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Evening ESG news and briefings to wrap up your day.
Global Big Tech companies' ESG-investment competition is growing to the level of megadeals. A representative company that closed a megadeal—meaning a large deal on the scale of a major corporation—is Google. On the 31st of last month, Google announced that it would invest 6 billion dollars (about 8.2 trillion won) in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, India, to build Asia's largest data center and renewable-energy hub. The core of this project is the construction of a large-scale data center with 1-gigawatt capacity. Of the 6-billion-dollar amount for this project, which builds India's first large-scale data center, 2 billion dollars is to be invested in renewable-energy development.[Inside a Google data center ©Google]Why India? India's Data-Center Hub Strategy and Policy SupportBEhind Google's investment is India's active data-center hub strategy. That the Indian government classifies data centers as "infrastructure" to ease financing and provides clear guidelines is attractive to tech companies. Moreover, with a renewable-energy generation cost of 4.98–4.99 rupees per unit (about 79 won)—cheaper than natural-gas generation, which requires 5.4 rupees per unit (about 86 won)—economic viability is also secured. Google already supplies 50% of its power with renewable energy at the Yotta NM1 data center near Mumbai, and it has set and is operating toward a goal of expanding this to 70% by 2025.The Intersection of Surging Power Demand in the AI Era and a Decarbonization StrategyThis investment is also part of the 75 billion dollars Google planned to invest for global data-center expansion. In particular, it is directly connected to Google's "24/7 Carbon-Free Energy (CFE)" goal of covering the power demand surging with the spread of AI services with renewable energy. The carbon-free energy goal can be seen as an environmental goal one level higher than RE100, which matches annual renewable-energy purchases. This is because it is an aggressive plan to use only grid carbon-free power.Google plans to operate the new data center in connection with the "Blue Raman submarine cable system," scheduled for completion in Q4 2025. The submarine cable system, with a landing station in Mumbai, will greatly expand bandwidth between India and the world. Nara Lokesh, IT Minister of India's Andhra Pradesh state, stated that "the state government has already secured commitments for 1.6 GW of data-center capacity and plans to build up to 6 GW within the next five years." He also added that by building three submarine-cable landing stations in Visakhapatnam, it will secure about twice the submarine-cable capacity Mumbai currently holds.[The Big Tech ESG-investment megadeal rush ©ESG.ONL/ESG Today]A New Direction in the Big Tech ESG-Investment CompetitionGoogle's investment shows that the Big Tech industry's ESG-investment competition has entered a new dimension. In May last year, Microsoft signed a 10-billion-dollar renewable-energy development contract with Brookfield Asset Management to secure 10.5 GW of renewable-energy capacity between 2026 and 2030, and it recently signed a 10-year, 1.1-million-ton carbon-removal contract with Norway's Hafslund Celsio.Amazon signed a 650-million-dollar nuclear-power-plant power-purchase agreement with Talen Energy in Pennsylvania, and Meta also announced a 13.5-billion-dollar contract to purchase 1.1 GW of nuclear energy for 20 years from the Clinton Clean Energy Center in Illinois.What these companies have in common is that, beyond solar and wind, they include nuclear power, geothermal, and carbon-removal technology in their portfolios to try to achieve both the 24-hour power demand of the AI era and carbon-neutrality goals at once. We should pay attention to this investment competition in that the Big Tech companies leading the rapidly arrived AI era are leading not only technological pioneering but also the ways to achieve carbon-neutrality goals. by Editor N[Reference Article] The Evolution of Carbon-Neutrality Strategy—the Carbon-Removal Contract Between MS and Hafslund Celsio
