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Since the Covid-19 pandemic upended our daily lives, many of us have become accustomed to hybrid work arrangements, spending a few days working in the office and other days from home.

Interestingly, a new study has revealed that keeping to a hybrid work model actually allowed cities in the U.S. and UK to significantly reduce their carbon footprints.

Hybrid working thus "has the potential for significant impact on the climate crisis", the study said.

How was the study conducted

The study was conducted by the International Workplace Group (IWG), a flexible workspace provider, and Arup, a sustainable development firm on operational carbon emissions.

To measure the environmental impact of hybrid working, building and transport emissions were measured in six cities across the U.S. and the UK.

More focus was given to Los Angeles and London, as they are major contributors of carbon emissions.

Other cities included in the study were New York City, Atlanta, Manchester and Glasgow.

Different working scenarios were compared for white-collar workers in said cities, which are:

• Exclusively from city centre workspaces
• From city centre workspaces and local workspaces
• From city centre workspaces and home
• A combination of all three

A local workspace is defined as a co-working space, satellite office, cafe or even a library, that is located outside of the city centre and 15 to 20 minutes away from the worker's home.

Total emissions per worker were then calculated to estimate the climate impact of the various working scenarios, taking into consideration factors such as transport, heating, cooling, lighting, energy use.

To calculate transport-based emissions, the study considered various modes of transport workers used to travel to their local workspace.

Data on existing commute trips was used to estimate the typical modes of shorter distance journeys to work.

Meanwhile, to calculate emissions related to working in the city centre, energy usage relating to office consumption was measured.

Additionally, the study also added up the energy from different sources which support working from home.

These are power for laptops, screens and home appliances, power for lighting, power for space heating, domestic hot water and space cooling.

The study assumed that there will be no transport-related emissions for a work-from-home scenario.

Energy that would be used even if the building was not being used as a workspace, such as to power a fridge, was not considered.

Findings from the study

Overall, the study found that U.S. cities showed the biggest potential carbon savings when transport was considered, as cars are widely used as a mode of transport.

Should a hybrid work model be implemented, Atlanta had the highest potential reduction of carbon emissions of 90 per cent, followed by Los Angeles (87 per cent) and New York City (82 per cent).

Cities in the UK had significant potential carbon emissions savings too, with Glasgow showing a reduction of emissions by 80 per cent, followed by Manchester (70 per cent) and London (49 per cent).

Thus, according to the study, the hybrid model is beneficial in reducing emissions as it allowed workers to reduce their commute and work closer to home.

Traditional five-day commute has the largest carbon footprint

The study found that a five day commute to work led to the largest carbon footprint.

In London, emissions were reduced by 49 per cent for those dividing their time between city centre headquarters and a local workspace, and emissions were 43 per cent lower when work was done between a local workspace and home.

The closer the worker is to their home, the lower the emissions produced.

The study noted that in the Singapore context, the transport sector contributes almost 15 per cent of total carbon emissions and is the third-largest source of emissions.

In 2022, private cars in Singapore formed 53 per cent of all registered vehicles, being the largest portion of the total vehicle population and contributing to congestion and pollution.

Local workspaces reduced carbon emissions

In the report, it was noted that utilising local workspaces led to lesser emissions per square meter of floor area.

This is because local workspaces have higher utilisation rates and each worker is responsible for less emissions than a central working location.

TL;DR

Overall, the greatest carbon savings occur when workers split time between a local workspace, home and occasional trips to the city centre headquarters.

Upgrading offices to higher environment standards and swapping a car for a bicycle substantially helps to reduce the overall carbon footprint as well.

A previous survey found that 41 per cent of workers in Singapore would rather continue working remotely, such as at home, than receive a bigger bonus.

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Image adapted from Canva.