q Stress-test sustainability plans Sustainability was high on the corporate agenda in 2023, with many organisations making a commitment to be net zero by 2030 or 2050. Yet, analysis by EY shows that while 78% of the UK’s largest firms have published partially developed net zero plans, just 5% have disclosed transition plans with an appropriate level of detail. This year, businesses will need to answer key questions on strategy and execution as they translate long term-thinking on sustainability into action. Doing so will require more robust net-zero plans and increase pressure on all parts of the business to identify inefficiencies and take risks on innovations that could have a meaningful impact. w Embrace the Circular Economy In a circular economy, products and materials are kept in circulation through maintenance, reuse, refurbishment, remanufacture, recycling and composting. According to research by Arup and Business in the Community (BITC), two thirds of companies employed at least one circular economy principle in 2023. That number is expected to grow significantly this year as companies face up to the reality of their climate pledges. How a business chooses to introduce circular principles will vary greatly from sector to sector, but one area almost every business in the UK should be thinking about is IT infrastructure, and remanufacturing in particular. The environmental benefits of remanufacturing a used laptop, say, so that it is ‘like new’ in appearance and performance are overwhelming. Lifecycle On the road to net zero analysis by Cranfield University shows that a Circular Computing remanufactured laptop produces over 15 times less CO2 than an average new laptop. In fact, choosing just one remanufactured laptop over a new one can prevent 316kg of CO2 emissions from entering the atmosphere, stop 1,200kg of the Earth’s resources from being mined and save over 50,000 gallons of water. Sustainability is often seen as a zero-sum game, but remanufacturing delivers both financial and environmental benefits with no impact on performance. e Enhance supply chain management and transparency In assessing their environmental footprint, organisations need to consider not just their own actions but the impact of their whole supply chain, in particular Scope 3 emissions. Scope 3 emissions refer to greenhouse gasses that an organisation is indirectly responsible for up and down its value chain, such as those generated in the manufacture and distribution of products bought from suppliers as well as those associated with customers’ use of its own products or services. Calls for transparency in supply chains, from the media and investors to whistle-blowers and activists, are encouraging businesses to be more discerning when choosing business partners, and more selective when running tenders. r Leverage AI for sustainability Unsurprisingly, AI has enormous potential to accelerate innovation in sustainability, from improving efficiencies in energy use and supply chains to refining the way sustainability data is collected and analysed. Good examples include helping to develop lighter and stronger materials so that aircraft, delivery vans and wind turbines consume less energy; making agriculture more sustainable by predicting weather patterns or analysing images of crops for signs of pests or disease; and saving energy in data centres by predicting the impact that small changes in process can have on overall energy consumption. That said, there are still hurdles for AI to overcome before it is seen as a net positive for our planet. A recent study by Hugging Face, reported in MIT Technology Review, estimates that OpenAI’s GPT-3 produced 500 metric tons of carbon dioxide during training. Sam Altman himself has inferred that a single request in ChatGPT can consume 100 times more energy than one Google search. t Prioritise green skills training As business leaders start to acknowledge the climate crisis and look to be part of the solution, there has been a boom in sustainabilityrelated roles. This trend will continue in 2024, alongside an increased focus on upskilling staff across diverse job functions. Currently, only 17% of companies offer training in green skills. However, almost one third of employers admit that their staff have asked for more training in this area. It should come as no surprise to see a new generation, marked by heightened environmental awareness, urge employers to adopt more robust and responsible sustainability practices. Businesses are far more likely to achieve their net-zero goals if that ambition comes from the top and if their desire for change is understood and acted upon by the whole workforce. www.circularcomputing.com Steve Haskew highlights five steps businesses must take if they are to make progress towards net zero goals and turn sustainability pledges into action businessinfomag.uk magazine 20 SUSTAINABILITY Steve Haskew Steve Haskew is Head of Sustainability and Social Leadership at Circular Computing, a leading remanufacturer and prime mover behind the world’s only BSI Kitemark for remanufactured laptops. Its 360-point remanufacturing process ensures that Circular Computing’s remanufactured, carbon-neutral HP, Dell and Lenovo laptops look and perform ‘equal to or better than new’ in line with BS standard 8887.
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