Apple
CEF Lead Executives
-
LISA JACKSONList Item 1
CEF LEADERSHIP COUNCIL
VP, Environment, Policy and Social Initiatives
Lisa Jackson reports to CEO Tim Cook and oversees Apple’s industry-leading efforts to minimize its impact on the environment, including removing toxics from its products, incorporating renewable energy in its facilities, and continually raising the bar for energy efficiency in the electronics industry. She was appointed EPA administrator by President Barack Obama in 2009 and served until February 2013. As administrator, she focused on core issues of reducing greenhouse gases, protecting air and water quality, preventing exposure to toxic contamination, and expanding outreach to communities on environmental issues. Prior to this, she was chief of staff to the governor of New Jersey and commissioner of the state’s Department of Environmental Protection.
-
SARAH CHANDLERList Item 2
Senior Director of Environment and Supply Chain Innovation
Sarah’s team is responsible for embedding and upholding Apple’s values throughout its supply chain. Working cross-functionally, these teams are creating innovative solutions to enable Apple’s commitments to be carbon neutral by 2030, to one day make all of our products using only recycled or renewable material, and to provide safe and healthy working environments where everyone is treated with dignity and respect throughout our supply chain. They are also responsible for holding Apple’s suppliers to the highest standards of environment, labor, and human rights protection. Sarah joined Apple in 2006 and holds an M.B.A. and Bachelor of Science degree in Earth Systems, both from Stanford University. Prior to Apple, Sarah served as the Executive Director of a nonprofit providing environmental education and leadership experiences for low-income high school students. Sarah can trace her environmental roots back to her upbringing on a maple syrup farm in Massachusetts.
-
CHRIS BUSCHList Item 3
Director of Environmental Initiatives
Chris is director of environmental initiatives at Apple where he leads a team overseeing strategy, forecasting & accounting for Apple's 2030 carbon neutral goal, as well as standards and prioritization for climate and circular ecomy. Chris and his team established Apple’s Restore Fund, and direct nature based climate solutions investments globally. In addition, Chris’ team oversees Apple’s environmental grants portfolio. Prior to joining Apple, Chris served in the Obama Administration as a policy advisor at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Chris holds Master’s degrees from Columbia University and the London School of Economics.
-
CHARLENE WALL-WARREN
Director, Environmental Technologies
Charlene leads an engineering team working across the organization to drive progress in Apple’s key focus areas of climate, resources and smarter chemistry. She joined Apple in 2018, after 26 years in the chemical industry in roles including project engineering, safety and process design, business and strategy development, marketing, communications, packaging, and life cycle assessment – touching industries as diverse as petrochemicals, construction, automotive, food, electronics and personal care. She has been a Board member for the American Institute of Chemical Engineers and The Sustainability Consortium. Her advisory roles have included Sustainable Brands, USBCSD, CERES and the Green Sports Alliance, and she has been recognized by Environmental Leader and Corporate Responsibility publications. Charlene holds a B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Drexel University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
-
ALISHA JOHNSON WILDER
Director, Environment, Policy & Social Initiatives
Alisha focuses on the company’s global environmental initiatives, community education programs, product accessibility efforts, community investment and government affairs. She also leads Apple’s Racial Equity and Justice Initiative, a long-term effort focused on dismantling systemic barriers for communities of color through education, economic empowerment, and criminal justice reform. Prior to joining Apple, Alisha served in the Obama Administration as Deputy Communications Director for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and Senior Advisor at the U.S. State Department. Alisha serves on the advisory board of MIT’s Climate and Sustainability Consortium. She is also the inaugural recipient of AfroTech’s Corporate Catalyst Award. She holds bachelor’s degrees in broadcast journalism and sociology from the University of Missouri-Columbia.
-
SUSANNAH CALVIN
Winner CEF Leadership Program (2015)
Manager, Environmental Initiatives
Susannah Calvin is an experienced procurement and supply chain specialist working to bridge the gaps between environmental initiatives and large-scale manufacturing. Susannah joined Apple’s newly formed Ops Environmental Initiatives team after working as a Global Supply Manager in Apple’s Softgoods Manufacturing Design division. She brought with her an in-depth understanding of the challenges facing manufacturers and design teams, along with insights into the processes and practices with the greatest environmental impact. Prior to joining Apple, Susannah worked in Procurement and Corporate Responsibility at Black Diamond, Inc. Susannah currently lives in San Jose, California.