An analysis has emerged that the world's major cities are achieving carbon reduction at a faster pace than national governments. While the per-capita greenhouse-gas emissions of major cities belonging to the "C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group (hereafter C40)*" decreased by an average of 7.5% from 2015 to 2024, global emissions still show an increasing trend, so city-level climate policy is drawing attention as a new breakthrough.*C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group: a council formed in 2005 at the proposal of London Mayor Ken Livingstone, in which 40 major cities worldwide actively respond to climate change; Seoul joined in 2006.Three-Quarters of C40 Cities Show Faster Reduction Results Than Their National GovernmentsAccording to a report released on July 2 by the U.S. environmental media outlet "Grist," about three-quarters of the major cities that joined C40 are reducing greenhouse-gas emissions at a faster pace than their national governments. The population of cities belonging to C40—Seoul, as well as New York, London, Paris, Tokyo, and others—accounts for about 12% of the world's population, but they account for about 25% of greenhouse-gas emissions, so their reduction results can have a decisive impact on achieving global climate goals. New York City reduced its emissions by 22% compared with 2015, and London achieved a 35% reduction over the same period. Paris recorded a 10% decrease over the three years from 2019 to 2022, meaning it achieved a rapid reduction of more than 3% per year.[The 2022 C40 World Mayors Summit ©Juan Pablo Barrientos/C40]The Reason Cities' Results Are Faster Than Nations' Is "Rapid Policy Execution"The reason cities achieve faster results than nations lies in the difference in policy-execution capacity. At the level of a nation's executive branch, one cannot but consider diverse stakeholders. Relatively, city politics is smaller in scale than the national unit. Therefore, cities can pursue execution after relatively rapid decision-making.In fact, many cities are quickly pursuing policies aimed at immediate effects—improving building energy efficiency, expanding public transport, transitioning to renewable energy. For example, New York City set and enforced by law a cap on the carbon emissions of large buildings, and London introduced and regulated zero-carbon standards for new buildings. Innovative approaches are also possible in the transport sector: Paris greatly expanded bicycle lanes on the occasion of the 2024 Summer Olympics, and Los Angeles accelerated the introduction of electric buses. These policies directly affect citizens' daily lives while leading to visible reductions in greenhouse-gas emissions.Seoul is also active as a C40 member, but its concrete reduction results are still inadequate compared with leading cities. There is much room for improvement in building energy efficiency and the renewable-energy transition. The key is the execution of the "2050 carbon-neutral city achievement" that Seoul has recently set as a goal. Not only Seoul but also Korea's major cities such as Busan, Incheon, and Daegu are establishing carbon-reduction strategies suited to their own characteristics. Attention is on whether Busan's "Green New Deal policy," Incheon's "RE100," and Daegu's "Smart-Green City project" can achieve substantial results by benchmarking the achievements of leading C40 cities.A New Climate Governance Created by Inter-City CooperationIn a situation where inter-national climate negotiations struggle to gain speed, the more cities accelerate climate action, the more the policy initiatives that C40 cities jointly pursue will become verified best practices and direct references for other cities' policy-making. Major cases that cities share across borders—eco-friendly building standards, circular-economy policies, low-carbon transport systems—are increasing. It is a point at which we must more actively use international cooperation and experience-sharing through the C40 network to actively create and share substantial carbon-reduction results.[Cities faster than nations, the carbon-reduction leadership of global cities ©ESG.ONL/ESG Today] by Editor N
[The AI and ESG dilemma ©ESG.ONL/ESG Today, Google]As of July 2025, there is a common conundrum companies worldwide face. Google announced it would invest 75 billion dollars in AI infrastructure this year. At the same time, it also reported that its greenhouse-gas emissions increased 13% in 2023. That very conundrum is the contradiction that, if you use AI to aim for ESG-based results, the environmental impact from AI's own energy consumption grows.The Reality of AI Energy ConsumptionMIT researchers have stated that a generative-AI training cluster consumes 7–8 times more power than ordinary computer operation. The more AI becomes personalized and reasons through complex problems, the more power consumption and carbon emissions inevitably increase. There is also a forecast that by 2028, more than half of U.S. data-center power will go to running AI. The "Stargate Initiative," a 500-billion-dollar cooperation project led by OpenAI and SoftBank unveiled this past January, aims to build cutting-edge AI infrastructure across the United States. The core project of the Stargate Initiative, planned to be pursued over four years, is the construction of AI data centers. Starting with Abilene, Texas, some 20 data centers are planned to be located within the U.S. It is a point at which we should of course be concerned about expanding a stable power-supply network for data centers and the enormous carbon emissions that follow.