Sprint partners with the World Wildlife Fund for the Climate Savers program
Sprint announced today that it is teaming up with World Wildlife Fund’s (WWF) Climate Savers program, which partners with corporations around the world over reducing their environmental footprint.
Sprint is the only carrier in the US that is committing to reducing its emissions by a firm number of 20 percent over the course of five years.
CEO Dan Hesse said it is the first partner of the program in the United States that will address all sources of greenhouse gas that its business produces. Part of his CTIA 2011 keynote read:
Our admission into World Wildlife Fund’s Climate Savers program illustrates Sprint’s commitment to making a difference by reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Joining the Climate Savers program is an important part of our ongoing climate protection efforts. My hope is that our commitment encourages other companies to follow.
Sprint's Network Vision project will upgrade its existing network infrastructure for multiple spectrum bands on single, multimode base stations, thus diminishing Sprint’s cell sites environmental footprint. The energy sources for the cell sites will gradually shift to using renewables like wind, solar, hydrogen fuel cells and geothermal power as much as possible.
This project certainly comes in challenging for Sprint times, which make it all the more noble undertaking. Have a look at the full press release below.
OVERLAND PARK, Kan.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Sprint (NYSE:S - News) marked another environmental milestone today by announcing new climate protection commitments with World Wildlife Fund’s (WWF) Climate Savers program. Sprint CEO Dan Hesse made the announcement during his keynote address at CTIA. Sprint is the first Climate Savers partner in the United States that will address all scopes of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions through their agreement with WWF.
Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services bringing the freedom of mobility to consumers, businesses and government users. Sprint Nextel served more than 52 million customers at the end of 2Q 2011 and is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including the first wireless 4G service from a national carrier in the United States; offering industry-leading mobile data services, leading prepaid brands including Virgin Mobile USA, Boost Mobile, and Assurance Wireless; instant national and international push-to-talk capabilities; and a global Tier 1 Internet backbone. Newsweek ranked Sprint No. 6 in its 2010 Green Rankings, listing it as one of the nation’s greenest companies, the highest of any telecommunications company. You can learn more and visit Sprint at www.sprint.com or www.facebook.com/sprint and www.twitter.com/sprint.
WWF is the world’s largest conservation organization and has effectively mobilized more than two dozen companies to take aggressive measures to scale up climate protection efforts as part of its Climate Savers program.
"Our admission into World Wildlife Fund’s Climate Savers program illustrates Sprint’s commitment to making a difference by reducing greenhouse gas emissions," said Hesse. "Joining the Climate Savers program is an important part of our ongoing climate protection efforts. My hope is that our commitment encourages other companies to follow."
As one of only 28 companies in the program, Sprint joins IBM, The Coca-Cola Company and Johnson & Johnson. Sprint’s collaboration with WWF bolsters its already aggressive goals to reduce the company’s climate impact. As the only U.S. company to address all scopes of GHG emissions through the WWF agreement, Sprint joins KPN, a Dutch telecommunications company, as the only other partner in the Climate Savers program to commit to such a multifaceted GHG emissions reduction strategy for its own operations, suppliers and consumers. Sprint’s commitments include:
- Reducing Sprint’s own greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent.
- Partnering with device manufacturers and suppliers to measure, report and reduce their emissions.
- Identifying opportunities to reduce emissions associated with customers charging their mobile devices.
- Identifying opportunities for Sprint to help other companies reduce their emissions, particularly through our machine-to-machine partnerships.
“We are excited to have Sprint join Climate Savers and we look forward to a fruitful partnership,” said Jason Clay, senior vice president of Markets at WWF. “Sprint’s commitment to reducing emissions beyond their own operations will not only help protect our fragile climate, but also help conserve nature’s resources we all depend on for life. This is why we partner with influential, forward-looking companies like Sprint. It’s a powerful way to protect the places and species at the core of our mission.”
Since 1999, leading corporations have partnered with WWF to establish ambitious targets to voluntarily reduce their GHG emissions. To be included, companies in the program agree to reduce their CO2 emissions in accordance with an individual reduction target defined by WWF, the company and independent technical experts. During the past decade, WWF's Climate Savers partners have reduced emissions by an estimated 50 million tons, the equivalent of taking some 11 million cars off the road.
Sprint is the only U.S. telecommunications company to commit to reducing its GHG emissions by an absolute 20 percent by 2017. Through energy efficiencies and renewable energy, Sprint has made significant steps to reduce the company’s carbon footprint. In late 2010, Sprint announced Network Vision. Through Network Vision, Sprint will upgrade its existing wireless network infrastructure to allow multiple spectrum bands, or airwaves, on single, multimode base stations. Sprint’s cell sites will be more compact, more energy efficient, and able to provide better coverage and call quality. Network Vision is expected to be a significant driver to achieve Sprint’s GHG reduction goal.
Sprint also has a considerable renewable energy strategy, which includes wind, solar, hydrogen fuel cells and geothermal power. Wind power provided more than 93 percent of the electrical energy needed for Sprint’s Overland Park, Kan., headquarters campus in 2010. This wind power purchase provided a reduction of 78,173 metric tons of C02 equivalents in 2010, and according to the EPA GHG equivalencies calculator, is the equivalent of:
- Taking 15,328 passenger cars off the road for one year.
- Consuming 181,798 fewer barrels of oil a year.
- The electricity used in 9,747 households each year.
- Preserving 774 acres of forest from deforestation.
Reporting and disclosure are critical for effectively setting and managing C02 emissions. Sprint worked with Trucost, a leading assessment firm, to develop a comprehensive analysis of Sprint’s supply chain carbon emissions. Sprint was also among the first wireless carriers to complete and publicly release a supplier carbon assessment and leveraged those findings as part of their agreement with WWF. Sprint was the only telecommunications company in the S&P 500 to externally assure its 2010 scope 1 and scope 2 GHG emissions.
Sprint continues to research and implement a variety of solutions to better measure the effects of its environmental programs and initiatives. Collaborations like those with WWF establish critical relationships that will enable Sprint to reach their climate change targets.
For more information on Sprint programs that protect the environment, go to www.sprint.com/responsibility, or follow @SprintGreenNews on Twitter.
About World Wildlife Fund
World Wildlife Fund is the world’s largest conservation organization, working in 100 countries for half a century. With the support of almost five million members worldwide, WWF is dedicated to delivering science-based solutions to preserve the diversity and abundance of life on Earth, stop the degradation of the environment and combat climate change. Visit www.worldwildlife.org to learn more.
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