SIBUR eliminates the carbon footprint of the World Youth Festival and educates attendees how to reduce their climate impact

7 March 2024. The World Youth Festival (WYF) is Russia's first and largest carbon-neutral youth event with confirmed international verification. According to calculations made by Kept and verified by TÜV AUSTRIA Standards & Compliance, the festival's carbon footprint totalled 21,789 tonnes of CO₂ equivalent. SIBUR transferred certified emission reductions (CERs) to the WYF, thus eliminating the carbon footprint in full.

“The carbon units that SIBUR donated to the festival to offset its carbon footprint came from a climate project: we redesigned the process chain at ZapSibNeftekhim. It helped us curb CO₂ emissions considerably, which confirms the project's compliance with international standards. On top of mitigating the climate impact of our production sites, we are running forestation projects – over the last two years, we have planted more than three million trees, with no plans to halt our efforts. By the year-end, we also expect to make one of our facilities carbon-neutral,” said Maxim Remchukov, Head of SIBUR’s Sustainable Development.

The solutions employed at the festival were designed to minimise its environmental impact. For example, participants from Russia were mostly transported by rail, and water was supplied in bottles made from recycled plastic. According to Kept, post-festival collection and recycling of plastic bottles will deliver a CO₂ emissions reduction equivalent to that of ten passenger aircraft flights from Moscow to Sochi. SIBUR will use the collected plastic to make Vivilen polymer granules.

Furthermore, as the Festival’s sustainability partner, SIBUR offered participants an opportunity to calculate and offset their personal carbon footprint accumulated this year to date. A dedicated online calculator showed attendees what green habits reduce personal carbon footprint in everyday life, as well as how polymer solutions can contribute. After the event, 550 people received personal certificates confirming that they have offset their personal carbon impact by using SIBUR carbon units. 

“Previously, I never really thought about leaving any carbon footprint. But now the festival gave me valuable insights on how to lead a more sustainable lifestyle. I've learned that recycled plastic is reused in creating water containers that can be continuously repurposed into new bottles. That said, the carbon footprint of such a bottle is a lot lower than that of a glass bottle, which has conventionally been viewed as the more eco-conscious choice,” said Valeria Strekalovskaya, a participant from Svobodny, Amur Region.