Today, Lenovo is thrilled to celebrate the launch of the Net-Zero Standard (the Standard) with the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi). Lenovo was one of ~80 companies selected to “road test” the Standard before today’s launch. The first ever science-based Net-Zero Standard for emissions reduction will combat the current inconsistencies that surround net-zero targets and enable consistent measurement and evaluation of a company’s emissions reduction. Lenovo was honored to road test the Standard with other businesses committed to decarbonizing at the pace and scale required to align with the goals of the Paris Agreement.
Lenovo began working with SBTi while setting its own near-term emissions reduction targets for 2030 and having them approved by SBTi in alignment to the emission reduction standards. While Lenovo evaluates its own path to net zero, it has carefully withheld making any commitments or claims without aligning to the latest climate science. At a time when the latest climate science from the IPCC indicates that climate change is creating a “code red for humanity”, there could not be more urgency to not just take action, but take action aligned to climate science. The opportunity to limit the global temperature’s increase to 1.5 degrees Celsius remains, but the window of time is rapidly closing.
“It is a challenging time to be in this space, because there is such an urgent need to take action and make bold commitments,” commented Sona Stenclova, Lenovo’s climate expert. “However, if bold commitments aren’t aligned to climate science and SBTI’s standards, it will be difficult to know what action to take to meet them, or if they’re ever achieved. It has been an honor to be part of the Net-Zero Standard road test and have a preview to what is required to align to the Standard.”
Lenovo was selected to participate in the Net-Zero Standard road test in June 2021 after an application process and further survey of intent. The road test began in July 2021, and Lenovo’s experts spent three months vetting the Standard and providing their user feedback to SBTi along the way. As a global technology company, Lenovo tested the Standard alongside other companies from different industries, geographies, and with different types of emissions. Some of the companies selected to road test have been early adopters of the Standard and are already in line to have their own net zero targets approved by SBTi after today’s launch. Lenovo’s team is carefully evaluating its own path forward, its progress against its 2030 emissions reduction targets, and the actions required for a long-term net zero target, and transition to a net-zero future.
As Lenovo’s Mary Jacques, Director of Global Environmental Affairs and Sustainability mentioned at New York City Climate Week, meeting the urgency of this moment will require a drastic overhaul – not just for businesses, but for life as we know it. It couldn’t be more important for an overhaul of this magnitude to be scientifically aligned and achieved through collaboration.