Our Claims

Accredited

In 2005, our director was the first person ever presented with a Certified Environmental Practitioner (CEnvP) certificate and for the 20 years since, he has been continuously certified

What is CEnvP (Certified Environmental Practitioner)?

CEnvP is the environment profession’s certification scheme, established by but independent from EIANZ and recognised by the Australian Government as an industry-based certification scheme

• CEnvP ensures experienced, skilled and ethical environmental professionals are given due recognition in line with their professional counterparts from engineering, accounting, planning and architecture
• Certification provides a greater level of assurance to the community, employers, clients and professional associates of a CEnvP’s credentials
• Certification indicates a competent environmental professional applying high professional and ethical standards while demonstrating a commitment to responsible environmental management
• Certification demonstrates their environmental skills and knowledge meet national standards and clearly recognises their education, training and experience levels, providing assurance of their competence and performance as a professional

Previous Accreditations

Previously accredited as an associate auditor under RABQSA

Approved verifier of:

• greenhouse gas emissions reporting
• carbon offset projects, and
• carbon neutral products

for several climate change programs, including:

• Australia’s voluntary emissions reporting and climate action program, Greenhouse Challenge, and
• Australia’s original carbon offset approval and carbon neutral accreditation scheme, Greenhouse Friendly™ (predecessor to CER, NCOS and Climate Active)

Accredited as a building energy rating assessor in the ACT, requiring a knowledge of building management and passive solar design

Recognised

Beyond Neutral’s director has been a Fellow of the Environment Institute of Australia and New Zealand (EIANZ) since 2011

• EIANZ is the peak professional association for Australia’s and NZ’s environmental practitioners
• It promotes environmental knowledge, advances ethical and competent practice and facilitates interaction amongst environmental professionals

Direct involvement with EIANZ includes:

• ACT Division President, Treasurer and member,
• ACT convener for the CEnvP scheme for about 10 years
• Chair and member of several CEnvP interview panels
• involvement with EIANZ’s Policy and Practice Standing Committee and Climate Change Working Group and Special Interest Section
• drafting substantial parts of EIANZ’s Climate Change Policy Statement, providing input, review to others
• providing input, review and representation for EIANZ submissions’ relating to climate change issues (e.g. NGERS verification requirements and external audit criteria during development of NGER Act auditor competencies)
• organised, presented and chaired numerous presentations, seminars, plenary sessions and workshops on climate change and energy topics as a part of EIANZ’s professional development services

Innovative

Beyond Neutral and its Director have been a part of innovative projects that have achieved Australian and world firsts

Research into Renewable Energy Remote Area Power Systems (RAPS)

Our director conducted Australia’s first research focused solely on renewable energy users seeking self-sufficiency in the provision of their domestic energy supply

The research was carried out in Tasmania, an Australian state powered at that time predominantly by renewable energy from large, static hydro-electricity dams; solar PV was very rare and cost well over $10 per peak Watt

Exploring all aspects of their energy supply and storage systems, their dwelling’s features, their appliances and how they used them, it also investigated their attitudes and experiences towards their attempt at energy self-sufficiency

A series of case studies demonstrated the many positive spin-offs arising from the desire of individuals and communities to be self-sufficient:

• a local micro hydro-electricity turbine manufacturer expanding interstate
• the use of green grids to provide individual and community level energy supplies, leading to the development of further economic opportunities beyond the community
• the use of a mix of renewable energy supplies to enable the provision of high quality eco-tourism applications

“Minding the Carbon Store” – Queensland avoided deforestation project

This multi-million dollar project bought land clearing permits, generated verified emission reductions and sold the accredited Greenhouse Friendly™ abatement

It used carbon finance to pay landholders to not clear their land, to extinguish their land clearing permits prior to the Queensland Government’s mandated land clearing moratorium came into effect; other landholders were actively clearing land in the lead up to the moratorium as it became illegal to do so after that

It was an Australian first and appears to be a world-first project model (it is at the least, one of very few at the time), as it stopped land clearing without needing to buy the land or move people from the area, instead changing behaviour through the use of carbon finance

• It prevented 1,250,000 tonnes of emissions from being released from the vegetation that would have otherwise been knocked down
• Approximately 13,000 ha of biologically diverse habitat was not cleared, the carbon remaining in the landscape and underpinning the ecosystem
• At the time, it was Australia’s largest carbon trade
• Greenhouse Friendly™ was the Australian Government’s voluntary carbon offset and carbon neutral program before the current Clean Energy Regulator (CER) and Climate Active

The project demonstrated that market mechanisms and verified emission reductions can stop forest destruction; a model now promoted internationally

Carbon Footprint of an Australian Film – “My Year Without Sex”

Beyond Neutral completed the first full carbon footprint case study of an Australian feature film, “My Year Without Sex”, directed by Sarah Watt, produced by Bridget Ikin, starring Sasha Horler and Matt Day

Working with several Australian directors, producers and film companies, we were engaged to provide the production advice on sustainability and carbon accounting, emissions management and reduction, and to identify quality carbon offsets

To do this, we provided the full range of our carbon services to develop the film’s footprint, provide advice on mitigation options they could take and provide carbon offsets which were used to offset more than the film’s identified footprint

The footprint was the first to look at all 3 scopes and the film was the first to offset more than its identified Scope 1 and 2 emissions

A case study was produced examining how and why the footprint was calculated, what was found, the problems encountered and the key issues and areas for future action by individual films and the wider industry

The film was awarded the Australian Directors Guild’s GRASS (Getting Real About Sustainable Screens) award for a feature film

Climate Change Specialist and Certified Environmental Practitioner

Our director was the first climate change professional in Australia and NZ to be accredited as a Climate Change Specialist in 2015

10 years earlier, he was the first environmental professional in Australia and NZ to be presented with certificate recognising him as a Certified Environmental Practitioner