“With our commitment to carbon neutrality, we hope to be a ripple in the pond that creates a much larger change,” said Apple’s CEO Tim Cook.
When you’re one of the world’s biggest tech companies, every decision you make has a big impact. Today, Apple announced that it would be working towards becoming carbon neutral across its entire supply chain and product life cycle by 2030.
The company’s global corporate operations are already carbon neutral but this latest move means every Apple device sold will have net zero climate impact, a necessary step towards bringing its entire carbon footprint to zero.
“Businesses have a profound opportunity to help build a more sustainable future, one born of our common concern for the planet we share,” said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, in a statement. “The innovations powering our environmental journey are not only good for the planet — they’ve helped us make our products more energy efficient and bring new sources of clean energy online around the world. Climate action can be the foundation for a new era of innovative potential, job creation, and durable economic growth. With our commitment to carbon neutrality, we hope to be a ripple in the pond that creates a much larger change.”
The company’s 10-year plan aims to lower emissions by pursuing a low carbon product design that utilizes recycled materials, innovating new methods of product recycling, and expanding energy efficiency at its corporate facilities. Apple pledges to remain at 100 per cent renewable energy for its operations, focusing on creating new projects and moving its entire supply chain to clean power, and will also be investing in forests and other natural ecosystems around the world to remove carbon from the atmosphere.
Apple will be sharing details on its approach to carbon neutrality so that other industries may use it as a roadmap for reducing their own environmental impact. The California-based company will also be establishing an Impact Accelerator to focus on investing in minority-owned businesses that drive “positive outcomes in its supply chain and in communities that are disproportionately affected by environmental hazards.” This accelerator is part of Apple’s recently announced $100 million Racial Equity and Justice Initiative focusing on education, economic equality, and criminal justice reform.
