Here is today’s sustainable IT services news, research and analysis -- written for technology partners, green IT service providers, CIOs, chief sustainability officers (CSOs) and climate accounting professionals.
A. Sustainable Technology, Talent, Partnerships and Green IT Alliances
1. Reality Check: Companies are talking less about sustainability in earnings calls and marketing materials, but they are mentioning it nearly as frequently as ever in their financial reports and disclosures, The Wall Street Journal reported.
2. Partnership - Consulting and Cloud Services: Coforge has launched Coforge Enzo -- a sustainability service that taps Salesforce Net Zero Cloud. Together, Coforge and Salesforce will "help customers address decarbonization challenges and accurately measure and report on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions via sustainability consulting and diagnostic assessment services," the two companies said.
3. Partnership - Higher Education: IBMÂ and Imperial College of London have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to partner on climate and sustainability opportunities, the future of computing, accelerated discovery and AI. Separately, IBM and the National University of Singapore (NUS) are partnering to establish a new research and innovation center focused on AI and sustainable computing, CIO Souteast Asia reported.
4. Leadership - Higher Education: Columbia University has hired Alexis Abramson as the next dean of the Columbia Climate School, according to Interim President Katrina A. Armstrong. Abramson's start date is January 1, 2025. Professor Abramson is currently dean of the Thayer School of Engineering at Dartmouth.
5. IT Services: Deloitte has moved into a new Bristol office that is one of the UK’s most sustainable office developments, the IT consulting firms said.
6. Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO) Debate: The city of Mansfield in North Texas has hired Casey Lewis as a consultant who essentially serves as chief sustainability officer. But a former city employee alleges that hiring Lewis -- a former city council member -- violates the city charter, the Mansfield Record reported.
7. Layoffs - General Motors: GM layoffs will impact more than 1,000 salaried software and services employees, many of whom work at GM's tech campus near Detroit, CNBC reported.
B. Sustainability M&A, Investments, Funding and Green IT Business Launches
1. Refinancing Discussions: Environmental advisory firm SLR Consulting, backed by private equity firm Ares Management, is seeking a $1 billion loan to refinance existing private credit, Bloomberg reported. Goldman Sachs Asset Management is involved in the refinancing talks, the report said.
2. Funding - Data Center Cooling Technology: Apheros has raised $1.85 million in pre-seed funding led by venture capital firm Founderful. Apheros develops thermal management technology to help cool down data centers while helping customers to reduce their energy consumption. Apheros, founded in 2023, is based in Zürich, Switzerland.
3. M&A - Seeking Acquisitions: Kontrol Technologies has reorganized and is seeking to acquire businesses that focus on sustainable building technologies.
4. M&A - Equity Offering: WSP has successfully completed a $1.15 billion equity offering to help fund the Power Engineers acquisition.
C. Regional and Global Sustainability Policies and News
1. United States - Carbon Capture Funding: The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Fossil Energy and Carbon Management (FECM) announced up to $127.5 million in federal funding to support the development of carbon dioxide (CO2) capture, removal, and conversion test centers for cement manufacturing facilities and power plants.
2. United States - Trump and EV Tax Credits: If elected, Donald Trump would consider ending a $7,500 tax credit for electric-vehicle purchases and that he would be open to naming Tesla CEO Elon Musk to a cabinet or advisory role, Reuters reported. Still, Trump has somewhat softened his anti-EV statements amid continued outreach from Musk, who has publicly endorsed Trump for president.
3. United States - Climate Lobbying: Climate-focused advocacy groups say they’re putting $55 million into an ad campaign to elect Vice President Harris to the presidency, The Hill reported. Among the key players to note: The League of Conservation Voters Victory Fund, Environmental Defense Fund Action Votes, and Climate Power Action said they are launching the ads, alongside the Democratic-aligned Future Forward PAC, the report said.
D. Sustainability and Green Technology Conference Calendar
- World ESG Summit Dubai (August 20-21, Dubai, UAE)
- Tennessee Sustainability Conference 2024Â (Gatlinburg, Tennessee, August 20-23)
- VMware Explore 2024Â (August 26-29, Las Vegas, Nevada)
- Amsterdam Immersive Impact Trip and Masterclass 2024Â (September 5-6)
- LG Energy Summit 2024Â (September 5-6, Brussels, Belgium)
- Complete Calendar of Sustainability Conferences
E. Previous Updates & Future News
- Did You Miss Yesterday's Daily Update?: Here is our previous sustainability, green IT and renewable energy news for technology partners.
- Future Updates: If you have news to share then please email me the details.