-
OLIVIA OSTRAND
Winner CEF Leadership Program (2019)
Manager, Operations Environmental Initiatives
Olivia works on Apple’s Operations Environmental Initiatives team where she develops and deploys supply chains to support Apple’s Closed Loop initiative. Prior to this, Olivia was a Global Supply Manager for Apple’s iOS front facing camera modules. Before she joined Apple in 2014, she worked in both direct and indirect strategic sourcing roles at Procter and Gamble. She graduated from Carnegie Mellon University with a BS in Economics and has an MBA from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business.
-
LAUREN CASEY
CEFNext
Program Manager, Environment, Policy & Social Initiatives
Lauren is responsible for cross-functional strategic planing efforts at Apple that range from defining future program priorities to identifying areas where Apple might engage in public-private partnerships to support environmental policy innovation. Prior to joining Apple, Lauren developed local government climate action programs and policy. She graduated from Stanford University with an MS in Civil & Environmental Engineering and a BS in Earth Systems.
-
WALKER YOUNG
Manager, Environment & Supply Chain Innovation.
Currently leading supply chain resiliency and water stewardship, Walker has also managed carbon footprinting, energy efficiency, and responsible sourcing of materials. An alum of the Walt Disney Company, Qualcomm, and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), Walker holds engineering and environmental policy degrees from Columbia University in New York and Chulalongkorn University in Thailand.
Sustainability Goals
Current Sustainability Goals
Ongoing Goals
- Close the loop on our supply chain and no longer mine materials from the earth
- Use only recycled and renewable materials for our products and packaging
- Eliminate waste sent to landfill from our corporate facilities and our suppliers
- Drive 100 percent transparency of chemical use in our supply chain and products
2025 Goals
- Eliminate plastics in packaging
2030 Goals
- Become carbon neutral across the entire business, manufacturing supply chain, and product life cycle
- Reduce emissions by 75% and balance the remaining 25% of emissions with high-quality carbon removal projects.
- Transition the
entire manufacturing supply chain to 100% renewable electricity.
Latest Sustainability Report
Highlights
- Over 250 suppliers have committed to transition to 100% renewable energy for Apple production, representing over 20 gigawatts of clean energy being brought online.
- 20% of product mass shipped in 2022 composed of recycled and renewable materials.
- Suppliers saved over 63 billion gallons of freshwater through Apple’s Clean Water Program since 2013, with participants achieving a 42% reuse rate.
- Suppliers diverted over 2.5 million metric tons of waste diverted from landfills through Apple’s Zero Waste Program since 2015; over 523,000 metrics tons diverted in 2022.
- Over 150 new suppliers enrolled in Apple’s Zero Waste Program in 2022, for a total of over 300 participating suppliers across 14 countries.
- Trained over 277,000 supplier employees and management on responsible labor recruitment best practices
Environmental Progress Report 2023
(May 2023)
Highlights
- Reduced overall emissions across scopes 1, 2, and 3 by over 45% (baseline 2015);
- Avoided over 28 million metric tons of emissions through reduction initiatives like transitioning the company’s supply chain to renewable electricity and sourcing recycled content for Apple’s products;
- Continues to be carbon neutral for carbon emissions (since April 2020), through 100% renewable electricity for facilities, implementing efficiency measures, and offsets;
- Increased recycled materials in products to 20% in 2022;
- Reduced plastic in packaging to 4% in 2022 down from 21% in 2015;
- In 2022, urged suppliers to decarbonize Apple-related footprint, tying progress with future business awards;
- Committed an additional $200 million to expand nature-based project investments;
- Expanded water stewardship into a holistic five-pillar approach, including low-water design, site efficiency, site stewardship, replenishment, and leadership & advocacy;
- As chair of Green Cleaners for Electronics Manufacturing, drove the submission of a new standard for electronics supply chain cleaners that are safer workers and the environment;
- Received the 2022 Impact Award from the Green Chemistry & Commerce Council for commitment to sustainable chemistry.
