article 7:
Apple's Commitment to Climate Action
What we have learnt from APPLE’s Environment Progression Report Fiscal Year 2023? TCU picked up interesting keywords to discuss about the movement of ‘climate action’ in the global leading brand, like Apple.
Carbon Neutrality Commitment - Environment report is transforming from what brand did as corporate social responsibility (CSR) to what committed impact brand achieved in progress. Identifying the impact value of the carbon-emission reduction progression that has been achieved since the commitment started is very impressive. Since 2015, Apple has reduced its emission over 55 percent (Ref 2). Apple aims to achieve the carbon neutrality for the entire footprint in 2030.
Impact’s Accelerator - In the global leading design-driven innovation brand, not only focusing on user-centric deisgn innovation, but also impact-minimised emission innovation. Apple is aiming to decarbonize in the three largest areas in the entire value chain, i.e. materials, electricity, and transportation (Ref 2).
Low-carbon Design - This new term is a sexy, greenly term, low-carbon design meaning lower-impact design. In the report, it defines ‘Low-carbon design’ as “design products and manufacturing processes to be less carbon-intensive through thoughtful material selection, increased material efficiency, and greater product energy efficiency.” (Ref 1: p 10) Design for Recycle or Disassemble Design is now a part of the low-carbon design. In the coming future, Net-Zero Design will be present as businesses are aggressively pushing themselves to achieve the Net-Zero Emission Protocol in 2050. (Net-Zero Design is termed by TCU)
The Restore Fund - when offsetting the carbon footprint is not lower down to zero, the restore fund has been initiated to help businesses invest in high-quality, nature-based solutions that restore the forests, wetlands, and grasslands that remove carbon from our atmosphere.
Five Pillars to Tackle Climate Change (Ref 1) - Low-Carbon Design, Energy Efficiency, Clean Electricity, Direct Emissions Abatement, and Carbon Removal are five solutions to remove carbon emissions. IN h
To sum up, key environmental issues that Apple has the commitment to thrive the business and planet together, not choosing one or the other, as the new business mindset - carbon neutral for corporate emissions, reduced value chain emissions, decarbonised suppliers chain, investment on high quality, nature-based projects, water strategy, increased use of recycled materials, plastic content reduction in packaging, Standard in Green Cleaners used in electronic manufacturing, sustainable chemistry, and impact’s acceleration program within the Apple’s supply chain.
source:
Ref 1: https://www.apple.com/environment/pdf/Apple_Environmental_Progress_Report_2023.pdf
Ref 2: https://www.apple.com/environment/pdf/Apple_Environmental_Progress_Report_2024.pdf