By Faith Taylor, Global Sustainability Officer
At Kyndryl, we believe that global sustainability challenges must be tackled with a vision to create an inclusive and environmentally sustainable future. We are committed to implementing a sustainability strategy that is integrated with our business strategy by applying industry standards, innovation and a sense of urgency. It has been inspiring to see how a company with operations in more than 60 countries and thousands of enterprise customers has come together to embed sustainability into its foundation within the first operating year. We also understand how we can accelerate the industry’s transition to a low-carbon economy by supporting our customers’ sustainability journeys. I am incredibly proud to share that Kyndryl is standing up for the planet by establishing a 2040 net zero goal.
Tackling this commitment in year one was no small feat, requiring a detailed audit of our carbon footprint across our entire global operation. Kyndryl developed its environmental baseline systematically, accelerating its efforts as a new company to join others that have had years to tackle emissions reductions. Our net zero target is aligned with industry best practices, science-based frameworks, third-party validation and usage of renewable energy, alongside a comprehensive roadmap charting the path ahead.
We are taking immediate action to achieve our 2040 net zero goal, with a comprehensive roadmap that is based on three key pillars to track and measure our impact.
1. Set Carbon Reduction Goals: Since Kyndryl became an independent company a year ago, we established our boundaries and scope based on The Greenhouse Gas Protocol. I am proud to say that we have completed the baseline and set interim targets as we march toward net zero in 2040. Kyndryl plans to meet a near-term target to reduce its carbon emissions for scope 1 and 2, direct and indirect emissions, by 75% by 2030, against its estimated fiscal year 2023 baseline. Kyndryl will also obtain 100% of its purchased electricity through renewable sources and reduce our global carbon emissions by 50% in 2030. Our plan aligns with the company’s business strategies and includes consolidating our legacy real estate and data center footprint and modernizing our infrastructure systems, increasing renewable energy use, and engaging with suppliers and partners to use sustainable solutions.
2. Collaborate with Customers: While our net zero commitment is ours alone to achieve, we strongly believe that applying environmental solutions with our customers and alliance partners will create collaborative opportunities to collectively manage the impacts of climate change. Many companies today — across all industries and geographies — are looking to reduce energy, water, waste and carbon emissions. As the world’s largest IT services provider, we seek to extend our impact beyond our own operations by empowering our customers with technologies and sustainable solutions that help them meet their objectives and have measurable and meaningful impacts.
For example, using a data-based, technology-driven approach, our teams can work with customers to design a cloud infrastructure that taps into leading industry service providers that primarily use renewable energy sources.
3. Educate and Train Employees: Our culture is built on how we work together and deliver value to the world, and it’s grounded on the principles of collaboration, mutual responsibility and excellence. With thousands of employees worldwide, we have the opportunity to create agents that spark change. Every employee’s role matters as we create a sustainable future together.
As a new company, our first step was to create the foundation to our net zero strategy. The second step is to ensure that our employees embrace our sustainable values through ongoing education and training. The Carbon Literacy Project (developed by the non-profit Carbon Literacy Trust) is a program where professionals learn the importance of reducing carbon footprints — on an individual and organizational level. Kyndryl has also launched a Green Guild, which is a community of professionals that can work with customers and partners to develop sustainable solutions for our industry. Both programs empower our employees to participate — both personally and professionally — in the cultural shift toward sustainability.
I am incredibly proud of how far we’ve come in year one, and believe that every day Kyndryl will continue to strive to develop sustainable solutions to manage climate change today and far into the future. Because true progress moves the world forward without leaving the planet behind.