Recent News
2024
Welcomed two manufacturing partners, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) and Murata Manufacturing, as new investors in the Restore Fund, which is designed to scale nature-based carbon removal while protecting critical ecosystems. TSMC will invest $50 million, and Murata will invest $30 million, bringing total commitments from $200 million to $280 million. Apple also announced the partners in the Restore Fund’s initial phase, including forest management company Symbiosis, and detailed its efforts to create sustainably certified working forests on degraded pasture and agricultural lands in South America’s Atlantic Forest (expected to exceed the goal of removing 1 million metric tons of CO2 from the air by 2025). (March 2024)
The Safer Chemistry Impact Fund launched to mobilize global investment for systematically replacing hazardous chemicals with safer alternatives. This effort aims to establish a trusted data source for chemical hazard assessments and help companies make safer chemistry decisions. CEF members Apple and Google provided seed funding. (March 2024)
PR » CHEMICAL & ENGINEERING NEWS »
CORPORATE KNIGHTS — Released its 20th annual Global 100 List, ranking the world’s most sustainable companies along 25 indicators, out of 6,000 public companies with revenues of over $1 billion. In 2024, top-ranked firms allocated 55% of their investments to sustainable projects, up from 47% last year, and compared to just 17% of investments of publicly traded companies with more than $1 billion in revenue. The top ranked company was Sims Ltd, an Australian waste management company that moved up from #14 in 2023. CEF Members in the Global 100 include: Schneider Electric (#7), Trane Technologies (#23), Cisco (#64), HP Inc. (#67), Apple (#71), Unilever (#76), Hewlett Packard Enterprise (#81), and Prologis (#87). (Jan 2024)
2023
Clean Energy Procurement Academy — This project aims to equip companies with the technical readiness to explore and adopt clean energy. The Academy will combine online and in-person training and educational resources to help accelerate the integration of clean energy into global supply chains (for example, how to boost supply chain companies’ capacity to invest in renewables). This project was initiated through the Clean Energy Buyers Institute and with support from Google.org, and is co-founded by CEF Members by Amazon, Apple, Meta, PepsiCo, and REI; and by Nike. (Oct 2023)
More than 250 companies and organizations, coordinated by the Global Renewables Alliance, issued an open letter calling on world leaders to agree at COP28 on a global target to triple renewable electricity capacity to at least 11,000 GW by 2030. The companies, representing a market value of more than $12 trillion, include CEF members Amazon, Apple, Google, Microsoft, PepsiCo, Schneider Electric, and Unilever. (Sept 2023)
Forest Investor Club 2023 Annual Report (Forest Investor Club (FIC)) — This first annual report for FIC assesses barriers to scaling investment in forests and nature, introduces the FIC and its theory of change, and describes how the FIC fits within the broader landscape of initiatives working on solutions and progress made since its inception. It highlights insights for effective nature-based solutions (NbS) investment through seven case studies of strategies led by FIC members, including by CEF member Apple. (Sept 2023)
INFLUENCEMAP — Released its 2023 Global Leaders list identifying 27 companies globally that have achieved best practices in climate policy advocacy, including: engaging positively, and actively, aligning climate policy with science-based pathways to achieve Paris goals, and not demonstrating a “highly negative” indirect influence through industry associations. 16 of 27 are headquartered in Europe, six in Japan, and five in the U.S. CEF members in the list include Apple, Salesforce, Trane Technologies, and Unilever. (Sept 2023)
Launched its first carbon neutral projects, unveiling new carbon neutral Apple Watch models. These will be made using 100% clean energy in manufacturing and product use; a 50% reduction in air transportation; and 30% recycled or renewable material by weight, reducing product emissions by at least 75%. The company will use high-quality carbon credits to address remaining emissions. (Sept 2023)
Released a new framework to share how its environmental efforts around renewable energy, efficiency, and materials innovation are reducing the climate impact of Apple products. To demonstrate this, the company released updated product environment reports for a number of products, and included analysis of the percentage of manufacturing powered by clean energy. Apple also announced new partnerships for innovating climate solutions and engaging communities in environmental solutions, including partnering with (April 2023):
- Conservation International to support leadership in Afro-descendant communities in Latin America, with economic opportunities that address the climate and biodiversity crises;
- WWF on a Nature-Based Solutions (NbS) Origination Platform, to showcase a new model to scale up investments in high-quality nature-based solutions; and
- Beyond Benign to bring green chemistry and sustainable science programming to minority-serving institutions in the U.S. and expand the talent pool of Black, Hispanic, and Native American scientists trained in sustainability.