[Google's Georgia data center ©Google]The Difficulty of Measuring AI Technology's Contribution to ESG, and Companies' Efforts to Cover EnergyIt is not easy to accurately measure how much AI will affect ESG. The global AI-ESG market is expected to grow from 1.24 billion dollars in 2024 to 14.87 billion dollars in 2034, at an average annual rate of 28.2%. But quantifying whether there will be an actual ESG-improvement effect relative to AI investment, and to what degree, is still a challenge. The generative-AI field is leading the overall market growth, but investors are expressing both the expectation of ESG improvement through the use of AI and concern about the environmental impact caused by AI. In a situation where companies must find a balance among AI-adoption costs, environmental costs, and ESG-improvement effects, some companies are also trying to solve the problem in the direction of raising AI's own efficiency. Google announced that its next-generation "6th-generation Tensor Processing Unit (TPU)" chip is 67% more energy-efficient than the previous generation. Through this, it expects to be able to reduce the energy needed for AI-model training by up to 100-fold and related emissions by up to 1,000-fold. Microsoft and Meta are pursuing the operation of new nuclear power plants. Microsoft stated last September that it would cover the energy for its AI and data centers by purchasing power from Unit 1 of the "Three Mile Island" nuclear power plant in Pennsylvania, and Meta stated this June that it would do so by purchasing power from the "Clinton Clean Energy Center" nuclear power plant in Illinois.The AI-ESG Dilemma Is the Most Complex Challenge Companies Face in 2025Faced with the reality of surging energy consumption—as great as the opportunities of the rapidly growing AI and ESG markets—companies are striving to find a new balance. They cannot give up AI adoption itself. In that case, through building a transparent effect-measurement system and securing efficiency, they must prove ESG-improvement effects while minimizing the environmental costs AI creates. Companies that find the way will be able to continue opening a sustainable AI era. by Editor N
[BLACKPINK concerts and Waterbomb, the link between K-culture and ESG ©ESG.ONL/ESG Today]These days, the fervor for Netflix's original content "KPop Demon Hunters," which takes Korean idols as its subject, shows no sign of cooling. The film's insert song "Golden" rose to No. 1 on the Billboard Global 200 chart, and the Korean elements that appear in the film are also drawing much interest. Regarding "KPop Demon Hunters'" success, the assessment continues that—even though it is not a film planned by a Korean production company—its careful depiction of Korea's tradition and modern appearance shows that Korea's culture, including K-POP, holds a global standing.As Korea's culture and arts draw the world's attention in this way, voices demanding responsible behavior are also gradually growing louder. Cases of entertainment agencies attempting ESG management—such as producing the albums of K-POP artists active worldwide with eco-friendly materials—have also become topics. Today, among the K-POP-related fields expanding their influence, we want to look at the ESG activities the performance industry has adopted.Turning Fans' ESG Practice into a Piece of Content: BLACKPINK Concerts[The custom water pack from the collaboration between "Tetra Pak Korea" and BLACKPINK ©Tetra Pak Korea]On July 5, BLACKPINK unveiled the new song "Jump" at their third world-tour concert "Deadline," announcing the resumption of the group's activities. As much as the group's activities after 2 years and 10 months, what drew attention was the pink water packs stacked to one side of the venue. The custom-designed water packs, produced through a collaboration between the aseptic-carton manufacturer "Tetra Pak Korea" and BLACKPINK, were special. "Coldplay," an artist that advocates sustainable performances, also sold water packs instead of plastic bottled water at its venues, but this is the first water pack with a design reflecting the artist's identity. Concertgoers naturally bought the water packs—which also carry the meaning of merch—rather than water in plastic bottles, and thanks to placing water-pack collection bins throughout the venue, a large quantity of water packs could be collected. Tetra Pak Korea plans to recycle the collected water packs into toilet paper and the like.Tetra Pak Korea President Nils Hougaard assessed that "now, when the whole world is paying attention to K-POP, this collaboration was a case that realized, at a performance site, a new ESG-practice model where the entertainment industry meets sustainable packaging," and expressed the aspiration that "we will convey environmental messages to many people through various businesses and strategic collaborations." It is a case showing that when a performance's organizers create an appropriate environment, the audience, too, actively sets out to practice sustainable environmental protection.