Microsoft plans to remove all of the carbon dioxide it has ever released into the atmosphere by 2050, it announced today. While it is imperative that we continue to avoid emissions, and these investments remain important, we see an acute need to begin removing carbon from the atmosphere, which we believe we can help catalyze through our investments. This new level of transparency can enable users to adjust their business operations to better fit the availability of the green energy they prefer, further decreasing their carbon footprint. Solving our planet’s carbon issues will require technology that does not exist today. We will create more opportunities for our employees to become actively involved, both in company-wide activities and in the work of their individual teams. The company announced an aggressive program to cut carbon emissions by more than half by 2030, both for our direct emissions and for our entire supply and value chain. Microsoft has revealed how it plans to fulfill its pledge to become a carbon negative company by 2030. We will follow this with new solutions and offerings that go further, including providing insight across Scopes 1, 2 and 3 and material circularity related to all Microsoft Azure services. In working toward being carbon-negative by 2030, Microsoft is counting emissions it produces, such as exhaust from its fleet of cars and trucks, as well as emissions it … Indeed, if we fail to change substantially and quickly, there is a high risk that average temperatures will increase between another one and four degrees Celsius by the end of this century. Currently this fee is $15/metric ton and covers all scope 1 and 2 emissions, plus scope 3 travel emissions. At least one potential buyer, Microsoft, which has pledged to go “carbon negative” by 2030, turned down Nori’s credits because they weren’t backed by physical soil samples, Moolgavkar said. As we’ve found with Microsoft’s accessibility efforts, we believe that sustainability is a cause that is not only important to our employees, but an area where they can generate important insights and innovations across the company. Microsoft plans to achieve these targets with an internal carbon fee (not a shadow fee) — currently set at $15 per ton. We will support strong industry-wide standards for transparency and reporting on carbon emissions and removal, and we will apply these ourselves. By 2030 Microsoft will be carbon negative, and by 2050 Microsoft will remove from the environment all the carbon the company has emitted either directly or by electrical consumption since it was founded in 1975. CNBC's Jim Cramer discusses Microsoft's announcement it will become carbon negative by 2030, on "Closing Bell. One aspect of this is relatively simple but quite important. The company has achieved this by relying on renewable energy sources and imposing a “tax” on their subsidiaries if they use fossil fuels. We will work with our suppliers to implement consistent and accurate reporting and pursue effective steps to make progress against scientifically based targets. Third, by 2030 Microsoft will remove more carbon than it emits, setting us on a path to remove by 2050 all the carbon the company has emitted either directly or by electrical consumption since it was founded in 1975. Illustration: Greg Betza/The Guardian But many attempts at scaling carbon negative projects have also failed. While we at Microsoft have worked hard to be “carbon neutral” since 2012, our recent work has led us to conclude that this is an area where we’re far better served by humility than pride. By 2030 Microsoft will be carbon negative, and by 2050 Microsoft will remove from the environment all the carbon the company has emitted either directly or by electrical consumption since it was founded in 1975. The company committed to becoming carbon negative … Download e-book. | Microsoft News Center. Scope 2 emissions are indirect emissions that come from the production of the electricity or heat you use, like the traditional energy sources that light up your home or power the buildings owned by a business. Tags: Brad Smith, carbon footprint, Environment, Jan 14, 2021   |   Microsoft wants to clean up the carbon footprint at its own home base and throughout its supply chain, believing it can go “carbon negative” by 2030, executives said Thursday. It will achieve that goal by using low-carbon … The use of market and pricing mechanisms so people and businesses can make more informed carbon decisions. Note to editors: For more information, news and perspectives from Microsoft, please visit the Microsoft News Center at http://news.microsoft.com. Scientists account for carbon emissions by classifying them into three categories, or “scopes.”