Announced a major expansion of its Restore Fund, doubling Apple’s total commitment to advancing high-quality, nature-based carbon removal projects. Established in 2021 with an initial commitment of up to $200 million, the Restore Fund will add an additional fund of $200 million and add a new portfolio of carbon removal projects. The new portfolio aims to remove one million metric tons of CO2 per year from the atmosphere at its peak, while generating financial returns for investors. (April 2023)
Announced a commitment to use 100% recycled cobalt in all Apple-designed batteries by 2025. Also by 2025, magnets in Apple devices will use entirely recycled rare earth elements and all Apple-designed printed circuit boards will use 100% recycled tin soldering and 100% recycled gold plating. This comes after expansions in 2022 of the company’s use of recycled metals, including the sourcing of one quarter of all cobalt, two-thirds of all aluminum, 73% of all rare earths, and more than 95% of all tungsten from recycled material in Apple Products. (April 2023)
Announced over 250 global manufacturing partners are committing to decarbonize all Apple production by 2030 (accounting for more than 85% of Apple’s direct manufacturing spend). In the past year, Apple’s manufacturing partners expanded their renewable energy to 13.7 GW, up almost 30% in the past year and five times over since 2019. In 2022, this avoided 17.4 million metric tons of carbon emissions. (April 2023)
CORPORATE KNIGHTS — Released its 2023 Global 100 List, ranking the world’s most sustainable companies along 25 indicators, out of 6,000 public companies with revenues of over $1 billion. The top list has outperformed the MSCI All Country World Index on an annual basis for seven of the past 11 years. The top spot went to Schnitzer Steel Industries, a steel recycler that increased energy productivity by 74%, water productivity by 69%, and carbon productivity by 55% in 2021. CEF Members in the Global 100 include: Schneider Electric (#7), Alphabet (#26), Ecolab (#30), Unilever (#38), HP (#39), Cisco (#48), Hewlett Packard Enterprise (#67), and Apple (#73). (Jan 2023)
JUST CAPITAL — Released its JUST 100 list for 2023 in collaboration with CNBC. Of 951 large public companies, 100 were scored for their just business behaviors, such as paying a fair living wage, protecting workers’ health, and minimizing pollution (based on the polling of 3,002 Americans). Of the top 10, five were CEF members, including Bank of America (#1), Microsoft (#3), Hewlett Packard Enterprise (#7), Apple (#8), and JPMorgan Chase (#10). In total, 23 CEF member companies were included in the 2023 JUST 100 list. (Jan 2023)
2022
U.S. companies now account for 14% of all installed solar capacity in the U.S., according to the new Solar Means Business 2022 report. Through June, U.S. businesses installed nearly 19 GW of on-site and off-site solar capacity, double the 9.4 GW installed through 2019. CEF member Meta has the largest corporate solar portfolio in the U.S., growing from 177 MW in early 2019 to 3.6 GW in 2022. CEF members Amazon, Apple, and Microsoft had the second, third and fifth largest installed capacities. (Dec 2022)
Asia Clean Energy Coalition (ACEC) — ACEC aims to drive corporate clean energy procurement in Asia, accelerating its overall demand and supply. ACEC will strategically improve the policy and regulatory environments for clean energy, in both national and regional Asian markets. The coalition seeks to align the world’s leading clean energy buyers, project developers and financiers, to help policymakers, utilities and energy regulators innovate and deploy cost effective clean technologies across the Asia-Pacific region. Founding members include CEF members Amazon, Apple, Cisco, Google, Meta, and Samsung. (Nov 2022)
Called on its global supply chain to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions and take a comprehensive approach to decarbonization. The company will evaluate the work of its major manufacturing partners to decarbonize their Apple-related operations, aiming to be carbon neutral across its supply chain by 2030. More than 200 of Apple’s suppliers, representing 70% of Apple’s direct manufacturing spend, have committed to using clean power for all Apple production. Apple also announced three new projects through its Restore Fund, a carbon removal initiative, which will remove 1 million metric tons of CO2 from the atmosphere by 2025. (Oct 2022)
The U.S. Department of Commerce and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative launched the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) Upskilling Initiative, a public-private endeavor to support training and education in digital skills for women and girls in 8 countries, including Brunei, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam. Fourteen U.S. companies, including CEF members Amazon, Apple, Cisco, Dell Technologies, Google, HP, Mastercard, Microsoft, and Visa, will each provide 500,000 or more digital upskilling opportunities by 2032, such as providing training in data science, cyber-security, AI, and robotics; providing female small business owners with toolkits to help with website planning, social media, and marketing; and supporting digital leadership and entrepreneurship training in rural areas. (Sept 2022)
Reported its suppliers more than doubled clean-power usage in 2021, surpassing 10 gigawatts and saving 14 metric tons of carbon emissions. More than 200 of its manufacturing partners committed to 100% renewable energy use, bolstering the company’s push for a carbon-neutral supply chain by 2030. (April 2022)
