprint.

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Maximizing Environmental Impacts of Remote Work

Longqi Yang, the principal applied research manager from Microsoft and a corresponding author, explains that both hybrid and remote work exhibit massive potential when it comes to carbon footprint reduction. The question, however, pertains to the specific behaviors that businesses and policymakers should implement in order to maximize these potential benefits.

Findings generally suggest that both workplace improvements and lifestyle should be prioritized. According to Yang, the study suggests that these policymakers and companies should also focus on rewarding public commutes over driving, improving building energy efficiency, and eliminating a designated office space for those who work remotely.

Yangqiu Tao, the study's first author and a doctoral student, explains that these are opportunities that every person, sector, and country has, adding that the impacts of such collaborative efforts is something they want to delve more into.

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