The world needs to spend time on coming together to talk about specific climate solutions
5G capabilities make it a unique, powerful, and immediate enabler of carbon reduction
“Our innovative solutions enable operator networks to reduce energy consumption over their networks with advanced technologies that have improved energy performance” said Heather Johnson, the Vice President of Sustainability and Corporate Responsibility for Ericsson Group in an exclusive interview with The Egyptian Gazette on sidelines of COP27. Following is the detailed interview:
In your opinion, where do we stand in the fight against climate change? And how Ericsson is responding?
Since last year’s COP26, greenhouse gas concentrations continue to rise. Fossil fuel emission rates are now above pre-pandemic levels. Catastrophic weather has had devastating effects across the globe, as in Pakistan where massive flooding has left over 2.1 million people homeless.
Ericsson set a long-term ambition to be Net Zero by 2040 across its value chain. However, the action starts now, and we are working toward a first major milestone to cut emissions by 50% in the supply chain and portfolio by 2030 and be Net Zero in our own activities at the same time.
Ericsson was a lead partner with other organizations in the development of the Exponential Climate Action Roadmap that was launched in conjunction to the UN Climate Action Summit in in 2018. The roadmap shows that there are 36 existing solutions across sectors that can be scaled globally to help halve global greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. The Exponential Roadmap reports are now supported by the Exponential Roadmap initiative, driving global climate action for companies according to the 1.5°C ambition. As a member of the Exponential Roadmap initiative, Ericsson is also a member of the UN Race to Zero campaign.
To meet customer expectations and help the telecom industry reach Net Zero, Ericsson has developed innovative solutions that enable operator to reduce their energy consumption and be more energy efficient while managing expected growth in data traffic, meeting the needs of both current and future 5G networks.
Moreover, we have a strong presence at COP27, where we are meeting with governments, customers, and other partners to discuss the role of technology and collective action needed to scale climate solutions.
AT COP27, solutions of all kinds.
Why are you interested in COP27? How you participate in the conference? And what do you expect?
We are interested in this UN climate summit because we believe that now, more than ever, the world needs to spend time on coming together to talk about specific solutions that governments, businesses and society can contribute to climate action.
At COP27, we want to bring all kinds of solutions to the table—from nature-based solutions to energy solutions. That is why we are excited to have the 7th Exponential Climate Action Summit, hosted by Ericsson alongside our partners, the Exponential Roadmap Initiative, We Don’t Have Time and UNDP.
Hosted in the Nature Zone, close to the COP negotiations and action, we collaborate with thought leaders from business and society to tackle the big issues we have in front of us when it comes to climate mitigation, adaption, and resilience.
The summit is lives treamed from Sharm El-Sheikh and offer the opportunity for participation through physical hubs in Nairobi, Washington DC, and Stockholm.
Champion of climate action
As a high-tech company, how do you see the potential of technology to help in climate action?
The mitigation, adaption and resilience can be seen as the three pillars of climate action. Technology can enable all three, with ICT solutions key to scaling climate action across industry and society and we have some supporting examples of Ericsson initiatives.
For mitigation, the research is clear: ICT solutions can enable a reduction of global greenhouse gas emissions by up to 15 percent by 2030, while being responsible for only 1.4 percent of the global carbon footprint. With new emerging technologies like 5G, AI and IoT we can likely achieve even more reductions, if we implement them correctly.
Technology can help with adaptation as well. One of the most visible consequences of a warming world is an increase in the intensity and frequency of extreme weather events—from wildfires to flooding and hurricanes. In fact, there has been increase catastrophic weather over the last several years—but the death toll has not increased in the same way.
In fact, according to the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), the number of disasters has increased by a factor of five over the 50-year period, driven by climate change.
Yet despite these growing risks, around the world, disasters in general are becoming less deadly. According to the WMO, the number of disaster-related deaths has fallen by two-thirds. One reason for that is the increased monitoring and alert systems that are possible with ICT. For example, just this summer we teamed up with China Mobile Zhejiang and other partners to deploy 5G technology in public-safety-focused natural disaster management. The solution spans early-warning analysis, natural disaster monitoring, command and dispatch, and post-disaster assessment, focusing the region’s vulnerability to large-scale natural disasters and flash floods during the increasingly severe wet season.
And then there’s resilience. Even as we work to avert the worst possible impacts of climate change, we must become more resilient to those impacts that are now unavoidable.
One example is our award-winning Connected Mangroves project. By planting mangrove saplings with connected sensors, we have been able to have a full reforestation of the important mangrove forests in communities in the Philippines and Malaysia. These forests are one of Earth’s most natural protectors against the impacts of climate change, particularly as they protect the local communities from catastrophic weather like typhoons and flooding, as well as protecting ecosystems vital for fisheries. By helping their reforestation, we help the local communities guard their homes and their livelihoods.
5G green effect
Having this said about ICT, how do you think this sector could be a driving force to help other sectors reduce their carbon footprint?
ICT has a unique potential to enable other industrial sectors to move towards the low-carbon economy that will be central to meeting the SDGs. According to Ericsson research, ICT solutions have the potential to enable a reduction of global carbon emissions by up to 15 percent by 2030. We continuously work on supporting the society with technology can create a positive impact while in parallel working on reducing our own and our products carbon footprint.
Ericsson is championing 5G technology, how far this technology is effective in promoting the green economy?
The energy, manufacturing, and transportation sectors are among the biggest carbon emitters globally.
Decarbonization in these sectors would have a substantial impact in meeting the goals of the Paris agreement, global average temperature 1.5°C above preindustrial levels.
The capabilities enabled by broadband cellular connectivity primarily, though not exclusively, through 5G network infrastructure are a unique, powerful and immediate enabler of greenhouse gas emissions carbon reduction efforts, and have the potential to create a transformational acceleration of decarbonization efforts, as increasingly interconnected supply chains, transportation, and energy networks share data to increase efficiency and productivity, hence optimizing systems for lower carbon emissions.
