VMware's Sustainability Team Receives Global Recognition
By Nicola Acutt, vice president, Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG), VMware
On the heels of our 2030 Agenda announcement, VMware has been recognized on CDP’s Climate A List.(1) CDP is a global environmental nonprofit, and its A List recognizes companies committed to reducing carbon emissions and managing climate change risk.
As an A list company, VMware is committed to the transition to a new sustainable economy. We’re proud to have earned a position on CDP’s Climate A List for leadership in environmental transparency—the key milestone in effective climate action and one of our 2030 goals—to accelerate accountability and transparency for the benefit of all stakeholders.
Additionally, VMware has been acknowledged by the 2020 Carbon Clean 200™, which ranks publicly traded companies based on their green energy revenues.(2) The Clean 200™ shines a light on companies leading the way to a zero-carbon future. According to The Clean 200™:
“With all this action, we hope that the Clean200 can do two things:
- Provide a useful North star for investors looking to pinpoint the companies leading the way to a clean energy future.
- To dispel the myth that clean investing is about sacrificing returns.”
VMware was also recently named to the Dow Jones Sustainability Index (DJSI).The DJSI is one of the most respected independent sustainability performance evaluation systems and VMware ranked in the 94th percentile in the software category for its leadership in corporate sustainability. Being able to benchmark performance across the industry enables us to assess progress against our strategic goals. This is important because, while we are proud of our performance, achieving a high ranking is not the end in itself.
These recognitions reflect VMware’s longstanding commitment to sustainability. It is also the result of the hard work, dedication and grit of a small, but mighty VMware Sustainability team in the Office of the CTO in 2020. The acknowledgements are humbling and inspiring particularly in light of the tumultuous and challenging year. Looking forward, with resilience as a key theme, we are committed to achieving even more in 2021 with our customers and partners to build a more equitable and sustainable world.
UN Climate Change Secretariat (2010-2016) Christiana Figueres called this decade the “decisive decade for the future of humanity and the planet.” Business and community leaders across the world are called upon to act with resolve on addressing issues of sustainability, equity and trust.
With that responsibility, I am reminded of one of my long-time favorite quotes:
"The Peacemaker taught us about the Seven Generations. He said, when you sit in council for the welfare of the people, you must not think of yourself or of your family, not even of your generation. He said, make your decisions on behalf of the seven generations coming, so that they may enjoy what you have today." —Oren Lyons (Seneca), Faithkeeper, Onondaga Nation
Learn more about VMware's 2030 Agenda.
1. https://www.cdp.net/en/companies/companies-scores
2. According to 2020 Carbon Clean 200™, green energy revenues are in USD and assessed “by multiplying a company’s most recent year-end revenues by its clean revenue estimate, primarily sourced from Corporate Knights Research. In order to be eligible, a company must have USD revenue of at least $1 billion (most recent available fiscal year end data) and earn more than 10% of total revenues from clean sources.”
