After calculating the estimated environmental impact of consumer-to-consumer
sales of used and refurbished goods on its platform for many years, eBay has
now open-sourced its methodology for calculating avoided carbon emissions and
avoided waste impacts, in partnership with third-party expert
Anthesis. The company is also releasing
findings from its 2021 Impact Report, detailing progress toward 2025 and 2030
goals tied to economic empowerment and sustainability.
In its 2021 Recommerce Report,
eBay says a younger generation of sellers and buyers has driven increased demand
for secondhand goods on its global marketplace. And while the report found that
economic opportunity remains the key driver for the secondhand resale market,
sustainability is increasing as a motivation – especially for younger consumers,
particularly Gen Z — corroborating a growing pool of
research
pointing to mounting consumer preference for reducing the waste and resources
associated with buying new products. Other resale platforms have also noted the
influx: Secondhand apparel giant thredUP estimates the circular apparel
market
alone will double in the next 5 years, to reach $77 billion; vintage
furnishings marketplace Chairish
projects
the resale furniture
industry
will grow 54 percent over the next five years; and the market for refurbished
electronics continues to gain traction (likely, thanks to the ongoing global
microchip
shortage).
eBay identified a list of five categories representing the wide range of used or
refurbished goods sold on its platform — Electronics, Fashion,
Lifestyle, Media, Parts and Accessories — for which standardized
outputs are calculated:
Avoided GHG emissions (kg CO2e per item)
Avoided landfill (kg for category and country)
Avoided incineration (kg for category and country)
Positive financial impact ($)
According to its methodology, of the five categories listed, purchasing a used
or refurbished product from the Electronics, Fashion and Parts & Accessories
categories has the most environmental benefit.
“The information allows consumers to make meaningful decisions about what used
or refurbished products they decide to purchase, while understanding how the
positive impact from this purchase on the environment is calculated,” says eBay
CSO Renee Morin. “It also serves as a model for other companies to leverage
as they consider tracking their own impact, and we’re proud to offer this level
of transparency.
“If we can standardize on the categories of avoided GHG, avoided landfill or
incineration, and positive financial impact, people can make informed choices
when they have a chance to buy pre-owned items,” she added. “It becomes a
purchasing tool much like the nutrition label is for food. And, with recommerce
growing faster than selling and
buying new products on eBay’s marketplace, finding a way to quantify positive impacts
is good for everyone.”
2021 Impact Report
eBay’s 2021 Impact report unveils the cumulative environmental and economic
impact of selling and purchasing used or refurbished products on the platform.
In 2020, eBay exceeded its initial circular commerce goal through the
consumer-to-consumer sale of pre-owned electronics and apparel, avoiding a total
of 3.1 million metric tons of carbon emissions and contributing $3.8 billion in
positive economic impact from 2016-2020.
The company is now progressing toward a new goal of creating $20 billion in
positive economic impacts, avoiding 7 million metric tons of carbon emissions,
and avoiding 230,000 metric tons of waste through selling pre-owned and
refurbished on eBay by 2025 across the five product categories. In 2021 alone,
it reported the following progress:
Created $4 billion in positive economic impact (from buyers saving money on
purchasing pre-owned and refurbished goods)
Avoided 1.5 million metric tons of carbon emissions
Avoided 47,000 metric tons of waste
Additional noteworthy 2021 progress toward eBay’s sustainability goals include:
Carbon emissions: eBay achieved a 26 percent absolute reduction in Scope 1
and 2 Greenhouse Gas emissions in 2021 (goal: 90 percent absolute reduction
by 2030); achieved a 7 percent absolute reduction in Scope 3 downstream
transportation and distribution from a 2019 baseline (goal 20 percent
absolute reduction by 2030).
Renewable Energy: eBay sourced 90 percent of electricity supply from
renewable energy sources for eBay-controlled data centers and offices in
2021 (goal: 100 percent sourced by 2025).
Meanwhile, to further decrease the waste and impacts specific to the apparel
industry, eBay UK recently
launched Imperfects — a
marketplace for apparel brands to sell clothing, shoes and accessories with
minor defects at discounted prices, to keep previously “unsellable” items out of
landfill.
