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. Awards - Call for Nominations: Schneider Electric has opened applications for the third installment of the Schneider Electric Sustainability Impact Awards. Submissions are open until October 15, 2024, and the global winners will be announced in early 2025.
2. Microsoft Software: Microsoft Copilot Studio is previewing the Sustainability Insights Copilot template, which "enables you to get insights and see data about your organization’s sustainability goals and progress and can be tailored to suit your organization’s specific needs," the company wrote in a blog.
3. Amazon and Carbon Offsets: Amazon is the first company to sidestep a global standard for verifying carbon offsets that was developed by a non-profit funded by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Reuters reported. Amazon and Verra developed Abacus as an alternative to the Integrity Council for the Voluntary Carbon Market (ICVCM).
4. Milestone - IT Services: NTT DATA Middle East and Africa has earned the Gold Medal Sustainability Rating by EcoVadis.
5. Launch - Sustainability Consulting: The founders of Avallen Spirits have launched Avallen Solutions, a sustainability consultancy focused on the drinks and hospitality industries.
6. Startup - Carbon Emissions and Lifecycle Assessments: CO2 AI, a startup, is touting a new service called Product Footprinting. Leveraging generative AI, the service can "compute emissions for thousands of products following leading industry standards, with full traceability and auditability, the company asserts. CO2 AI, a sustainability management software spin-off from Boston Consulting Group (BCG), in September 2023 raised $12 million from two venture capital (VC) firms and BCG.
7. Partnership - Building Energy Management: ABB and Cleanwatts Digital are partnering to "build enhanced energy management and efficiency technologies for communities and buildings," the two companies said.
8. Software - New CEO: Nicholas Cumins has succeeded Greg Bentley as CEO of Bentley Systems, a developer of infrastructure engineering software. The CEO transition plan, announced in March 2024, surfaced amid rumors that Schneider Electric may acquire Bentley Systems. But that rumored deal never materialized. Customers and partners leverage Bentley's software to for the "design, construction, and operations of roads and bridges, rail and transit, water and wastewater, public works and utilities, buildings and campuses, mining, and industrial facilities," the company says.
9. AI Talent: Amazon has hired executives from Adept and licensed technology from the AI startup, Adept has confirmed. The hire-and-license approach generally allows entrenched technology companies to avoid M&A scrutiny from the U.S. Department of Justice...
B. Sustainability M&A, Investments, Funding and Green IT Business Launches
1. Funding - Data Centers: Metrobloks, a data center infrastructure development startup, has raised $5.2 million in seed funding. The company is seeking to develop "sustainable and future-proof data centers in underserved urban markets around the world." Current Equity Partners led the round with participation from Serena Capital. Metrobloks founder and CEO Ernest Popescu previously held key data center, real estate and M&A positions at Iron Mountain, Facebook and AWS.
2. Accelerator: Amazon has launched an India space accelerator to support 24 startups. One of the startups, Advick AgVenture, focuses on sustainable food production and precision farming.
3. Investment -- Google and Solar Infrastructure: Google has acquired a stake in New Green Power (NGP), a Taiwanese solar power company owned by a BlackRock fund. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
4. M&A - Consulting: SLR Consulting has acquired Alchemy Growth Partners, a consulting firm that assists customers with growth, sustainability and digital innovation. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
5. M&A - ESG and Financial Services: Acuity Knowledge Partners has acquired PPA Group, a tech-enabled service provider that helps financial services firms with ESG data. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
6. Complete M&A List: Here's our database of all M&A deals involving green IT and renewable energy buyers, sellers and investors.
C. Regional and Global Sustainability Policies and News
1. United States - New York Battery Initiative: The Upstate New York Energy Storage Engine -- a federally funding battery initiative -- is launching in Johnson City, New York. The facility is owned by Binghamton University's foundation.
2. Caribbean - Extreme Weather: Hurricane Beryl, described by forecasters as “extremely dangerous,” is set to cause massive damage across the Caribbean’s Windward Islands, Bloomberg reported.
3. Australia: The AASB is putting the spotlight on voluntary IFRS S1 adoption, following pushback from local finance sector and global investors to align with ISSB standards, Responsible Investor reported.
D. Sustainability and Green Technology Conference Calendar
- CleanTech Venture Day 2024 (July 2, London, United Kingdom)
- Siemens Beyond 1% Summit 2024 (July 3-4, Sydney, Australia)
- Stanford Sustainability Summit 2024 (July 8-9, Stanford University)
- Sun Valley Forum 2024 (July 15-18, Ketchum Idaho)
- CSR and Sustainability Summit MOZ 2024 (July 17-18, Mozambique)
- 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.
