As global temperatures rise without showing any signs of slowing down, it’s important for large companies to become more sustainable. The Emissions Gap Report 2018 urged governments and companies to become more environmentally-friendly because the increase in temperatures will cause a massive impact on day-to-day life.
Natural hazards such as hurricanes, extreme rains and floods are predicted to become more intense than ever before.
Although the number of environmental organizations, that continuously publish warnings is increasing, many companies are still reluctant on changing to a more green solution. However, the tech industry is one of the most forward-moving industries when it comes to sustainability and environmentally-friendly solutions.
In this article, I’ll talk about what the tech giants are doing to become more sustainable and green now, and in the future.
Tech Companies Going Green
An increasing number of tech companies are paying more attention to the entire life cycle of their products and how to make sure that the cycle is green. For example, Nokia has made a step in the right direction by embedding green energy and sustainability throughout all the operations of the company.
That means that sustainability and environmental impact is taken into account in production, packaging, shipping, transport and also recycling of old devices.
Nokia employed environmental specialists who are involved in the design, selection of specific chemicals that aren’t catastrophic for the environment and reducing the amount of paper used. In addition, Nokia also established a free take-back on old devices in order to make sure the recycling of these products will go through a green process.
Aside from Nokia, Samsung is applying similar take-back possibilities in order to recycle old devices and use their materials and spare parts in the production of new products. In the U.S. alone, you can leave your old Samsung device at over 1200 locations spread throughout the country.
Another popular method to become green is the use of renewable energy. Intel is at the top of the chart with this approach as the company is totally green with 100% of its annual electricity use through green energy. Apple is close behind because 85% of their annual electricity consumption is from green electricity sources.
Initiatives That Change the Future
AirCarbon is an initiative to create sustainable plastic for the future. The product is made of carbon emission – the greatest threat to global warming – which would otherwise be released into the atmosphere.
Dell has already adopted the use of AirCarbon products in their packaging and other parts of their product life cycle. As stated on Dell’s website:
“Dell is first to offer a computer made with certified closed-loop recycled plastics with the launch of the OptiPlex 3030. All-in-OneDell is first to receive third-party certification from UL Environment for its closed-loop plastic recycling initiative.”
Initiatives as such should be adopted by many other companies that use and process vast quantities of plastic.
As of today, Dell is still the only large tech company that is fully transparent about their list of suppliers, how products are made and a detailed overview of the closed-loop life cycle of their products.
Fairphone
Fairphone is the first company to develop an environmentally-friendly smartphone, in both production and supply chain management. The entire process of creating this smartphone is in line with fair work practices and fully recyclable parts.
As most other smartphones are generally designed to last up to two years, Fairphone takes a unique approach by offering a smartphone with a far greater lifespan, as well as easily repairable and replaceable parts.
Every single piece of the phone is replaceable in case of any damage and you can simply buy spare parts on their website.
By doing so, the company strives to accomplish something which no other smartphone company has been able to do, meaning you won’t have to buy a completely new phone ever again – or at least for a very long time.
Looking Into the Future
When we look into the future of environmental innovations of tech companies, Google is one of the leading innovators embracing a greener life cycle and environmental sustainability.
Google has made the switch to supply renewable energy to all of its facilities worldwide. In addition, the company is committed to helping others do the same by hosting markets, seminars and other informative lectures on how to become more environmentally-friendly.
The company culture is built with sustainability at its core, which shows that Google is absolutely serious about green initiatives and a greener world.
Companies such as Google are a good example of sustainability and hopefully other companies will follow in their footsteps in the future. It’s not only recommended but simply immeasurably important to consider the environment for every company – big or small.
Photo Credits
Flood – pixabay creative commons
Woman looking at lake – pixabay creative commons
Guest Author Bio
Bill Hess
Bill here from PixelPrivacy.com. Whether it be one of our in-depth guides or our expertly crafted “how-to” articles, we’re here to show you how to stay safe online. We believe everyone has the power to keep their data secure, no matter what your level of tech expertise is and our site will show you how!
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