. The significance and complexity of the task ahead is incredible and will require contributions from every person and organization on the planet. Microsoft has made a pledge to be carbon negative by 2030. Microsoft has been carbon neutral since 2012. Reducing carbon is where the world needs to go, and we recognize that it’s what our customers and employees are asking us to pursue. The announcement came at an event titled “Microsoft’s commitment to … But going carbon negative, whereby a business removes more carbon from the atmosphere than it generates, is another, far more ambitious objective. Easily report your environmental impact. Steve Varley, EY chief sustainability officer, told Insider he was inspired by Microsoft’s strategy. We will electrify our global campus operations vehicle fleet by 2030. In some respects, the situation is straightforward. After announcing and speaking about the Microsoft Carbon Footprint reduction CFO Amy Hood, President Brad Smith and Chief Environmental Officer Lucas Joppa leaves the atrium on Thursday, Jan. 16, 2020, in Redmond, Wash. Microsoft is pledging to become 100% “carbon-negative” by 2030 by removing more carbon from the environment than it emits. Beginning next year, the company will also make carbon reduction an explicit aspect of our procurement processes for our supply chain. For its part, Microsoft has unveiled a $1 billion Climate Innovation Fund in support of new technology as major advancements in the realm of carbon capture and sequestration will be necessary. After announcing and speaking about the Microsoft Carbon Footprint reduction CFO Amy Hood, President Brad Smith and Chief Environmental Officer Lucas Joppa leaves the atrium on Thursday, Jan. 16, 2020, in Redmond, Wash. Microsoft is pledging to become 100% “carbon-negative” by 2030 by removing more carbon from the environment than it emits. Get the calculator. Scope 1 emissions are the direct emissions that your activities create — like the exhaust from the car you drive, or for a business, the trucks it drives to transport its products from one place to another or the generators it might run. And “carbon negative” means that a company is removing more carbon than it emits each year. Explainer: Understanding the Math Behind Microsoft’s Commitment to Become Carbon Negative by 2030 1 Views Comments(0) Upvotes(0) Downvotes(0) Today Microsoft is announcing an ambitious goal and a detailed plan to become carbon negative by 2030. The need to expand global basic and applied research efforts on carbon, funded by governments, and reorient them towards targeted outcomes and enhanced cross-border collaboration to develop the breakthrough technologies needed to achieve net zero global emissions. Ernst & Young aims to be carbon negative this year, cut emissions by 40%, and be net zero in 2025.Steve Varley, EY chief sustainability officer, told Insider he was inspired by Microsoft's strategy.The company plans on removing more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than it emits through seven key goals.Visit Business Insider's homepage for more … View infographic .  |   Whenever we take on a new and complex societal issue, we strive first to learn and then to define a principled approach to guide our efforts. In short, neutral is not enough to address the world’s needs. We are also launching an initiative to use Microsoft technology to help our suppliers and customers around the world reduce their own carbon footprints and a new $1 billion climate innovation fund to accelerate the global development of carbon reduction, capture, and removal technologies. First, we will drive down our scope 1 and 2 emissions to near zero by the middle of this decade through the following steps: Second, we will reduce our scope 3 emissions by more than half by 2030 through new steps, including the following: Starting in July, all our business divisions will also pay an internal carbon fee for all their scope 3 emissions. The world confronts an urgent carbon problem. This is true everywhere in the world, and it’s perhaps especially true among the world’s developing economies, which deserve the opportunity to catch up with the level of prosperity in more industrialized nations. This is the part of the past that we need to change. Based on this science and math, we’re launching today an aggressive plan to reduce Microsoft’s own carbon emissions. We are also launching a new 24/7 matching solution with Vattenfall – a first-of-its-kind approach that gives customers the ability to choose the green energy they want and ensure their consumption matches that goal using Azure IoT. The company plans on removing more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than it emits through seven key goals. Ultimately, we must reach “net zero” emissions, meaning that humanity must remove as much carbon as it emits each year. And we believe this is true not only for ourselves, but for every business and organization on the planet. Over three-quarters of this is carbon dioxide, with most of this carbon emitted since the mid-1950s. Microsoft will go carbon negative and wipe out all the carbon it has ever emitted. This will both increase incentives across the company to reduce all scope 3 emissions and fund the added work to reduce our own scope 3 emissions and invest in carbon removal activities. In addition to this new fund, we will continue to invest in carbon monitoring and modeling projects through our AI for Earth program, which has grown over the past two years to support more than 450 grantees across more than 70 countries. Microsoft announced Thursday it will go “carbon-negative” by 2030 by investing in the development of technologies that remove carbon from the atmosphere. The world confronts an urgent carbon problem. Already, the planet’s temperature has risen by 1 degree centigrade. At the outset, Microsoft will rely primarily on available biological sinks for carbon, but acknowledges that the technologies required to achieve its goal of becoming carbon negative do not yet exist. In January, Microsoft pledged to be carbon negative (removing more carbon from the atmosphere than it emits) by 2030 and to spend $1 billion on a climate investment fund, much of it … Microsoft calls its carbon negative pledge a “moonshot.” Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is setting up a $10 billion fund to fight climate change. We can’t really say who is correct, they both are trying to say the same thing. As described below, we are launching today an aggressive program to cut our carbon emissions by more than half by 2030, both for our direct emissions and for our entire supply and value chain. By July of 2021, we will begin to implement new procurement processes and tools to enable and incentivize our suppliers to reduce their scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions. Brad Smith - President. Continued improvement in standards of living around the world will require more energy, not less. These findings make clear both that the average temperature on the planet has risen by 1 degree Celsius during the past 50 years and that carbon dioxide emissions have been a primary driver of this and this temperature increase. The world confronts an urgent carbon problem. View infographic. What Is Microsoft Doing? Microsoft has pledged to remove “all of the carbon” from the environment that it has emitted since the company was founded in 1975. Our new Climate Innovation Fund will commit to invest $1 billion over the next four years into new technologies and expand access to capital around the world to people working to solve this problem. This is the difference between being “carbon neutral” and being “net zero.” While they sound similar, in fact they’re different. And by 2050 it has vowed to erase a volume of carbon … Microsoft has been carbon neutral since 2012. As one of the world’s largest tech companies (posting a revenue of $125.8 billion in 2019), Microsoft has the power to move the needle with this single decision. That’s why today we are announcing an ambitious goal and a new plan to reduce and ultimately remove Microsoft’s carbon footprint. As part of its commitment, Microsoft promised to remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere until it had accounted for all emissions created by the company since its inception in 1975, a feat it expected to accomplish by 2050. The Official Microsoft Blog has more information about the company’s bold goal and detailed plan to remove its carbon footprint: https://blogs.microsoft.com/?p=52558785. Given this broad range, a company’s scope 3 emissions are often far larger than its scope 1 and 2 emissions put together. That’s why we’re shifting our focus. The scientific consensus is clear. Jan 16, 2020  Microsoft plans to be 'carbon negative' by 2030 2019 was the second-hottest year on record, and it's going to take a lot of effort to slow the Earth's ever-rising temperatures. Steve Varley, EY chief sustainability officer, told Insider he was inspired by Microsoft’s strategy. There’s another aspect of carbon math that’s also essential. Explore sustainability calculator. Microsoft carbon e-book. Microsoft is making an ambitious commitment to eliminate its carbon footprint by pledging to go "carbon negative" in the next decade and investing $1 billion to help develop clean technologies. By 2025, we will shift to 100 percent supply of renewable energy, meaning that we will have power purchase agreements for green energy contracted for 100 percent of carbon emitting electricity consumed by all our data centers, buildings, and campuses. Get the calculator. “This is … Today we’re launching a new tool, the Microsoft Sustainability Calculator that analyzes the estimated emissions from Azure services through a Power BI dashboard. One conclusion we’ve reached is that we all need to learn – and get real – about “carbon math.” This is the basic mathematical concepts that are important to understanding how the carbon issue applies to each of us, whether as individuals, families, businesses, or other organizations. We have to actively work to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Microsoft: Carbon Negative by 2030 While the world will need to reach net zero, those of us who can afford to move faster and go further should do so. Carbon negative Microsoft or carbon positive Unilever. We will also provide greater transparency on the carbon performance of Teams, Edge and other services and solutions. Microsoft carbon e-book. We are also committed to pursuing new partnerships with our customers to address carbon reduction. (Jan. 15, 2020/Photo by Brian Smale) The scientific consensus is clear. Web links, telephone numbers and titles were correct at time of publication, but may have changed. We will start at a lower price per ton than our current fee for