Microsoft, ITV among 13 more firms to join Amazon’s Climate Pledge

San Francisco, Dec 10 (IANS) Microsoft and UK-based ITV are among 13 more companies to have joined The Climate Pledge, a commitment co-founded by Amazon and Global Optimism to be net-zero carbon by 2040, a decade ahead of the Paris Agreement’s goal of 2050.The other 11 new signatories are Atos, Brooks, Canary Wharf Group, Coca-Cola European Partners, ERM, Groupe SEB France, Harbour Air, Neste, Rubicon, Unilever, and Vaude.With the 13 new signatories, 31 companies have now joined The Climate Pledge.”There are now 31 companies from around the world that have signed The Climate Pledge, and collectively we are sending an important signal to the market that there is significant and rapidly growing demand for technologies that can help us build a zero-carbon economy,” Amazon Founder and CEO Jeff Bezos said in a statement.Signatories to The Climate Pledge agree to measure and report greenhouse gas emissions on a regular basis and implement decarbonisation strategies in line with the Paris Agreement through real business changes and innovations, including efficiency improvements, renewable energy, materials reductions, and other carbon emission elimination strategies.They also agree to neutralise any remaining emissions with additional, quantifiable, real, permanent, and socially-beneficial offsets to achieve net-zero annual carbon emissions by 2040.”No one company or organisation can meaningfully address the climate crisis on their own. It will take aggressive approaches, new innovative technologies and strong commitment to collaboration across industries and economic sectors,” said Lucas Joppa, Microsoft Chief Environmental Officer. “By joining The Climate Pledge community and working together, we will be able to collectively rise to the challenge and curb our emissions so that we can make progress toward a net zero future.”–IANSgb/rs