Investments from Apple’s $4.7 billion Green Bond program, intended to spur new low-carbon manufacturing and recycling technologies, have contributed to the development of the world’s first commercial-grade, low-carbon aluminum available at industrial scale. Apple is purchasing the aluminum from ELYSIS—an investment partnership with Alcoa, Rio Tinto and the governments of Canada and Quebec—with intended use in its iPhone SE. (March 2022)
ETHISPHERE’S “WORLD’S MOST ETHICAL COMPANIES®” LIST — Ethisphere released its list of the World’s Most Ethical Companies® in 2022, recognizing 136 companies that “demonstrated a commitment to ethical business practices.” Fourteen companies (including CEF member Apple) are first-time honorees, and six companies (including CEF members Ecolab, International Paper, and PepsiCo) have been recognized all 16 years since the awards’ inception. (March 2022)
“National Recycling Database” (The Recycling Partnership, with support from CEF member Apple) — A new, first-of-its-kind national database that provides real-time information on localized recycling programs across the United States. It was created to help businesses, consumers, and policymakers understand how programs are run, what materials are accepted, and how packaging recyclability can be improved. The Partnership is developing an accompanying suite of digital product design and community outreach tools, and is currently using the database to target investments toward communities in need. (March 2022)
Shareholder advocacy group As You Sow released a report ranking 55 of the largest US companies’ progress in aligning their GHG emission reductions with 1.5°C of warming. Only three companies—CEF members Ecolab, Microsoft, and PepsiCo—received an overall “A” grade, and two—CEF members Alphabet and Apple—received an overall “B” grade, with 84% of companies receiving an overall “D” or “F.” Zero companies received an “A” for GHG target setting. (March 2022)
Consumer Electronic Recycling Pilot — A unique collaboration incubated at CEF, in which Google, Apple, Amazon, Dell, and Microsoft recently launched a doorstep electronics recycling pilot program in Denver, CO. In partnership with Retrievr, an innovative start-up with roots in Philadelphia, these brands hope to increase consumer recycling rates, doing so in a way that is responsible and safe, while also being convenient and affordable. (March 2022)
AS YOU SOW / CORPORATE KNIGHTS “CLEAN200” LIST — Shareholder advocacy group As You Sow and Corporate Knights released their annual list of the 200 largest public companies “ranked by green energy revenues.” On average, it found 58% of revenues earned by Clean200 companies to be “clean,” up from 39% in 2021 and significantly above the 20% average for their MSCI ACWI peers. The top 10 includes CEF members Apple (#1), Alphabet (#2), Cisco Systems (#7), HP (#8), Schneider Electric (#9), and Siemens (#10). (Feb 2022)
JUST CAPITAL 2022 “JUST 100 LIST” — 100 companies out of 954 public companies scored by JUST Capital, in collaboration with CNBC, made the 2022 “JUST 100” list, which recognizes companies that perform the best against 20 “priorities for just business behavior” (e.g., accountability to all stakeholders, paying a fair, living wage) that are identified based on polling of the American public. The top 10 includes CEF members Alphabet (#1), Microsoft (#3), Bank of America (#5), Apple (#7), and Cisco Systems (#10). (Jan 2022)
2021
Will launch Self Service Repair, a service wherein customers can make their own iPhone repairs using tools and parts available in a new online store.
The service is available for iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 and will expand to certain Mac computers. The store is set to open in the U.S. in early 2022 and expand to other countries during the year. (Nov 2021)
MORE »
MORE 2 »
The US State Department, through Special Presidential Envoy for Climate
John Kerry, and the
World Economic Forum
launched the
First Movers Coalition,
a
public-private partnership to accelerate green technologies’ commercial viability and decarbonize 8 hard-to-abate sectors by 2030. The
32 founding corporate signatories, accounting for over $8 trillion in market capitalization,
will sign purchasing commitments tailored to create market demand for the technologies. CEF members
Amazon, Apple, Bank of America, Boeing,
and
Trane Technologies are signatories.
Breakthrough Energy is the Primary Implementation Partner. (Nov 2021)
MORE »
MORE 2 »
The Climate Reporting Performance of the DOW 30, EURO STOXX 50 and FTSE 100(EcoAct) — Highlights industry and company trends for climate-related reporting by Dow 30, Euro Stoxx 50, and FTSE 100 companies. It also highlights companies’ best practices for net zero, science-based targets, TCFD, and carbon reduction and offsetting. CEF members Apple and Microsoft were ranked among this year’s top performers. Key findings (Nov 2021):
- Over 60% of companies have net-zero commitments—twice the amount in 2020
- 65% of companies have science-based targets, a 26% increase since 2020
- 39% of companies have Scope 3 commitments
- Almost 80% of companies have aligned with climate-related financial disclosure recommendations
Announced it now has 175 suppliers committed to using 100% clean energy,
doubling the amount since last year.