[Guidance on participating in the "YOUR GREEN STEP" carbon-footprint measurement ©YG Entertainment]There is another sustainable activity that drew fans' participation: the "YOUR GREEN STEP" survey, which measures the carbon footprint an audience member leaves until arriving at the venue. This survey holds significance in identifying the greenhouse-gas emissions produced in the travel and lodging process an audience member undergoes to attend a performance, and in accumulating data to seek realistic and effective greenhouse-gas-reduction methods. In fact, at four performances that BLACKPINK's agency YG Entertainment organized from January 2024 to the first half of 2025, the factor that emitted the most greenhouse gases was "audience travel"—moving to the venue by plane, private car, public transport, and so on. The data will be used as basic statistics for composing sustainable performances, from direct services such as running shuttles for audiences to reducing the greenhouse-gas emissions arising from performances.Why did BLACKPINK's agency YG Entertainment prepare such content for the concert? It is not simply for the social standing and positive influence of the company and the artist. If greenhouse-gas emissions do not decrease and hotter summers repeat every year, they are highly likely to affect the health and motivation of artists and fans participating in summer performances, music-video shoots, and various events. There could also be disruptions to actual management activities, such as employee safety accidents from outdoor activities and increased cooling costs at business sites. This is why even entertainment agencies—which seem relatively distant from responsibility for carbon emissions—cannot but pay attention to ESG.Waterbomb, Changing by Turning Concerns Into a Stepping StoneThere is also a performance that becomes a hot potato every summer: "Waterbomb." Waterbomb, which fills the thirst of people seeking a cool and fun experience on a hot summer day, mobilizes a considerable amount of water per session. Thanks to this, audiences make unforgettable memories, but because the performance timing overlaps with periods when drought occurs, there is also considerable critical public opinion that it wastes water that should be used where it is really needed.[The water guns left behind after the Waterbomb event ©Facebook of Park Jun-seong, Secretary-General of "TRU"]The topic surrounding this year's Waterbomb was the water guns audiences left behind after the performance. A photo of the official water guns provided by the performance organizer "Made On" and the various kinds of water guns brought by audiences all stacked together became a topic on online communities and gave many people a shock. But this was also a form of sustainable performance that the Waterbomb organizers attempted. They donated the water guns left after the performance to "TRue" (an incorporated association; hereafter TRue), an environmental organization specializing in toy recycling. TRue is an environment-related NGO that collects toys no longer in use, holds bazaars for those still usable, or donates them to underserved groups. Toys that cannot be reused are disassembled and recycled into plastic "pellets" and plastic sheet material called "neol."Of the water guns Waterbomb donated to TRue, after a sorting process, one-third will be donated to local children's centers and the like. Water guns hard to reuse are sorted by color and size and used as material for making neol. Waterbomb stated that it plans to use the neol recycled by TRue to make photo zones for performances it holds in the future. In effect, the trash generated at Waterbomb returns to the venue in a new form.Made On is making its own efforts to prepare measures to resolve the various concerns surrounding Waterbomb. It stated that it published an Environmental-impact report analyzing problems such as water waste and the excessive trash left after performances, and that it is preparing a way to reuse water guns at each performance by building a water-gun rental system for future events. In addition, it plans to use water-saving devices and build a water-conservation system that measures water-resource-protection goals and results, creating a structure that evaluates those results. It is striving to make critical voices surrounding the performance an occasion for development.Beyond this, musical, play, and opera performance troupes are also continuing ESG-direction efforts, such as operating shared warehouses that recycle props and set pieces discarded after performances, or replacing paper tickets with smart tickets. Performances and festivals that offer magical moments away from daily life. So that pleasant daily life can continue even after a performance that sings of life and love ends and the curtain falls, industry-level practice is continuing. It is a point where one anticipates in what form the influence of K-culture, which will grow even larger going forward, will bloom in ESG. by Editor N
