Verizon, Infosys Join Climate Pledge Co-founded By Amazon

U.S. telecom giant Verizon and Indian software services provider Infosys have joined the Climate Pledge, Amazon said Tuesday.

The Climate Pledge is a plan co-founded by Amazon and Global Optimism last year to make companies carbon neutral by 2040 and reach the goal of the Paris Accord ten years ahead of schedule.

Amazon was the first signatory to the Climate Pledge in September 2019 and had urged other large companies too to sign the agreement.

Nine months later, Verizon and Infosys are the first global companies to join Amazon in the Climate Pledge. Both companies are existing Amazon partners and work closely with Amazon Web Services or AWS.

Companies that sign the Climate Pledge must report greenhouse gas emissions on a regular basis, implement de-carbonization strategies in line with the Paris Agreement, and neutralize any remaining emissions to achieve net zero annual carbon emissions by 2040.

Verizon has committed to become carbon neutral by 2035. The company is on track to be carbon neutral across scope 1 and scope 2 emissions by that year.

Verizon has issued a $1 billion green bond to invest in innovative solutions to accelerate its sustainability efforts. This includes powering operations with 50 percent renewable energy by 2025 and new virtual power purchase agreements or VPPA for more than 380 MW of new wind and solar power capacity.

Infosys made a voluntary commitment in 2011, long before the Paris Agreement, to become carbon neutral and is on track to achieve it well ahead of 2040. The company has already invested in 60 MW of captive solar photovoltaic capacity and nearly 45 percent of its electricity is from renewable sources.

Infosys said it is committed to transitioning to 100 percent renewable energy. The company is the first signatory from India to RE100, a corporate renewable energy initiative that brings together businesses committed to 100 percent renewable electricity.

Amazon also said it is joining the Science Based Target Initiative or SBTi, which mobilizes companies to set science-based targets and tracks carbon disclosure.

SBTi is a collaboration between CDP, World Resources Institute, the World Wide Fund for Nature, and the United Nations Global Compact or UNGC.

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