Together, Apple and the suppliers will bring online over 9 gigawatts of clean power globally and avoid over 18 million metric tons of CO2e annually. It also
announced 10 new projects for its Power for Impact initiative to bring clean energy solutions to under-resourced communities. (Nov 2021)
MORE »
Clean Production Action
unveiled a new
GreenScreen Certified™ for Cleaners & Degreasers in Manufacturing
it developed with Apple
to “promote safer chemical use and innovation in the electronics sector and beyond.” Certification requirements
include
compliance with certain prohibited substances (e.g., PFAS),
ingredient disclosure,
and
testing
to show that priority restricted chemicals and chemical classes are absent. (Oct 2021)
MORE »
Committed
$30 million to new projects for its Racial Equity and Justice Initiative, including a Global Hispanic-Serving Institution Equity Innovation Hub; a new cohort for the Apple Entrepreneur Camp tech lab for Hispanic/Latinx founders and developers; education opportunities for Historically Black Colleges and Universities and community colleges; and funding for leaders driving environmental justice and criminal justice reform. (Sept 2021)
MORE »
Unveiled the first
cohort of 15 Black- and Brown-owned US businesses for its
Impact Accelerator, created to drive equity in the environmental sector and solutions for communities most impacted by climate change. The businesses will have
access to custom training, Apple experts, and an alumni community, and be considered to act as Apple suppliers after the program. (Aug 2021)
MORE »
Nearly 100 leaders of companies, associations, and organizations—including CEF members
Facebook, Microsoft, Apple, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Amazon, Alphabet, General Motors, Mastercard, HP Inc., Cisco,
and
TPG Capital—sent a letter urging Congress to pass legislation to create a pathway to citizenship for the “Dreamers”—who would benefit from the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. The leaders were organized by the
Coalition for the American Dream. (Aug 2021)
MORE »
TPG —
Announced a
first close of $5.4 billion for the TPG Rise Climate Fund, the largest climate-focused fund in the world. Over
20 global companies—including CEF members
3M, ADM,
Alphabet, Apple,
Bank of America, Boeing, Dow, GE, General Motors, Honeywell,
and
TD Bank Group—participated in the close and will form a
Rise Climate Coalition. The fund will take a broad sector approach, focusing on growth equity to value-added infrastructure to
driving solutions for 5 climate sub-sectors. (Aug 2021)
MORE »
Over 150 companies that belong to the Business for Voting Rights Group, including CEF members
Amazon, Apple, Cisco, Facebook, Google, HP, Microsoft, PepsiCo, and
Unilever,
sent a letter to U.S. lawmakers urging them to reintroduce and pass the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act, which would help prevent voting discrimination and establish an improved system for states to report changes to election law. (July 2021)
MORE »
75 companies—including
3M, Apple, General Motors, Google, HP Inc., and Unilever—urged lawmakers to support a clean energy standard and require power companies supply zero-carbon electricity. Organized by
Ceres, the Environmental Defense Fund, and others, they wrote in an open letter, "A federal clean electricity standard should achieve 80 percent carbon pollution-free electricity by 2030 on the pathway to 100% clean power by 2035." (July 2021)
MORE »
RE100 — The RE100 companies, which are committed to 100% renewable electricity, now have an electricity demand greater than that of the U.K. or Italy and are on track to save CO2 emissions equal to burning over 118 million tons of coal per year. RE100 members include
CEF Members:
3M, Apple, Bank of America, Bloomberg, Dell Technologies, Ecolab, Facebook, General Motors, Google, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, HP Inc., Johnson & Johnson, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Mastercard, McKinsey & Co., Microsoft, Morgan Stanley, PepsiCo, Procter & Gamble, Siemens AG, TD Bank Group, Trane Technologies, Unilever,
and Visa.
