The IT industry has calculated it could make cuts of more than
15 per cent in global greenhouse gas emissions by 2020 (2) but
Greenpeace New Zealand communications manager Suzette Jackson said
most companies were falling well short of that target, as shown in
results released today at the IT, Environment and Climate Change
conference (3) in Copenhagen.
"The majority of IT companies talk big about "going green"
rather than giving real evidence of how their software and hardware
is actually reducing emissions. It is time they delivered real
evidence of their solutions in action."
The Greenpeace Cool IT Challenge, launched in February this
year, asked major IT companies to take action prioritising issues
around climate change in 2009. (4)
In addition to cutting its own emissions and increasing the use
of renewable energy, the industry was asked to deliver climate
solutions for the rest of the economy in areas such as electricity
transmission, transport and building efficiency. Greenpeace is
calling on the industry to take action, which it says will help
influence world leaders to deliver a climate-saving deal at the UN
Climate Summit in Copenhagen in December. (5)
"Time is running out. IT Industry leaders are in a position to
take a strong stand on tackling climate change. While governments
across the globe are debating climate policy, it is disappointing
that innovative IT companies who stand to profit handsomely from
tech solutions that reduce GHGs are sitting on the fence."
The Greenpeace challenge has revealed some positive results. Sun
Microsystems has publically called for a reduction in greenhouse
gas emissions of 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050 and a cut of
at least 25 percent below by 2020. Greenpeace is urging other IT
companies to match these targets. IBM jointly holds the top spot
with Sun, mainly due to its wide range of solutions. Additionally,
Fujitsu stands out as a company openly addressing the need to
measure "net" emissions reductions that result from solutions they
propose for the rest of the economy. But, leading names such as HP,
Microsoft and Sony amongst other IT giants scored less that 15 out
of the maximum of 100. (6)
Like the Greenpeace Guide to Greener Electronics (7), the Cool
IT Challenge will be updated regularly. The second version is
expected later year.
Greenpeace recently launched the Sign On campaign, which aims to
get as many New Zealanders as possible supporting John Key to do
the right thing at Copenhagen in December. See www.signon.org.nz
for more details.
Other contacts: Greenpeace New Zealand communications manager Suzette Jackson 021 614 899
Greenpeace New Zealand media officer Phil Crawford 021 2299 594
Notes: Notes:
1.www.greenpeace.org/coolit
2.www.smart2020.org/
3.http://www.oecd.org/sti/ict/green-ict
4.www.greenpeace.org/coolit/criteria
5.A peak in global emissions by 2015 followed by a rapid decline to as close to zero as possible by 2050 is crucial to protect the climate. The industrialized world must commit to deeper cuts in emissions and provide financial and technical assistance to developing countries to enable them to switch to clean energy, stop deforestation and adapt to those climate impacts that are now unavoidable. More information is available at www.greenpeace.org/international/press/reports/climate-demands
6.www.greenpeace.org/coolit/scores
7.http://www.greenpeace.org/rankingguide