Sustainable AI · Public accounts
The formula comes before the receipt.
This page holds the method, the boundaries and the record behind the Contrada Canyon 5–50–100 Standard. It separates what is promised, what is illustrative and what has actually been paid.
The 5–50–100 Standard
A promise without a number is a press release.
Contrada Canyon reserves 0.5% of collected revenue through the year. At year-end, that amount is compared with 5% of pre-tax profit. The greater figure becomes the annual contribution.
Annual contribution =
MAX( 0.5% of collected revenue , 5% of pre-tax profit )
Five percent of pre-tax profit, compared with the 0.5% collected-revenue floor.
At least half supports high-integrity climate mitigation and carbon removal.
One hundred percent of contributions, recipients and receipts are documented in the public record.
Reduce before you pay
Use only what earns its place.
AI has a physical footprint. Electricity, water, hardware, networks and human attention are part of the system. A contribution is additional action, not a substitute for using less.
- Use the smallest capable model for the task.
- Do not pad agents or generations to look advanced.
- Reuse work that has already been produced.
- Use generative video or imagery only when it has a reason to exist.
- Prefer the most transparent suitable supplier.
- Keep hardware and systems in service longer.
- Leave builds understandable, stoppable and client-owned.
- Record what was measured and what could not be measured.
Illustrative arithmetic · not a disclosure
The same definition, in money.
This example explains the formula only. The figures below are not Contrada Canyon revenue, profit, reserves or payments.
Example inputs
Where it goes
Mitigation first. Place still matters.
The allocation is designed to keep climate value measurable while retaining a direct relationship with California land and communities.
Climate mitigation and carbon removal, supported by published methodology and independent verification.
California watersheds, native habitat, wildfire resilience and recovery of damaged land.
Environmental and community resilience, including local efficiency and access projects.
The Stewardship Ledger
The record should be checkable.
Absolute revenue and profit need not be public. The formula, percentages, payments and evidence do. Each reporting period will state what was counted, what was omitted and what changed.
Claim boundary
Describe the action. Do not inflate the conclusion.
This standard is not a claim that the work is carbon neutral, net zero or climate positive. Until the evidence supports a conclusion, this page will describe what was done, what it cost and what remains unknown.