(July 2021)
MORE »
Hundreds of executives, nonprofits, and companies—including Amazon, Apple, Bank of America, BlackRock, Cisco, Dell Technologies, Facebook, Ford, General Motors, Google, JetBlue, Johnson & Johnson, Mastercard, and McKinsey & Co.—signed a public statement opposing “any discriminatory legislation.” The statement, titled “We Stand for Democracy,” was featured in advertisements in the New York Times and The Washington Post. (April 2021)
More than 300 businesses representing over $3 trillion in annual revenue and employing nearly 6 million US workers signed an open letter calling upon President Biden to adopt a GHG emissions reduction target of at least 50% by 2030 (2005 baseline). Organized by the We Mean Business coalition and Ceres, signatories of the letter included: Apple, Dell Technologies, Facebook, Google, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, HP, Johnson & Johnson, Mastercard, McDonald’s, Microsoft, Siemens, Trane Technologies, Unilever, and VF Corporation. (April 2021)
Apple called for the SEC to “require that companies disclose third-party-audited emissions information to the public, covering all scopes of emissions, direct and indirect, and the value chain.” (April 2021)
Announced the “Restore Fund,” a $200 million initiative to invest in forestry projects to remove at least 1 million metric tons of atmospheric carbon annually while generating a financial return for investors. Conservation International is a co-investor and will ensure projects meet strict environmental and social standards, and Goldman Sachs will manage the fund. The effort is part of Apple’s broader goal of becoming carbon neutral across its value chain by 2030. (April 2021)
Companies across the country—including Apple, BlackRock, Bank of America, Cisco, Facebook, JPMorgan Chase, Microsoft, and UPS—denounced the state of Georgia’s new law overhauling state election procedures over concerns it will restrict voter access and disproportionately disenfranchise people of color. Dozens of Black executives have called on companies to stand up for racial justice by fighting a wave of similar restrictive voting bills being advanced by Republicans in at least 43 states. (April 2021)
Announced plans to construct one of the largest battery projects in the country, “California Flats,” capable of storing 240MWh of energy—enough to power over 7,000 homes for one day. The project will support the company’s 130MW solar farm providing all of its renewable energy in California. (April 2021)
Announced over 110 of its global manufacturing partners are moving to 100% renewable energy for Apple-related production, totaling nearly 8GW of planned clean energy. Once complete, these commitments will avoid over 15 million metric tons of CO2e annually—equivalent to taking 3.4 million cars off the road each year. (April 2021)
Became the first company in the world to certify a data center to the Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS) North America Standard. The certification verifies its Prineville, Oregon data center follows a water stewardship plan that includes context-based objectives and targets, ensuring shared water challenges and water risks at the local level are understood and mitigated. (March 2021)
Announced it has allocated $2.8 billion of its planned $4.7 billion green bond spend. In 2020, it funded 17 green bond projects that will generate 1.2 gigawatts of renewable energy globally and avoid an average of 921,000 metric tons of carbon emissions annually. (March 2021)
A major new coalition, “America is All In,” launched to mobilize bold climate ambitions nationally and uphold the federal government’s commitment to climate action—specifically to cut U.S. emissions in half or more by 2030 and reach net-zero by 2050. Co-led by UN Special Climate Envoy Michael Bloomberg, the coalition effectively merges We Are Still In and America’s Pledge and is the most expansive effort ever assembled to support climate action in the U.S., involving U.S. businesses, cities, states, tribal nations, schools, and faith groups, health care organizations, and cultural institutions. Large companies involved include: 3M, Adobe, Amazon, Apple, ADM, Autodesk, BASF, Best Buy, Cargill, Carrier Corporation, The Clorox Company, Coca-Cola, Danone N.A., Dell Technologies, Dow Inc., DSM N.A., DuPont, eBay, Edison International, Facebook, Gap, General Mills, Google, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, HP, Inc., IKEA U.S., Johnson & Johnson, Johnson Controls, Kellogg Company, LafargeHolcim, Levi Strauss & Co., L’Oréal, Mars Incorporated, McDonald’s, Microsoft, Mondelez International, National Grid, Nestle, NIKE, Novozymes, PG&E Corporation, PepsiCo, Salesforce, Siemens, Sony Corporation of America, Starbucks, Steelcase, Target, Tiffany & Co., Trane Technologies, Verizon, VF Corporation, Walmart, and Waste Management. (February 2021)
Ranked #1 on Fortune list of “World’s Most Admired Companies,”which ranks companies based on their performance against nine criteria, including investment value, quality of management, products, social responsibility, ability to attract talent, and more. (February 2021)
MIT partnered with 13 companies to launch the MIT Climate and Sustainability Consortium (MCSC), which will co-create and accelerate shared innovation solutions that address climate change. Inaugural member companies include Accenture, Apple, Boeing, Cargill, Dow, IBM, Inditex, LafargeHolcim, MathWorks, Nexplore, Rand-Whitney Containerboard (a Kraft Group Company), PepsiCo, and Verizon. (February 2021)
Apple announced new projects from its $100 million Racial Equity and Justice Initiative, including the first-of-its-kind innovation and learning hub for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (the “Propel Center”), an Apple Developer Academy to teach coding skills in Detroit, and venture capital funding for entrepreneurs of color. (January 2021)
Apple announced plans to incorporate environmental, social, and governance factors into its executive bonus structures in 2021. (January 2021)
2020
Apple announced plans to become carbon neutral across its entire business, manufacturing supply chain, and product life cycle by 2030. The company will reduce emissions 75% percent by 2030 and develop innovative carbon removal solutions for the remaining 25% of its comprehensive footprint. Apple’s 10-year climate roadmap includes plans to advance low carbon product design, expand energy efficiency efforts, continue to source 100% renewable energy for its operations and work to move its entire supply chain to clean power, develop process and material innovations to tackle emissions, continue to invest in nature-based solutions to remove carbon from the atmosphere, and support smart policies around the world to strengthen environmental protections and the transition to clean energy. (July 2020)
Apple launched a new Impact Accelerator to invest in minority-owned businesses thatdrive positive outcomes in its supply chain and in communities disproportionately affected by environmental hazards. (July 2020)
Apple was among the highest rated in the “2020 Information and Communications Technology Sector Benchmark” (KnowTheChain, June 2020), which scored the 49 largest companies in the Information and Communications Technology sector based on their actions to mitigate forced labor in the supply chain.
