Sustainability and the IND

We simply cannot ignore climate change. The IND, too, wishes to (and must) contribute to the targets set by the Central Government in the National Climate Agreement (in Dutch: Nationaal Klimaatakkoord). Moreover, we have to set an example as a government organisation. That is why we will reduce our CO2 emissions by 55% and are working towards climate neutral operations in 2030. In 2050, we even want to achieve a 95% reduction of emissions.

Becoming sustainable: how do we do it?

All current IND office locations already have at least energy label C. New locations will have energy label A. From 2030, all office locations will have at least energy label A.
We are turning down the thermostat. Because of this, al government buildings will be using 30% less natural gas in 2030 than in 2019.
The Central Government will switch to renewable electricity completely. This means that in 2030, 100% of our electricity usage will come from renewable sources. The IND transitioned to renewable electricity in 2024 and has already reached this target.
We are making our procurement sustainable. And we are putting this into agreements with our suppliers and clients.
We are making our work processes more efficient and sustainable, for example by optimising our travel movements.
We are stimulating employees to come to work by public transport or bike. And our applicants can easily reach the IND desks by public transport.
We are stimulating staff to work sustainably. For example, by paying attention to national sustainability actions like ‘going to work by bike day’ and ‘digital clean-up day’.
We are separating our waste and we make sure there is as little residual waste as possible.

Where are we now?

In 2023, our CO2 emissions were 22% lower than in 2019. Most of the progress we made by reducing electricity usage in our offices, travelling less by plane and reducing the number of kilometres travelled by car. In 2024, we made our office locations more sustainable by purchasing renewable energy and participating in the Maasvlakte 2 wind park, among other things.

CO2 Performance Ladder

We use the CO2 Performance Ladder (link only in Dutch) to check periodically whether these measures really ensure that we reduce our CO2 emissions and that we are climate neutral in 2030. And, of course, we make adjustments along the way.

Think and Act Sustainably

We are not becoming sustainable alone, because we can achieve more when we work together. The government-wide Denk Doe Duurzaam (Think and Act Sustainably) programme (link only in Dutch)is helping the transition to sustainable government operations.