WOO partners with Ad Net Zero to enhance media sustainability framework

New Delhi: The World Out of Home Organization (WOO) has partnered with Ad Net Zero, a global advertising industry initiative focused on sustainable growth, to enhance the Global Media Sustainability Framework (GMSF) to better address the specific characteristics of Out-of-Home (OOH) media.

Originally developed by Ad Net Zero, the GMSF offers a standardised methodology for calculating greenhouse gas emissions across major media types. With input from WOO, the framework will now be refined to provide more accurate emissions calculations for OOH formats such as Classic, Transient, and Digital.

Katrin Robertson, CEO of blowUP media and Team Lead of WOO’s Global Sustainability Task Force, said: “We are delighted to boost the efforts of Ad Net Zero in calculating the impacts of a complex and varied medium like OOH through providing practical solutions accessible to all. OOH is one of the few media channels that combines environmental efficiency with advertising impact and we are determined to raise the level of sustainability in our industry.”

Anthony Falco, Global Media Sustainability Director at Ad Net Zero, commented: “We’re proud to be working with WOO to help bring consistency and transparency to the calculation of Greenhouse gases from media. Thanks to the expertise and insights provided by the OOH sector we are going to be able to develop channel level data guidance which reflects operation realities essential to making the Framework practical and actionable.”

The OOH sector has been progressing on sustainability fronts. Research in Germany using the Green GRP tool, which measures CO2 emissions from cross-media campaigns, indicated that OOH emits significantly less CO2 per 1,000 contacts compared to other media channels. The industry continues to introduce sustainable innovations. 

For instance, in the UK, 90% of the energy consumed in the OOH sector is sourced from renewables, while technologies such as LED lighting and solar power contribute to further reductions in environmental impact. Initiatives include living wall sites that purify surrounding air, PVC-free banners, and the broad use of recycled materials.