Going carbon neutral is an easy way to take responsibility for the greenhouse gas emissions we create every time we drive our cars, take a plane, or turn on our computers. It's based on the princi- ple that, since climate change is a global problem, an emission reduction made elsewhere has the same positive effect as one made locally. Here's how it works: If you add polluting emissions to the atmosphere, you can effectively subtract them by purchasing "carbon offsets." Carbon offsets are simply credits for emission reductions achieved by environmentally friendly projects elsewhere, such as wind farms, solar installations, or energy efficiency projects. By purchasing these credits, you can apply them to your own emissions and reduce your net climate impact. The figures are eye opening:

• The average two-day event for 250 people - including ground travel and hotel room power - emits approximately 72,000 pounds of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
• One round-trip cross-county flight emits approximately 4,000 pounds of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
• The average American with a 2006 car drives 12,000 miles per year, emitting 11,000 pounds of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.

These stats are from DrivingGreen.com, one of numerous Web sites which enable a user to calculate greenhouse gases every time they drive, fly, or plan an event. For meetings and events, users can input estimated driving and flying distances to and from the event, as well as number of hotel room nights, and DrivingGreen.com will calculate the resulting emissions and what it would cost to offset them. Consumers can pay that dollar amount to DrivingGreen.com, which provides it to selected farmers to help fund equipment, called "digesters," that convert animal waste into renewable energy that is used to power the farm without any fossil fuel. With the help of DrivingGreen.com, some innovative planners have promised to offset the greenhouse gas emissions of attendees' cars for a year, as part of a gift bag.

Tourism Vancouver is said to be the first destination marketing organization to commit to offsetting all of its flights with the purchase of carbon offset credits through Uniglobe Travel's Green Flight program. In 2007, Tourism Vancouver will offset approximately 220 metric tons of emissions resulting from air travel taken by staff traveling for sales and marketing business, as well as those flights purchased to bring clients, customers, and media to Vancouver by investing in sustainable green energy projects in Western Canada.

"Having such a spectacular destination means that we're no strangers to getting out and truly enjoying our environment, and we understand that we need to make a commitment to preserving it," said Tourism Vancouver president & CEO Rick Antonson.

The world's first carbon neutral airline, Silverjet, took to the skies this year. This all-business class, luxury airline began with daily New York - London flights. Included within each ticket price is a mandatory carbon offset contribution, giving passengers the opportunity to reinvest "Carbon Points" into a number of climate-friendly projects around the world, including a U.S. methane project.

° Andrea Doyle is Convene's senior writer.