Sustainability news and announcements
Stay informed about our latest sustainability initiatives, thought leadership, and innovations.
Digital event: This is AI … for Sustainability—now available on demand
February 13, 2024 | See how Microsoft data and AI solutions can support your sustainability journey. Hear from customers about how they’re using these trusted solutions to advance sustainability progress, prepare for evolving regulations, and drive business transformation.
COP28: Growing business via AI innovation, ESG data, and partnership
January 16, 2024 | Kathleen Mitford, CVP of Global Industry Marketing, reflects on business themes at this year’s UN climate summit in Dubai. Learn about three ways that we can drive growth alongside sustainability progress—through AI innovation, by harnessing environmental, social, and governance (ESG) data, and by collaborating across sectors.
AI as an essential tool for accelerating sustainability
November 29, 2023 | In this blog by Microsoft President Brad Smith, explore AI’s immense potential to address bottlenecks to sustainability. See how we can use AI to measure, predict, and optimize complex systems, accelerate the development of sustainability solutions, and empower the sustainability workforce. Download a playbook outlining opportunities that AI provides for advancing sustainability and the actions needed.
New year, new capabilities with Microsoft Cloud for Sustainability
January 26, 2023 | Organizations can now better track and reduce their environmental impacts in their direct operations as well as across suppliers, partners, services, and infrastructure. Updates in Microsoft Cloud for Sustainability include Scope 3 employee commuting and product end-of-life tracking; factor libraries to help facilitate Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) compliance; and a new Microsoft Cloud for Sustainability API.
Reflecting on COP27: Sustainability meets commercial progress
December 13, 2022 | This year’s UN Climate Change Conference (COP27) in Sharm El Sheikh showed clear momentum toward decarbonization and resilience. As a Strategic Technology Partner, Microsoft urged a solution mindset. Conversations centered on reductions, especially Scope 3, and expanding funding for progress where it’s most needed. Learn how we’re helping by extending capabilities in Microsoft Cloud for Sustainability and leaning on partnership and co-innovation.
Closing the climate data divide in the global south
November 7, 2022 | We’re tapping the power of data and artificial intelligence (AI) in an expansion of our AI for Good Research Lab into Egypt and Kenya. The work of these labs will be informed by a new Africa AI Innovation Council that includes members of leading African development and climate organizations. We’re also expanding our collaboration with Planet Labs, merging high-quality satellite imagery of Africa with AI to accelerate climate adaptation solutions.
Environmental Credit Service aims to redefine carbon credits
November 3, 2022 | Today’s carbon offset credits suffer from inconsistent standards for measuring, reporting, and verifying progress, and from siloed credit creation. Environmental Credit Service (Preview) addresses these pain points by delivering a common infrastructure and shared data standard, lending transparency for all participants in the credit lifecycle and helping to fuel trust and momentum in the global marketplaces.
New report highlights a critical sustainability skills gap
November 2, 2022 | Many of the 3,500+ companies that have issued climate pledges lack a workforce with the necessary skills to fulfill those commitments. In this blog post by Microsoft President and Vice Chair Brad Smith, find out how Microsoft is leading the call to develop a new level of sustainability skills and fluency in the global workforce in the next five years.
Local efforts featured in datacenter sustainability fact sheets
November 2, 2022 | To share about Microsoft global sustainability initiatives, we’re publishing detailed datacenter sustainability fact sheets. Learn about datacenter power and water usage, waste diversion, community initiatives, and more. We’ll continue to add geographies—places where we operate Microsoft datacenters—as we grow our sustainability practices.
Cloud sustainability guidance: Azure Well-Architected Framework
October 12, 2022 | Now organizations can find answers to their concerns about the growing importance of sustainability in cloud optimization—from reducing carbon emissions and energy consumption to refactoring for agility at a lower cost. Learn about the Well-Architected Framework, helping organizations optimize cloud workloads for sustainability and create new business value.
Enhanced capabilities from Microsoft Cloud for Sustainability
October 12, 2022 | As organizations drive toward net zero, Microsoft is supporting them through extended capabilities in Microsoft Cloud for Sustainability. Discover new Scope 3 calculation methodologies and configurability in Microsoft Sustainability Manager; general availability of Emissions Impact Dashboard for Microsoft 365; and Environmental Credit Service (Preview), lending transparency to help solve challenges in carbon credit marketplaces.
COP27: Microsoft serving as a strategic partner and sponsor
September 15, 2022 | This year’s UN Framework Convention on Climate Change brings heightened focus on industry-level commitments and progress. As a Strategic Technology Partner and Principal Sponsor, we’re contributing on progress against net zero—how to measure it, build markets, and empower stakeholders to deliver a just, sustainable future for everyone. We’re honored to share about technology-driven accelerators, carbon/energy policy, green skilling, and more.
Microsoft to build a groundbreaking sustainable datacenter region in Finland
March 17, 2022 | In a unique collaboration with Fortum Corporation, Microsoft will build a new datacenter region in Finland. The datacenters will operate with 100-percent emission-free energy and convert waste heat to district heating that will serve Finland’s second largest city, Espoo, the neighboring city of Kauniainen, and the municipality of Kirkkonummi. This will be the world’s largest recycling of datacenter waste heat to date.
Our 2021 Environmental Sustainability Report
March 10, 2022 | We’re sharing progress and learnings against our commitments to become carbon negative, water positive, and zero waste, and to build a Planetary Computer.
How Microsoft’s new datacenter region in Sweden incorporates the company’s sustainability commitments
November 16, 2021 | The first hyperscale cloud region to use the Vattenfall 24/7 solution in a commercial product aims to deliver 100-percent renewable energy while working to meet Microsoft’s carbon, waste, and water sustainability goals by 2030. The new datacenter region also seeks zero-waste certification and includes a Microsoft Circular Center that’s designed to extend the lifecycle of servers through reuse, creating a circular economy for the Microsoft Cloud.