[The EU formalizes its 2040 target of a 90% carbon-emission cut ©ESG.ONL/ESG Today]The European Union (hereafter EU) has presented a concrete roadmap toward its 2050 carbon-neutrality goal. On the 2nd, the European Commission announced that, through an amendment to the EU Climate Law, it had officially proposed the interim target of cutting net greenhouse-gas emissions by 90% compared with 1990 by 2040.This proposal reflects the recommendation of the "European Scientific Advisory Board on Climate Change (ESABCC)," set as a feasible target based on the 90–95% reduction range. The path toward the EU's 2030 reduction target appears smooth. As of the end of 2023, the EU's greenhouse-gas emissions had achieved a 37% reduction compared with 1990. It was confirmed that over the same period economic growth was also achieved at the level of 68%. This also shows that the "decoupling" of economic growth and greenhouse-gas reduction is a feasible goal.[The announcement of the "Clean Industrial Deal" ©The Parliament Magazine]Simultaneously Strengthening Clean-Industry Competitiveness and Global Climate-Diplomacy LeadershipThis target is closely connected to the EU's economic strategy, beyond a mere environmental policy. The strategy is to secure the leadership of EU companies in the clean-technology market and private investment by signaling long-term, consistent policy in connection with the "Clean Industrial Deal"—pursued this past February to simultaneously strengthen the EU's industrial competitiveness and achieve decarbonization—and to strengthen energy independence by reducing dependence on fossil fuels. There is also strategic significance in global climate diplomacy. Combined with the U.S.'s withdrawal from the Paris Agreement, this EU target-setting can be seen as carrying even greater significance. Ahead of the 30th UN Framework Convention on Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP30), to be held in Brazil this November, the EU plans to induce other major emitters to set more strengthened targets through the submission of its 2035 "Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC)." In particular, with major emitters such as China, India, Japan, Australia, and Mexico set to announce updated plans within nine months, the ripple effect of the EU's preemptive target-setting on global climate action is drawing attention.Checkpoints of This EU TargetThe EU's ambitious target-setting also offers several implications for us. First, from the perspective of the "Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM)," which will be implemented in earnest in 2026, Korean companies need to re-examine their response strategies. As the EU presents stricter greenhouse-gas-reduction standards, an expansion of the CBAM's scope and a strengthening of standards are also expected. If this happens, one cannot but consider the direct impact on the steel, chemical, and automotive industries—Korea's main export industries. It is a situation where the decarbonization of our companies' production processes and their transition to renewable energy will be actively required. When our government sets mid- to long-term targets through 2040—going beyond the 2030 national greenhouse-gas reduction target of a 40% cut compared with 2018—it is highly likely to also reference the EU's approach.This proposal is to be finally adopted after review by the European Parliament and Council, followed by the ordinary legislative procedure. Experts assess that this target will be technically feasible, but they also emphasize that problems remain to be solved—large-scale renewable-energy expansion, a sharp reduction in fossil-fuel use, improved energy efficiency, and the sweeping electrification of end-use sectors. Attention is on whether this ambitious roadmap the EU has presented can become a new reference point for global climate action, and whether it can draw the participation of other major economies. by Editor N
