How some companies cut corners to achieve renewable energy targets
All Things Sustainable30 Huhti 2021

How some companies cut corners to achieve renewable energy targets

Hundreds of companies around the world have made ambitious promises to purchase only wind, solar and other types of clean electricity to power their operations. But many of these corporations aren't buying actual physical electricity from renewable sources. Instead, they are snapping up incredibly cheap instruments known as unbundled renewable energy certificates, or RECs, which allows them to make "100% renewable power" claims while continuing to emit greenhouse gases as before. The practice is also problematic because it does little to encourage the establishment of new wind or solar farms —not a good outcome in the broader fight against climate change.

In this episode, we talk to Max Scher, head of clean energy and carbon programs at software giant Salesforce, which used to buy RECs but no longer does so.

"My general fear here is that if we are hyper-focused on… purchasing RECs, we're going to miss the hard work, the important work, on reducing energy consumption, thinking about siting of facilities on cleaner grids" and other real-world steps to lower the carbon footprint of corporations," Max tells us.

We also hear from an analyst at Lazard Asset Management, and from Matthew Brander, a carbon accounting expert at the University of Edinburgh who cautions that buying RECS instead of actual renewable power can be "a very low-cost easy way of making it appear to have reduced emissions."

Photo credit: Getty images

Tämä jakso on lisätty Podme-palveluun avoimen RSS-syötteen kautta eikä se ole Podmen omaa tuotantoa. Siksi jakso saattaa sisältää mainontaa.

Jaksot(348)

Here's what you missed at London Climate Action Week

Here's what you missed at London Climate Action Week

The 8th edition of London Climate Action Week (LCAW) wrapped up June 28, and in this episode of the All Things Sustainable podcast we're talking about key takeaways with Nick Mabey. Nick is LCAW's Fou...

3 Heinä 44min

What planetary health means for the private sector

What planetary health means for the private sector

The inaugural Climate Week Zurich in May opened with a stark assessment of the health of the planet: Internationally recognized scientist Johan Rockström told the audience that the Earth has transgres...

26 Kesä 38min

CSO Insights: How sustainability at big bank UBS evolved after mega-merger

CSO Insights: How sustainability at big bank UBS evolved after mega-merger

Three years ago, one of the world's largest banks, Switzerland-based UBS, completed the acquisition of another major global bank, Credit Suisse.   In today's episode of the All Things Sustainable po...

19 Kesä 33min

How the UK is tackling the "alphabet soup" of sustainability disclosures

How the UK is tackling the "alphabet soup" of sustainability disclosures

Ahead of London Climate Action Week, we're exploring how the UK is adopting International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) standards.   This episode of the All Things Sustainable podcast is the...

12 Kesä 25min

Live in London: How sustainability is evolving into a broader conversation about resilience

Live in London: How sustainability is evolving into a broader conversation about resilience

Earlier this year, we took the show on the road for our first episode of the All Things Sustainable podcast recorded live in London. We sat down in front of an audience with three guests to understand...

5 Kesä 41min

CSO Insights: How food and beverage giant PepsiCo uses AI for its 'era of resilience'

CSO Insights: How food and beverage giant PepsiCo uses AI for its 'era of resilience'

In this episode of the All Things Sustainable podcast, we talk to PepsiCo to understand how one of the world's biggest food and beverage companies is building resilient food systems.  PepsiCo produc...

29 Touko 40min

How companies are balancing AI data center energy demand and sustainability

How companies are balancing AI data center energy demand and sustainability

The rapid expansion of AI-driven data centers is putting unprecedented pressure on energy supply, emissions and water availability. At the start of 2026, S&P Global named AI and data center growth as ...

22 Touko 33min

Why Canadian Sustainability Standards Board Chair calls sustainability disclosures "table stakes"

Why Canadian Sustainability Standards Board Chair calls sustainability disclosures "table stakes"

In this episode of the All Things Sustainable podcast, we're examining global uptake of standards created by the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB).   The ISSB launched in 2021 to c...

15 Touko 25min

Suosittua kategoriassa Liike-elämä ja talous

sijotuskasti
mimmit-sijoittaa
psykopodiaa-podcast
rss-oivalluksia-rahasta-elamasta
ostan-asuntoja-podcast
rss-rahapodi
asuntoasiaa-paivakirjat
inderespodi
rss-rahamania
rahapuhetta
oppimisen-psykologia
pomojen-suusta
vapauta-supervoimasi-podcast
lakicast
rss-laakispodi
rss-karon-grilli
rss-viisas-raha-podi
rss-viestinnan-palvelumuotoilu
rss-kohti-unelmia
rss-raharadio