INTELLIGENT BRANDS // Green Technology
COMBATING
CLIMATE CHANGE
CANNOT BE
EFFECTIVE
WITHOUT
CONSIDERING
DEVELOPMENT
PROBLEMS,
WHICH IS WHY
WE PROMOTE
ACCESS TO ENERGY
WORLDWIDE.
• What is good for the climate is good
for the economy: the global demand for
infrastructure investments in transport,
energy, water and urban development
is estimated at around 6,000 billion US
dollars per year over the next 15 years,
while 270 billion US dollars per year
would be sufficient to develop low carbon
infrastructures. Schneider Electric has
introduced Science-Based Targets (SBTs)
to help companies, as well as its own
business, capitalise on the new energy
landscape opportunities
• Access to energy as a fundamental
human right: the fight against climate
change will not be effective without
taking into account the needs of 2.3
billion people who have poor access
to energy. Schneider Electric actively
promotes access to energy. Energy
Access Ventures – a fund backed by
Schneider Electric that invests in growing,
entrepreneurial businesses in Sub-
Saharan Africa addressing the lack of
electrification in the region with new
technology and innovative business
models – has secured commitments of
54.4 million Euros to provide electricity to
1 million people by 2020
• Providing new solutions for more
efficient, more liveable and more
82
INTELLIGENTCIO
Gilles Vermot Desroches, Senior Vice
President Sustainability at Schneider Electric
sustainable cities: for Schneider
Electric, a sustainable city is an urban
centre where infrastructure and energy
go hand in hand. Schneider Electric’s
EcoStruxure enables it, its partners
and its customers to lead a new world
of energy that is more electric, more
digitised, more decarbonised and more
decentralised. Schneider Electric also
uses its EcoStruxure power, building and
grid solutions to help its own buildings
and data centres to be more resource
efficient and profitable
• Carbon pricing: the introduction of
robust, clear and predictable carbon
pricing mechanisms, that take into
account specifics across regions, along
with the adoption of ambitious, long
term policy frameworks that favour
low carbon solutions and incentivise
innovation are essential to reduce CO 2
emissions. Schneider Electric has already
adopted an internal price of carbon
as part of its various programmes to
reduce its CO 2 footprint, which include
setting bold energy efficiency targets;
introducing renewable energy projects;
optimising logistical operations, such as
transportation routes and container fill
rates; and eco-design of its products with
CO 2 considerations front of mind
• Raising awareness of sustainability
is crucial for making the world
greener: doing more with less is possible
now, but to successfully face climate
change, we need to involve and change
behaviours across society. Schneider
Electric and its foundation – under
the aegis of Foundation de France –
are committed to raising awareness
among its employees, customers,
partners and shareholders globally. Its
aim is to demonstrate that creativity
and innovation are major levers in
acceleration change by offering the
general public new and original means
of action and reflections, mobilising
their own creativity. Schneider Electric is
also developing tools such as a footprint
calculator that allows users to measure
their demand on natural resources and
assess their personal Earth Overshoot
Day (the calculated illustrative calendar
date on which humanity’s resource
consumption for the year exceeds
ACCESS TO ENERGY
IS A FUNDAMENTAL
HUMAN RIGHT.
Earth’s capacity to regenerate those
resources that year)
• Importance of gender equality for
energy transition: Fiji’s presidency of
COP23 will focus on the disproportionate
vulnerability of women and the
approaches that can make them
more resilient. Schneider Electric
supports training and entrepreneurship
programmes for women and has an
objective for 2017 to have 85% of
employees work in countries with
Schneider Electric gender pay equity.
“Access to energy is a fundamental
human right,” said Gilles Vermot
Desroches. “At the same time, combating
climate change cannot be effective
without considering development
problems, which is why we promote
access to energy worldwide.” n
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