[Microsoft signs a 10-year, long-term carbon-removal contract with the Norwegian energy company Hafslund Celsio ©ESG.ONL/ESG Today]"Microsoft" signed a 10-year, 1.1-million-ton carbon-removal contract with "Hafslund Celsio," Norway's largest waste-incineration and district-heating company, on July 1. It is a starting signal that corporate carbon-neutrality strategy is evolving beyond the concept of "carbon offset" toward the direct approach of "carbon removal."Carbon Removal and Carbon Offset—What Is the Difference?Carbon removal is a fundamentally different approach from carbon offset. If a company's carbon offset is the concept of "offsetting" its own emissions through emission reductions or forest creation elsewhere, carbon removal is an approach of physically capturing and removing carbon dioxide that already exists in the atmosphere. Through the contract with Hafslund Celsio, Microsoft stated that it would directly remove carbon with "Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS)" technology using biomass waste. Here, biomass waste mainly means organic matter such as wood chips, sawdust, and agricultural residues. This method of carbon removal is carried out by burning biomass to produce energy while simultaneously capturing the carbon dioxide generated and permanently storing it underground.["Hafslund Celsio's" waste-incineration plant located in Oslo, Norway ©Hafslund Celsio]Why Carbon Removal Is Attractive to CompaniesThe reason companies pay attention to carbon removal is the practical limits of achieving carbon-neutrality goals. Regarding carbon emissions, no matter how much energy efficiency is raised and how much one transitions to renewable energy, it is hard to reduce emissions below a certain level, so the concept of "residual emissions" exists. In particular, for technology companies like Microsoft that operate large-scale data centers, such residual emissions are of considerable scale. The quality and reliability problems of the existing carbon-offset market are also a reason companies turn their eyes to carbon removal. Carbon credits based on forest creation or renewable-energy projects have been much disputed in terms of "additionality" and "permanence." Whether trading credits actually has an additional carbon-reduction effect, and whether the reduction effect can maintain its effect over the long term, still remains a concern for companies. By contrast, direct carbon removal is easy to measure and verify. It is a method by which one can hold a result value in hand.We Must Pay Attention to the Rapid Growth of the Carbon-Removal MarketThe carbon-removal market is growing rapidly. The Swiss climate-tech company "Climeworks" attracted 162 million dollars in investment in the first half of 2025 alone. That major technology companies such as Google, Amazon, and Meta, besides Microsoft, are signing carbon-removal contracts one after another also indicates the present state of the carbon-removal market. It is worth noting that these companies are playing the role of technology-development partners beyond being mere buyers. In particular, Microsoft is leading the market's expansion by investing in various carbon-removal technologies under the goal of achieving carbon negativity* by 2030.*Carbon negativity: a State in which a company or organization removes or reduces more carbon than the amount emitted by its own activities.[The "carbon negative" plan Microsoft announced in 2020 ©Microsoft]Carbon-removal contracts can be a new challenge and opportunity for our companies as well. First, we must pay attention to how carbon-removal technology will be classified in the K-Taxonomy and green-classification system, and what role it will play in the government's carbon-neutrality policy. Korea's large companies, too, bear the task of having to achieve carbon-neutrality goals. For energy-intensive manufacturers such as Samsung Electronics, LG Energy Solution, and SK Hynix, carbon removal is highly likely to become an essential option. In fact, some Korean companies are already showing related movements: "POSCO" is investing in developing technology to capture carbon dioxide generated in the hydrogen-production process, and "Hyundai E&C" is showing interest in plant projects using carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) technology. "SK Group" is newly establishing a dedicated organization for developing carbon-reduction technology and seeking investment opportunities in the carbon-removal field. At the government level, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy recently presented, through a "CCUS Commercialization Roadmap," a target of capturing 12 million tons of carbon dioxide annually by 2030.Challenges and OutlookThe biggest challenge for carbon-removal technology is still the high cost. If the carbon-removal cost—currently at the level of 100–600 dollars per ton—can be lowered to an economically viable level, the pace of commercialization will become even faster. Infrastructure building and policy support for large-scale commercialization are needed. In a situation where corporate carbon-neutrality strategy has entered the process of evolving from "emission reduction" to "direct removal," it is a point at which our companies too must respond.by Editor N [Reference Article] [Climate-Tech Brands and ESG] Climeworks, Which Gave CO₂ a New Role *
