Schneider Electric™, the leader in digital transformation of energy management and automation, has announced it has planted 7,500 trees in Europe, to contribute towards the offset of any carbon emissions associated with the delivery of its recent European Partner Summit. Although the event was virtual, Schneider saw an opportunity to fully mitigate its emissions and worked with the non-profit organisation, Tree Nation, to fulfil the project.
By delivering the Summit as an online event, Schneider Electric and its IT channel partners avoided the emissions in normal circumstances associated with the organisers and delegates’ travel, accommodation, and use of physical resources.
The Schneider Sustainability Impact program
The company estimated the power use associated with the virtual summit, offsetting 1,100 tonnes of CO2 as part of the Schneider Sustainability Impact (SSI) programme – which sets out the 2021-25 goals and focuses of the wider Schneider Electric sustainability vision, on the journey towards Net Zero 2030.
Rob McKernan, SVP, Secure Power Europe Region, Schneider Electric, commented on the initiative: “Our European Partner Summit is one example of how digital technologies have enabled businesses to adapt and overcome the challenges of the pandemic. While the virtual nature does have less obvious implications on sustainability without the need to travel, we still must hold ourselves accountable and address the carbon impact. I’m proud we are able to give back to the earth through our partnership with Tree Nation.”
He continued: “As the world’s most sustainable organization, we are making it our mission to help and support our partner community and the end users of Schneider Electric’s solutions with their own sustainability ambitions. We’d like to thank all the guests who not only attended and involved themselves in the virtual Summit, but also supported this initiative by successfully planting thousands of trees in Europe.”
Tree Nation and its work with Schneider Electric
Planting of trees is one of the most direct ways to take tangible action against deforestation and consequent increase in carbon emissions. According to Tree Nation, by absorbing and storing CO2 from the atmosphere, a single tree can offset around 250kg of carbon emissions during its lifetime – although estimates vary.
Schneider Electric has been working with Tree Nation in a long-established partnership to reduce the environmental impact of partner and supplier operations via tree planting. The partnership demonstrates Schneider Electric’s continued commitment to demonstrating leadership in environmental sustainability, and to reducing the environmental impact of IT sector energy use as reported in the Digital Economy and Climate Impact Report.
The SSI represents the translation of Schneider’s 6 long-term commitments into a selection of 11 highly transformative and innovative programs. Results are published quarterly, audited annually, and linked to short term incentive plans for the managers of the Group. A notable addition to the SSI in 2021 is the local aspect, aiming to deploy local actions in the 100+ markets where the Group operates in order to better empower all leaders and collaborators to unlock meaningful local impacts.
The European Partner Summit initiative continues the company’s momentum towards its wider SSI targets, mobilizing support from employees, partners, and customers. It also supports the objectives of Schneider Electric’s Zero Carbon Project, which aims to sharply reduce its scope 3 emissions. This program has already been joined by more than 900 of the company’s top suppliers, whom Schneider Electric will train and support to reduce their carbon emissions by 50% in the next 5 years.
Moving forward, Schneider Electric will endeavour to offset emissions associated with the delivery of virtual or online IT channel conferences in Europe, including October’s Canalys Forums EMEA 2021, reinforcing the crucial role of Schneider Electric’s channel partners and customers in the quest to combat the effects of climate change.
To learn more about Schneider Electric’s SSI 2021-25 and its wider sustainability company credentials, please visit the website.