Made to measure: Sustainability commitment progress and updates
July 14, 2021 | With the announcement of Microsoft Cloud for Sustainability, helping organizations record, report, and reduce their carbon emissions, Microsoft is realigning its goals and committing to a net zero carbon economy. Goals include becoming carbon negative, water positive, and zero waste by 2030.
Microsoft launches its sustainable datacenter region in Arizona
June 15, 2021 | Microsoft has launched a new sustainable data center outside of Goodyear, Arizona. The center, built with sustainable operations and design in mind, will utilize solar power and have zero-waste certified operations to provide cloud services to organizations around the United States.
Microsoft submits comments to SEC on climate change disclosure
June 14, 2021 | Microsoft has submitted comments to the SEC on the topic of climate change disclosure, stating a standardized process for measuring and reporting carbon emission is a necessary step in curbing climate change. Microsoft believes disclosure regulations from the SEC will create transparency and fairness for the investing public and set the foundation for a net-zero carbon economy.
Microsoft announces Green Software Foundation
May 25, 2021 | Accenture, GitHub, Microsoft and ThoughtWorks have launched the nonprofit Green Software Foundation established with the Linux Foundation to put sustainability at the core of software engineering. The foundation will bring together a global community of people, standards, tooling and leading practices to grow the field of green software in hopes of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the software industry.
Project 15 from Microsoft – A story in five parts
May 9, 2021 | Project 15 started out as a passion project devoted to promoting sustainability initiatives using IoT and cloud technology. The project has garnered interest from environmental organizations around the world, and now offers an open source software platform designed to help the scientific community solve environmental issues ranging from conservation to climate change. In this blog, Sarah Maston recounts how the project has evolved.
Building a more sustainable world together
April 21, 2021 | The path to a sustainable future can only be achieved by working together. The #BuildFor2030 campaign highlights Microsoft partners who are leading sustainability initiatives by harnessing the power of cloud technology.
Microsoft’s virtual datacenter grounds ‘the cloud’ in reality
April 20, 2021 | This virtual datacenter experience is a rare invitation to look around and see how we design, build, and operate the Microsoft Cloud with sustainability, reliability, security, and innovation in mind.
Microsoft turns to boiling liquid to cool datacenter servers
April 6, 2021 | When it comes to creating sustainable datacenters, Microsoft has turned to a process known as two-phase immersion cooling as a potential solution. Inspired by cryptocurrency miners, the immersion method of cooling can be cheaper and more effective than the traditional approach of air cooling. While not in large-scale use at Microsoft yet, two-phase immersion has innovative potential for a wide range of technology.
Unusual machine taps clean energy for new Microsoft campus
March 16, 2021 | As part of the Microsoft sustainability goal to become carbon negative by 2030, the Redmond campus will include the Thermal Energy Center, which includes an unusual tunnel spanning 550 feet into the ground. Designed to harness the earth's thermal energy, this system is the latest sustainable development to the Washington offices.
Sustainability: A year of progress and a decade of action
January 28, 2021 | In 2020, Microsoft set sustainability goals, including becoming carbon negative and water positive, to be achieved by 2030. One year into the endeavor, we explore the enabling conditions, early efforts and lessons learned. We also celebrate partners and customers who are using Microsoft solutions to aid in their own sustainability goals.
One year later: A report on the path to carbon negative
January 28, 2021 | One year has passed since our "moonshot" pledge for Microsoft to become carbon negative by 2030. From reducing carbon emissions to removing carbon from the environment, we're sharing our initial successes, outlining what we've learned, and discussing what's in store for the coming years as we work to make Microsoft even more sustainable.
Why Microsoft is signing The Climate Pledge
December 9, 2020 | From setting the goal to be carbon negative to committing to protect more of the land we use, Microsoft has spent 2020 making plans to become more sustainable. As a technology company, we hope to bring digital solutions to climate problems, and signing The Climate Pledge is the latest step in our climate-conscious journey.
Our journey to #BuildFor2030 together
November 19, 2020 | The United Nations Sustainable Development goals are 17 initiatives designed to create a positive global impact by 2030. As a way to accelerate these goals, Microsoft created the #BuildFor2030 campaign, highlighting partners whose work is making a difference. At the end of the first year of the campaign, we look back at all the incredible work being done.
Microsoft will replenish more water than it consumes by 2030
September 21, 2020 | Our fourth pillar in the Microsoft sustainability initiative revolves around water, one of the Earth’s most precious resources. With the support of our technology and employees, we hope to make a positive impact on the planet, and help other companies do the same.
Microsoft commits to achieve ‘zero waste’ goals by 2030
August 4, 2020 | Our zero waste goal is the third sprint in Microsoft’s broad environmental sustainability initiative launched earlier this year focusing on carbon, water, ecosystems and waste. We are setting ambitious goals for each and empowering our customers with the technology and our learnings to do the same.
Aiming for more than just net zero
July 27, 2020 | Our ambitious goals to cut down our carbon footprint have necessitated exploration into various technologies. With each kind of technology, we’re determining the best combination to implement based on our overall goal as well as the specific datacenter locations and their local needs.
Microsoft debuts Planetary Computer to support a sustainable future
April 15, 2020 | The Planetary Computer uses AI and machine learning to collect and analyze global environmental data from trillions of data points across earth’s ecosystems. This data will help scientists learn more about the state of the planet’s health and answer global questions with sustainable solutions.
Microsoft will be carbon negative by 2030
January 16, 2020 | By 2030 Microsoft will be carbon negative, and by 2050 Microsoft will remove from the environment all the carbon the company has emitted either directly or by electrical consumption since it was founded in 1975.
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