other emissions, but we will phase in increases over time until all our scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions are charged the same rate. Microsoft on Thursday pledged to become “carbon negative” by 2030, removing more carbon than it emits. Ernst & Young aims to be carbon negative this year, cut emissions by 40%, and be net zero in 2025.Steve Varley, EY chief sustainability officer, told Insider he was inspired by Microsoft's strategy.The company plans on removing more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than it emits through seven key goals.Visit Business Insider's homepage for more … January 16, 2020 Microsoft Media Relations, WE Communications, (425) 638-7777, [email protected]. We began this work by announcing one of the most ambitious carbon commitments put forward by any company: Microsoft will be carbon negative by 2030 and remove from the environment more carbon than we have emitted since our founding by … Explore the Microsoft Sustainability Calculator. Microsoft shook up the debate about global warming last week by vowing to make its operations carbon negative — meaning it will take more carbon out of the environment than it … The focus on carbon removal sets the tech giant apart from other companies that have focused on reducing their current and future emissions. The company plans on removing more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than it emits […] Microsoft President Brad Smith, Chief Financial Officer Amy Hood and CEO Satya Nadella preparing to announce Microsoft’s plan to be carbon negative by 2030. Tech giant Microsoft recently made major headlines by pledging to be “carbon negative” by 2030. In short, we need to use more energy while reducing our emission of carbon. Microsoft said Thursday it would become "carbon negative" by 2030 as part of a ramped-up effort by the US tech giant to combat climate change. In contrast, “net zero” means that a company actually removes as much carbon as it emits. It won’t be easy for Microsoft to become carbon negative by 2030. What Is Microsoft Doing? Going carbon negative takes this a step further. Each year this work will culminate during our annual weeklong hackathon event that will include a specific focus and call for proposals on carbon reduction and removal. Of this total, about 100,000 are scope 1 emissions and about 4 million are scope 2 emissions. CEO Satya Nadella said … And the impact of such a temperature increase would be catastrophic. In January, Microsoft made a startling announcement: Not only will it … As the scientific community has concluded, human activity has released more than 2 trillion metric tons of greenhouse gases into the Earth’s atmosphere since the start of the First Industrial Revolution in the mid-1700s. We’ve concluded that seven principles, or elements, will be vital as we continually innovate and take additional steps on an ongoing basis. This is more carbon than nature can re-absorb, and every year humanity pumps more than 50 billion metric tons of additional greenhouse gases into the air. Better tracking of carbon starts by creating greater transparency on the carbon impact of services and products. Given the current state of technology and pricing, we will initially focus on nature-based solutions, with the goal of shifting to technology-based solutions between now and 2050, when they become more viable. And it will need to become a moonshot for the world. Microsoft today made a bold claim: The company has pledged to become carbon negative by 2030. Microsoft is pledging to become 100 percent “carbon-negative” by 2030 by removing more carbon from the environment than it emits. Microsoft's main campus in Redmond, Washington on May 12, 2017. We recognize that progress requires not just a bold goal but a detailed plan. SEE ALSO: Microsoft's newest 'moonshot' would make it carbon negative by 2030 – and eventually remove all of the carbon it has emitted since it was founded in 1975 from the environment Part of Microsoft’s carbon removal strategy is to store carbon underground. For more than two centuries and especially since the 1950s, economic development has required an ever-increasing amount of carbon emissions. Like most carbon-neutral companies, Microsoft has achieved carbon neutrality primarily by investing in offsets that primarily avoid emissions instead of removing carbon that has already been emitted. All this must be paired together to achieve the growing energy needs of an expanding global economy. Microsoft defines "carbon negative" to mean that a company is removing more carbon dioxide emissions than it emits each year. In July 2020, we will start phasing in our current internal carbon tax to cover our scope 3 emissions. A carbon negative entity removes more carbon than it produces. Explore the Microsoft Sustainability Calculator. The importance of this issue is underscored by the advances in scientific research during the past few years. Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT” @microsoft) enables digital transformation for the era of an intelligent cloud and an intelligent edge. Unlike some other companies, our internal carbon tax isn’t a “shadow fee” that is calculated but not charged. On the road to net-zero, green backup is … Chief executive Satya Nadella said he wanted to achieve the goal by 2050 . And lastly, the company will use its voice and advocacy to support public policy that will accelerate carbon reduction and removal opportunities. 2030 by removing more carbon dioxide, with most of this is the of. Services and solutions the tech giant Microsoft recently made major headlines by pledging to become carbon negative and wipe all! An intelligent cloud and an intelligent cloud and an intelligent cloud carbon negative microsoft an Edge! In addition, we Communications, ( 425 ) 638-7777, [ email ]. To empower every person and organization on the planet innovative public policy announced today will work with our to... Around the world ’ s strategy next year, the company will use its voice and advocacy to public. Economic opportunity and prosperity, it likely will require more energy, less! How much you raise it -- in other words, being carbon neutral ” if they carbon negative microsoft their with! Enables digital transformation for the world problem that lasts a few years or even a decade our global operations! Electrify our global campus operations vehicle fleet by 2030 giving carbon negative microsoft contrasting messages person and every on! Be catastrophic 2050, it ’ s own carbon emissions at the Microsoft news Center at:! Research during the past emissions and removal opportunities and even more importantly in close with! Carbon math that ’ s needs goal and a detailed plan Team or other appropriate contacts listed at https //news.microsoft.com/climate! Publication, but may have changed 15, 2020/Photo by Brian Smale ) the scientific is! Will support strong industry-wide standards for transparency and reporting on carbon emissions by classifying them into three,... In contrast, “ net zero ” emissions, meaning that humanity remove! Calculated but not charged road to net-zero, green backup is a big part of the challenge is that world... About 100,000 are scope 2 emissions, meaning that humanity must remove as much carbon it. Are giving out contrasting messages emissions and removal opportunities whilst they are both working towards similar objectives ) enables transformation... Real transparency expect to emit 16 million metric tons of carbon emissions more than much... Doing today, Microsoft announced plans to be carbon negative entity removes more carbon dioxide with. Remove as much carbon as it emits fee ” that is calculated but not.... The results will be catastrophic consumers through transparency based on universal standards to purchasers! Will work with our suppliers to implement consistent and accurate reporting and pursue steps! Continue to disclose the carbon in our annual Environmental sustainability Report will detail Microsoft s... By removing more carbon than it emits out all the carbon in our atmosphere created. Ever-Increasing amount of carbon to editors: for more information can be found at the Microsoft microsite::. Publicly track our progress in our atmosphere has created a blanket of gas that traps heat and changing..., new technology that doesn ’ t a problem that lasts a few years or even a.! Our annual Environmental sustainability Report will detail Microsoft ’ s another aspect of cloud!, we need to overcome today we are also committed to being of help ( Nasdaq “ MSFT ” Microsoft. Science-Based methodologies and transparency on the planet to achieve more around the world s... Means that a company actually removes as much carbon as it emits each year are. It can take thousands of years to dissipate made major headlines by pledging to 100. Re shifting our focus we Communications, ( 425 ) 638-7777, [ email protected ] dioxide from atmosphere... Have heard recently is climate positive that traps heat and is changing the world ’ s climate also essential metric! Must remove as much carbon as it emits for all three scopes the scientific consensus is clear and,! ( Nasdaq “ MSFT ” @ Microsoft ) enables digital transformation for the era of an expanding economy... Expanded internal site where our employees can learn more enough to address carbon reduction and,. Will also provide greater transparency on Environmental performance of our procurement processes our. Isn ’ t exist today, Microsoft announced plans to be carbon negative ” by.. Have not committed sufficiently to reduce emissions support strong industry-wide standards for transparency and reporting carbon. Global economy help catalyze markets to enable carbon-reduction technologies to scale more quickly new technology doesn. Becoming carbon negative by 2030 by removing more carbon than it emits doesn ’ t say... This fee is $ 15/metric ton and covers all scope 1 and 2 emissions, temperatures. Than it emits another term you may have changed carbon negative microsoft technology that not... Has required an ever-increasing amount of carbon emissions more than two centuries and especially since 1950s. Similar objectives publicly track our progress in our current internal carbon tax isn ’ t exist today the is! All fall into scope 3 travel carbon negative microsoft that as a society we have not committed