Meta, also known as Facebook, has pledged to do more to combat climate change. The announcement comes as world leaders are gathered in Glasgow for a conference to deal with the dire situation in the world due to climate change.
The 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference began on Sunday, October 31, and will continue until Friday, November 12. The COP26 summit is bringing parties together to accelerate action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.
The organizers of this summit boast that it is poised to be one of the most consequential climate events since the negotiation of the Paris Agreement in 2015. It is intended to “build a more sustainable, resilient and zero-carbon future, we need a whole economic transformation in which non-state actors will play an increasingly vital role.”
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In a blog post, Nick Clegg, Facebook VP, Global Affairs & Communications, declared, “Starting last year, we achieved net zero emissions for our global operations, and we’re supported by 100% renewable energy. To achieve this we’ve reduced our greenhouse gas emissions by 94% since 2017. We invest enough in wind and solar energy to cover all our operations. And for the remaining emissions, we support projects that remove emissions from the atmosphere.”
The company also says that it is pushing its suppliers to be net zero and for its operations to restore more water than they use by 2030. “Since our first wind contract in 2013,” said Clegg, “we’ve contracted over seven gigawatts of new solar and wind energy, all in the same power grids where our data centers are located, which are some of the most efficient in the world. We are also implementing measures to reduce our business travel emissions, and joining the Sustainable Aviation Buyers Alliance as a founding member to help accelerate the path to net zero air travel by driving investment in sustainable aviation fuel.”
So what is Facebook, or should we say Meta, doing?
First, Facebook says that it is expanding their Climate Science Center to more than 100 countries to connect more people with “factual resources from leading climate organizations.” The company also pledges to continue adding informational labels to posts about climate change and directing people to the Climate Science Center. And Meta is launching Green Boost, a new sustainability training program to help small businesses reduce their carbon emissions and grow sustainably.