In the "2025 Global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations" survey selected by the Canadian economic media outlet "Corporate Knights," the French global energy-management and automation company "Schneider Electric" took first place. Schneider Electric has been named in this survey for more than 10 years. It was also selected as No. 1 among the "2024 World's Best Sustainable Leader Companies" chosen by the U.S. magazine Time and the German global data platform "Statista." Let us look at the reasons Schneider Electric has long been recognized for—and has maintained—global leadership in the sustainability field, and further in the ESG-management field.[The world's most sustainable company, Schneider Electric ©ESG.ONL/ESG Today]The Opening of the Sustainable Workspace "The Nest" and Energy ManagementIn 2025, Schneider Electric opened the smart office "The Nest" in Dubai. The Nest is drawing attention for its features—it can be expected to cut energy consumption by 37% compared with existing workspaces and to reduce carbon dioxide by 572 tons annually. As a project that transforms a workspace into something sustainable and smart, it applied a structure that strengthens energy efficiency and resilience through a building-management system integrating the IoT-based open platform "EcoStruxure solution" and "Planon." CEO Olivier Blum emphasized that "The Nest is a space symbolizing a sustainable future and an innovative work environment."[Schneider Electric CEO Olivier Blum ©Schneider Electric]Schneider Electric is also leading innovative solutions to reduce carbon emissions. Since 2018, it has supported customers using Schneider Electric's services in cutting 679 million tons of carbon-dioxide emissions. In addition, through its "Zero Carbon Project," it is achieving results such as cooperating with its top 1,000 suppliers to reduce supply-chain carbon emissions by more than 40%. Toward the goal of cutting carbon emissions by 25% by 2030, it also has the detailed goal of realizing carbon neutrality in Scope 1 and 2 by 2025. This is assessed as one of the most progressive strategies for realizing carbon neutrality among global companies, at a pace ahead of the Paris Agreement. Schneider Electric is expected to strive to realize the decarbonization of industry as a whole through various innovation measures as well—digitalization such as AI-based energy management, and electrification such as renewable-energy integration.[Schneider Electric's microgrid ©Schneider Electric]Expanding Energy Access and EducationSchneider Electric is working to supply clean electricity to 53.4 million people worldwide and is also showing enthusiasm for improving energy access. In particular, it is concentrating on building eco-friendly energy infrastructure such as "microgrids" (small-scale power grids that independently produce, supply, and manage electricity) and solar power in regions with difficult energy access, such as Africa and Southeast Asia.In addition, it iS also diligent in social-responsibility activities to strengthen future generations' sustainability capabilities and contribute to cultivating talent prepared for the global energy transition. By providing energy-efficiency education programs for youth, 824,000 people have received education, and it aims to reach 1 million educated by 2025. At "The Nest," too, it runs EcoStruxure-based solution experiences and partner and customer education, as well as youth-talent-cultivation programs.Corporate Sustainability Presented Through Governance, Not Only the EnvironmentThrough its "Schneider Sustainability Impact program," Schneider Electric transparently discloses, every quarter, concrete goals and progress toward achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). It aims to realize responsible governance—securing gender diversity within its management and board, and linking the management-compensation system to sustainability performance. It also operates a system in which all employees can join in practicing sustainability, by regularly conducting DEI education for employees.CEO Olivier Blum boasts that "sustainability is the core of our business and the source of inspiration for our employees," and that "together with customers, partners, and communities, we are building a sustainable future." Schneider Electric is a company that proves, through results, that ESG management is a core value driving the future of global industry. At a point when global joint discussion of ESG is rising, we need inspiration like Schneider Electric's exemplary case of global ESG management. by Editor N
