The 27th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP27) recently held in Egypt has left many with more doubts than commitments. But this should not prevent every company from taking on its role and social responsibility, and asking the question of how we can reduce our carbon footprint on the planet. Fortunately, technology comes once again to our aid, and solutions like Salesforce Net Zero Cloud help companies become more sustainable and measure more easily the impact of their actions and their carbon footprint.
As we could see in our recent webinar “The Net Zero target and technology adaptation of Spanish companies” which we organized in collaboration with Salesforce and McKinsey, the next decade will be key. Firstly, to accelerate decarbonization. Secondly, to enable Spain to achieve the Net Zero scenario by 2050 and even reduce its emissions by 46% by 2030 (compared to the 31% expected). To make this possible, it will be necessary to apply best practices and take advantage of the opportunities ahead of us.
What is Net Zero?
The Net Zero aim is to cut greenhouse gas emissions as close to zero as soon as possible, with a small percentage reabsorbed by oceans and forests. According to a McKinsey study, this Net Zero scenario for Spain is possible, but also urgent, but will generate opportunities and it could create more than a million jobs related to decarbonization. A whole transition that will be led by technological change and which will require a cumulative investment up to 2050 of some EUR 2.5 billion in “green” technologies and sustainable processes.
Bruno Esgalhado, partner in McKinsey and expert in sustainability and energy issues, said that Spain should accelerate this decarbonization process by four times as it is lagging behind European Union countries. Furthermore, there are several advantages to address Net Zero emissions: a greater potential for renewable energy thanks to the 300 days of sunshine per year; a powerful pre-existing gas infrastructure; and a potential carbon sink with about 18.5 million forest hectares.
But, as with any major transformation, decarbonization will require collaboration between the public sector (which must invest and create the ideal scenario), the private sector (by investing and maturing technology solutions), and consumers (who must make a strong and committed effort opting for green products and the companies that commit to Net Zero). Above all, according to Esgalhado, it will be necessary to take risks on technologies that are not yet mature but which are going to be differential in the coming years.
While there are companies that are aware of the opportunities, there are others who don’t know what steps to take and how to meet the decarbonization challenge. In these cases, the challenge is to help these companies make a serious and reliable diagnostic to understand where they are and how far they can go in reducing their carbon footprint.
What is Salesforce Net Zero Cloud?
Just one of these tools which allows you to measure emissions and achieve carbon neutrality quickly is Salesforce Net Zero Cloud. A platform that applies the same technology used for many years in customer CRM, but now adapted to carbon footprint. It allows the measurement and analysis of carbon emissions related to the energy consumption and travel of a company, as well as those of its suppliers and collaborators. By collecting all the data on a single platform, the carbon footprint in scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions can be effectively quantified in order to design a climate action plan.
For Nicolas Delgado, Net Zero Cloud Account Executive for EMEA in Salesforce, companies are the great platform to drive change and with solutions like Net Zero Cloud they will be able to centralize all data related to company emissions in a single point.
How does Net Zero Cloud work?
Salesforce Net Zero Cloud is the best tool to take concrete action to achieve carbon neutrality with Customer 360 solutions because it allows the design of a climate action plan based on analysis of the company’s carbon footprint data in scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions, all on a single platform.
In addition, the tool allows for communication of the company’s sustainability efforts based on facts from reliable data which calculate emissions from business trips, fuel usage and supply chain, among others. Data is displayed in dynamic dashboards and reports that allow organizations to easily identify areas of improvement and take meaningful action. With Salesforce Net Zero Cloud you can add the emission factors audited by your company or include those already offered by Salesforce by default. As a result, you can readily communicate to customers, employees, investors and stakeholders the commitment to sustainability practices and milestones that are being achieved.
As Delgado explained, Net Zero Cloud can be customized to meet the needs and reality of each company. The platform can be trained, for example, to read invoices and extract all information about emissions, or to give access to a supplier portal, with a collaborative environment which provides carbon footprint data.
Aware that each company must work on the tool to make reduction or compensation decisions, Delgado pointed out that Salesforce has also launched a carbon footprint credit marketplace in the United States which will expand to the rest of the countries. McKinsey estimates that the global market for voluntary decarbonization will grow to $50 billion by 2030, as many organizations are rapidly increasing their zero-emission commitments. Yet organizations don’t always know how to build a portfolio of carbon credits, or even where to start, which is where Net Zero Marketplace can further help companies.
A trusted partner to reach your Net Zero goal
Sustainability and decarbonization are no longer a future issue; they are a need for the present. The tools to address this challenge are here, and now it’s time for the first step. On that path to decarbonization, at S4G we want to become your trusted partner. To help you start a Net Zero strategy and identify where all the data is (consumption, energy, mobility…). To facilitate how to promote sustainable supplier relationships and how to integrate and centralize all data into the platform for calculating emissions. Above all, to take appropriate action.
Perhaps a single company cannot change the world, but we can help to change a company’s world.