Continuing Our Sustainability Journey
Our journey towards becoming a more sustainable company has been filled with learning opportunities, challenges, and of course plenty of joy in making a positive impact on our planet and our players. Reflecting on our past efforts and looking forward to the future, we are thrilled to share the latest chapter in our green journey.
Where We Started
Our commitment to sustainability began in earnest in 2020, when we first started calculating our carbon footprint. Since then we have participated in three Green Game Jams (GGJ), winning the event award each year thanks to the enthusiastic support and engagement of our players.
Our participation significantly contributed to protecting the environment. We are proud to have supported the planting of 225,000 trees worldwide. What is more, during the GGJ 2023 campaign, Wooga, together with June’s Journey players, donated to the Snow Leopard Trust to protect 26,000 km2 of the snow leopard habitat in the Himalayas until December 2024.
Major Leaps in 2023
Last year we made significant strides towards a more strategic approach to sustainability:
- Assessing the Status Quo: In 2023, we recognized the need for a comprehensive understanding of our current sustainability practices and their impact. This assessment went beyond just measuring our carbon footprint; it encompassed a holistic review of our operations, including resource usage and waste management.
- Internal Workshop: An internal workshop was a pivotal moment in shaping our sustainability journey. Bringing together employees from across departments, we engaged in open and honest discussions about what sustainability meant to us as individuals and as a company. We see it as three dimensional, comprised of its environmental, social, and business factors; at Wooga, sustainability means generating value and stability through ethical and green practices, fostering employee well-being, and creating games that positively impact the global community. Through brainstorming sessions and collaborative exercises, we identified shared values and priorities, laying the groundwork for a unified approach to sustainability.
- Carbon Emissions Calculation: As part of our ongoing commitment to reducing our environmental impact on the planet to a minimum, we continued to refine our carbon emissions calculation methodology. This included not only accounting for direct emissions (Scope 1) and indirect emissions from purchased electricity (Scope 2) but also assessing the broader impacts of our value chain activities (Scope 3). Armed with this data, we took our sustainability efforts a step further by investing in long-term carbon removal solutions. Partnering with Supercritical, we supported innovative projects aimed at sequestering carbon from the atmosphere, contributing to global efforts to combat climate change. This includes, of course, creating games that leave smaller carbon footprint, and we are looking into more opportunities in this area.
Focus for 2024: Preparing for CSRD
Looking ahead to 2024, our primary focus is to prepare for the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD).
The CSRD is a new regulation within the EU that requires companies to conduct a double materiality assessment as the basis for their first sustainability report. This involves evaluating both the internal and external impacts of our operations, considering not only financial risks but also environmental and social factors. By identifying material issues that affect both our business and stakeholders, we can prioritize our reporting efforts and focus on the areas that matter most.
This assessment will help us define what sustainability aspects we will report on, but more importantly what long-term sustainability goals to set.
Our 2024 Green Game Jam Plans
We are thrilled to announce our participation in the Green Game Jam once again this year. The theme for 2024 is “Little Actions Big Impact” reflecting the power of small collective efforts to drive significant environmental change.
We have already kicked off our activities with a farm visit which provided valuable insights into how unsustainable modern food systems are and the ways in which we can modify it for more sustainable agricultural practices.
Our players are also making waves, in restoring the planet, one small action at a time, through our Seeds of Kindness Challenge, a social media-driven campaign that invites our players to complete environmentally friendly activities. Many players already sowed their “Seeds of Kindness” and more are expected to participate in the following months.
More surprises await June’s Journey players. In June, we launched the Environment Week campaign, repeating the game events from previous Green Game Jams. Players will get a chance to support planting more trees in the real world by getting tree decorations in a special offer. In addition, they are invited to participate in the Sweep the Board event for a chance to win an exclusive snow leopard decoration.
We are keen to see how our team creativity and commitment will translate into meaningful in-game Characteristics and real-world impact during this year’s Green Game Jam.
Taking Responsibility
As we continue our sustainability journey we invite our players and community to join us in taking action for the planet. Stay tuned for more updates on our initiatives and how you can get involved.