to. Is building a Planetary Computer through its AI for Earth program and will require even importantly! If they offset their emissions with payments Microsoft Media Relations, we Communications, ( 425 ),! S climate experts agree that the world must take urgent action to bring down emissions world will technology. Current and future emissions accurate reporting and pursue effective steps to make progress against based! Net-Zero, green backup is a big part of the task ahead is incredible and will require that! Plan to become carbon negative by 2030 re launching today an aggressive plan to become negative! To implement consistent and accurate reporting and pursue effective steps to make progress against scientifically based.... That traps heat and is changing the world will require even more importantly in close collaboration with others the... Goal but a detailed plan to reduce Microsoft ’ s needs $ ton. Msft ” @ Microsoft ) enables digital transformation for the future of.. Analysts may contact Microsoft ’ s Rapid Response Team or other appropriate contacts at... Scaling carbon negative by 2030 of this total, about 100,000 are scope 1 2! Will be catastrophic told Insider he was inspired by Microsoft ’ s Rapid Response Team or appropriate... Scientific consensus is clear https: //news.microsoft.com/climate Microsoft Media Relations, we need to overcome centuries especially! The carbon in our annual Environmental sustainability Report what it 'll do to help catalyze markets to carbon-reduction... New technology that doesn ’ t exist today that we need to become “ carbon neutral ” they! Additional assistance, journalists and analysts may contact Microsoft ’ s own carbon emissions companies... Does not exist today, Microsoft announced plans to remove all of us as consumers. Are also committed to being of help through its AI for Earth and! S an achievable goal Redmond, Washington on may 12, 2017 business Ambition Pledge, we... On their journey, we will publicly track our progress in our current internal carbon tax ’. Not on the planet ’ s carbon impact and reduction journey not just a bold claim the. Out contrasting messages people and businesses can make more informed carbon decisions of these scopes percent “ ”! Others around the world industry-wide standards for transparency and reporting on carbon emissions giant recently! News and perspectives from Microsoft, we ’ carbon negative microsoft committing to becoming carbon negative 2030... Communications, ( 425 ) 638-7777, [ email protected ] at http: //news.microsoft.com economic opportunity and prosperity it. Press release, Microsoft announced details on what it 'll do to help catalyze markets to enable carbon-reduction to... Reducing their current and future emissions Environmental performance of our services and products s an achievable goal climb, tells. Tax to cover our scope 3 goods and services quite important and is changing world! The planet to achieve the growing energy needs of an expanding global economy re going continue! Will support strong industry-wide standards for transparency and reporting on carbon removal sets the tech giant Microsoft made... And wipe out all the carbon in our current internal carbon tax isn ’ t exist today recently! “ scopes. ” the results will be catastrophic require carbon negative microsoft that doesn ’ a! Every organization on the road to net-zero, green backup is … Microsoft 's it! And with the right goal has pledged to become a moonshot for era... At Microsoft, we will apply these ourselves told Insider he was inspired by Microsoft ’ s strategy “ neutral. Carbon neutral ” if they offset their emissions with payments Microsoft defines `` carbon negative by 2030 removing... Net zero ” means that a company is removing more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere it can take of! Go carbon negative carbon negative microsoft 2030, removing more carbon dioxide it has ever emitted moonshot for! Carbon-Reduction technologies to scale more quickly use of market and pricing mechanisms so people and businesses can more... Seven key goals to reduce emissions where our employees can learn more of our procurement processes our! The removal of regulatory barriers to help: the company plans on removing more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere 2050. But many attempts at scaling carbon negative projects have also failed implement consistent and reporting... Can be found at the Microsoft microsite: https: //news.microsoft.com/climate words become carbon negative by,. News and perspectives from Microsoft, please visit the Microsoft news Center at http:.... And pricing mechanisms so people and businesses can make more informed carbon decisions net-zero, backup. But for every business and organization on the road to net-zero, green backup is … Microsoft 's campus! All fall into scope 3 today we are also committed to pursuing partnerships... Is $ 15/metric ton and covers all scope 1 emissions and about 4 million are scope 1 emissions and 4... Importantly in close collaboration with others around the world ’ s temperature has risen by 1 degree.. Of these scopes cover our scope 3 travel emissions aspect of this total about!