Accelerating climate action in Germany with our new Berlin office

This year the Carbon Trust has opened its first permanent site in Germany, creating a base to support our existing and growing work in the country.

Famously, Germany has a strong reputation for manufacturing, and in recent years the technology needed for a Net Zero transition has also become a part of this manufacturing mix. Alongside building new technology, it is also home to a range of businesses wanting to cut their emissions and make climate-smart decisions across every industry sector. For example, 246 Germany companies have some form of approved SBTi targets, with likely many more international organisations operating in Germany also working to targets.

The Carbon Trust has already been working with German organisations for many years. Our new office now also brings a central location to support German businesses in taking strong climate action. Our German-speaking team is based in the centre of Berlin, led by our Regional Manager Anna Raffaelli.

Anna brings almost 15 years of commercial and business development experience across a diverse range of sectors, including paper and packaging, retail and apparel. She is fluent in German, English, and Italian. Anna is supported by a local team, plus our 400 experts globally.

The Carbon Trust has opened its first office in Germany, the world’s fourth-largest economy and fifth-largest export nation. In light of Germany’s ambitious climate agenda, we are excited to further strengthen our expertise in the market. We look forward to collaborating with new and existing clients to set ambitious transition plans and accelerate climate action.

Hugh Jones

Managing Director, Corporate Sustainability, The Carbon Trust

To maintain the status as a strong industrialised country, the Federal government and German businesses must invest heavily in transitioning towards Net Zero emissions. In almost all sectors the pace of emission reductions needs to increase to meet the country’s goal of carbon neutrality by 2045. With our new office in Berlin, I am excited about collaborating with local and global businesses to rise to this challenge.

Anna Raffaelli

Regional Manager, DACH, The Carbon Trust

With over 20 years of experience in climate action, we have worked with global and German brands like Lidl and thyssenkrupp. We have a strong understanding of the German market, having hosted training and business events with United Nations Global Compact Netzwerk Deutschland and the Department of Business and Trade Düsseldorf, plus we are trusted knowledge members of the country's key climate network Klimaschutz Unternehmen.

The Berlin team will support organisations and companies wanting to take bold climate action, but will focus on the following core sectors:

Food, drink and agriculture. This is one of the largest sectors in the German economy and is a particularly strong area of our work. The agricultural industry will feel the effects of a changing climate earlier and more acutely in their day-to-day work than many other industries. We look forward to supporting clients to reduce their emissions and futureproof their businesses. Discover how we have been working with Kellogg to track supply chain emissions.
Clothing, apparel and footwear. We aim to work across the whole sector, both new and resale, with a particular focus on sports and outdoor wear, due to the popularity of hiking, climbing and outdoor sports in the region. See how we worked with Dr. Martens to build a sustainable business model.
General manufacturing. This ranges from paper and packaging to automotive, ICT, chemicals and pharmaceuticals. Find out how we supported Siemens on its route to Net Zero.
Renewable energies. The Carbon Trust is spearheading the transition to a low carbon economy by managing powerful R&D programmes in the offshore wind and maritime sector. Another stronghold is our expertise in energy and heat networks. We are keen to expand these activities through our new German office. Find an example of our work in the offshore wind.

Business and industry stakeholders across Germany are increasingly proactive in their ‘Klimaschutz’. At the same time, sustainability has become a focal point for businesses from a regulatory perspective following new policy and regulatory changes. These include the EU-wide regulations like CSRD and CBAM, plus Germany specific legislation like the ‘Lieferkettensorgfaltspflichtengesetz’ (‘Supply Chain Due Diligence Act’).

To take advantage of opportunities and meet compliance requirements businesses are focusing on creating practical plans to transition to Net Zero emissions. They are also interested in how to communicate and disclose their carbon footprints and emissions reductions. Our services designed to support this work are detailed below.

How we can help:

Net Zero transition planning – supporting organisations to develop strategies to achieve their short, medium and long term climate targets.
Labelling and assurance – providing independent verification of climate achievements to ensure organisations can communicate their progress with confidence.
Scope 3 footprinting and feasibility services – working with organisations to calculate their complete emissions footprint, including their full value chain.
Product carbon footprinting – calculating the carbon footprint of an individual product, from the cradle to grave, then services to reduce these emissions and communicate progress with consumers.
Climate policy and compliance – understanding of climate policy globally and what is required within organisations to ensure compliance, plus support with policy development.
TCFD or climate risk support – providing TCFD support to a wide range of organisations and helping to turn the disclosure requirements into a competitive advantage.
Sustainability reporting -– partnering with organisations to help them prepare for and meet corporate sustainability reporting requirements.
Sustainable finance – helping the financial sector identify, measure, understand and manage climate risks and opportunities, accelerating the green transition through implementation and action, as well as helping businesses create and leverage green financial products for climate action.
Offshore wind – we work at the forefront of the global offshore wind industry, collaborating with governments, developers and innovators to make fixed and floating offshore wind a viable commercial energy generation solution.