Apple launched a $100 million effort called the “Apple Racial Equity and Justice Initiative” that will build on the company's work with historically Black colleges and schools. Led by Lisa Jackson, VP of Environment, Policy, and Social initiative, the initiative will focus on the principles of representation, inclusion, and accountability. Apple will also launch a new entrepreneurial camp for Black developers, will increase representation across the companies it does business with, and committed to hiring and supporting those from underrepresented groups within Apple. (June 2020)
Apple announced plans to produce and ship 1 million face shields for medical workers every week. The company also donated 20 million N95 facemasks to organizations involved in the fight against COVID-19. (April 2020)
Apple will partner with Google to develop technology that enables mobile devices to trade information over Bluetooth connections to alert people when they have been in close proximity with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19. The technology will require users to opt into the system and will not track the location or identity of users, according to Reuters. (April 2020)
Apple created an online screening tool for COVID-19 based on the latest CDC guidance, in partnership with the CDC, the White House Coronavirus Task Force, and FEMA. (March 2020)
Included on CDP “Climate Change A List,” which recognizes companies for demonstrating leadership on climate risk management in 2019. (Jan 2020)
Ranked #1 on Fortune “World’s Most Admired Companies” list, which ranks companies based on their performance against nine criteria, including investment value, quality of management, products, social responsibility, ability to attract talent, and more. (Jan 2020)
2019
CEO Tim Cook joined a group of CEOs from more than 70 companies and union leaders, representing 12.5 million workers, signed a joint statement calling for the United States to stay in the Paris Agreement. (Dec 2019)
Ranked #2 on Forbes and JUST Capital 2020 JUST 100 list, which ranks U.S. public companies based on their corporate citizenship performance. (Nov 2019)
Apple has issued an additional $2.2 billion in green bonds, nearly doubling its green bond offerings to date. The new offering will focus on global initiatives to lower carbon emissionsfrom the company’s operations and across the lifecycle of its products. (Nov 2019)
A group of companies — including Apple, eBay, Samsung, and Sprint — have signed a joint agreement with Apex Clean Energy to purchase a combined 75 MW of renewable energy from a 500 MW wind farm in Texas. The wind farm is expected to come online in 2021. (Nov 2019)
Apple launched a new program to make it easier for U.S. customers to repair their out-of-warranty iPhone. The company will provide more independent repair businesses with the same genuine parts, tools, training, repair manuals, and diagnostics as its Apple Authorized Service Providers to offer customers with additional options when their phone needs a repair. (Sep 2019)
Apple and Tiffany & Co. announced that they are now using “Salmon Gold” in their respective supply chains. Salmon Gold is the result of a joint-initiative between the companies and solutions-focused NGO RESOLVE that combines responsible gold mining with fish habitat restoration in Alaska, the Yukon Territory, and British Columbia. (Aug 2019)
Ranked #6 on Fortune's Top 10 list of “Sustainability All Stars with an "Environmental pillar score" of 93.8 out of 100.
Ranked #1 among U.S. companies for installed on-site and off-site solar capacity (393.3 MW) in 2018 by “Solar Means Business 2018” (Solar Energy Industries Association, July 2019)
Apple partnered with Conservation International to protect and restore a 27,000-acre mangrove forest in Colombia. The initiative is expected to sequester 1 million metric tons of CO2 over its lifetime. (April 2019)
Apple has quadrupled the number of locations that U.S. customers can send their used iPhone to be disassembled and recycled. The company refurbished more than 7.8 million Apple devices and helped divert more than 48,000 metric tons of electronic waste from landfills in 2018. (April 2019)
Apple has nearly doubled the number of suppliers that have committed to power their Apple operations with 100% renewable energy, bringing the total number of supplier renewable energy commitments to 44. As a result, the company expects to exceed its goal of bringing 4 GW of renewable energy into its supply chain by 2020. (April 2019)