Park Yong-nam, director of the Sustainable City Research Center and author of "Happy City Curitiba"—a book that captures the secrets behind the success of Brazil's ecological city "Curitiba"—has, as an urban scholar of more than 30 years, compiled into a book this urban-innovation model that he has steadily researched. With concrete policy cases, Director Park introduces the story of how Curitiba grew into a green city, smart city, and citizen-happiness city boasting the world's finest reputation. Anyone involved in ESG relating to the urban environment—urban innovation, sustainable transport, urban-environment policy, citizen participation, and the like—should give "Happy City Curitiba" a read. [Happy City Curitiba ©Doublebook] A Symbol of Innovation: the "Bus Rapid Transit System" In 2000, Director Park introduced Curitiba through "Curitiba, the City of Dreams." That book had a great influence on urban-environment policy, and it contributed especially to Korea's adoption of eco-mobility systems (car-free streets, public bicycles, bus rapid transit, walkable cities, and so on). Among these, the "bus rapid transit system"—the model for Seoul's central bus-only lanes and transfer system—is like a symbol of Curitiba's innovation. This policy, which we too now use routinely, is a groundbreaking case of shifting the transport system from conventional car-centered urban planning to a public-transport-centered one. On top of this, Curitiba improved the sustainability of public transport with 100% biodiesel buses and an intelligent transport system, and Curitiba's transport-system transformation was even selected as one of the "50 Most Influential Projects in the World." Poverty and Food Insecurity: Creative Policy Cases the City Presented Looking at Curitiba's systems, one finds them full of traces of deliberation—not only about transport but about the city's problems as a whole—with a sustainable future as the standard. Amid Brazil's poverty and food-insecurity problems, which grew serious after COVID-19, Curitiba protected citizens' basic standard of living, including the right to food, through a variety of creative city-led policies such as the free-meal "Solidarity Tables," the inexpensive public restaurants "Popular Restaurants," and the "Family Warehouses" that sell daily necessities cheaply. In particular, the "Green Exchange Program"—which exchanges 4 kg of recyclable waste for 1 kg of fresh fruit and vegetables—drew great response from citizens and is a creative policy case that produced the achievement of raising the city's recycling rate to the world's highest level. Careful Policy Design to Improve Citizens' Quality of Life and the Environment Together "Happy City Curitiba" also introduces policies closely tied to citizens' lives—housing, education, culture, urban landscape, parks, and more. The "Path of Wisdom" program is a kind of field-learning program that helps children and students experience the city's history and environment firsthand and cultivate local identity and pride. The book also contains living-oriented policy ideas that spark interest by their names alone, such as the "Innovation-type Lighthouses of Wisdom," created for civic education and the experimentation and making of ideas, and the small libraries "Houses of Reading" for expanding reading culture. Through a climate-action plan, Curitiba is also pushing various projects toward the goal of becoming a carbon-neutral city by 2050. A representative example, the "Pyramid Solar do Caximba"—a landfill transformed into a solar power plant—is a globally noted success case of landfill utilization. One can also find resource-circulation program cases such as the "Municipal Composting Program," which composts organic waste generated in the city; projects like these show just how carefully designed a city Curitiba is. Curitiba's ecological-city policies have been certified by major city-related awards around the world, such as the "C40 Cities Bloomberg Philanthropies Awards 2016," the "LatAm Smart City Awards 2022," the "World Smart City Awards 2023," and the "Global Green City Award 2024." "Happy City Curitiba" introduces in concrete terms the creative policies and citizen-centered urban management that have earned the city international renown. Having continuously monitored Curitiba and organized its changes so they can be read at a glance, Director Park says, "Urban growth must be led by humans," and proposes applying Curitiba's spirit to Korean society. In June, with a new government beginning, it would be good to solve the tasks of the climate crisis, the future of cities, and citizen happiness while consulting Curitiba's creative innovation and citizen-centered urban-management cases. by Editor N