Cisco Sustainability News, Milestones, Partnerships and Net Zero Timeline

Cisco Systems, led by CEO Chuck Robbins, expects to be carbon neutral by 2040. How will the networking company reach that long-term goal?

Chief Sustainability Officer Mary de Wysocki shared some clues in this interview.

Among de Wysocki's key statements from that Q&A: "My primary objective as CSO is to steward environmental sustainability initiatives across Cisco. As we think about our strategy, we’re focusing on how we can decarbonize our business and embed circularity. Equally important is looking at how we can enable sustainable growth and innovation. The greatest opportunity is on helping our customers, partners, and other stakeholders decarbonize their business and embed circularity. Cisco’s technology and ecosystem can play a significant role in the twin transition to a digital and low-carbon economy."

That journey toward sustainability, de Wysocki added, must be authentic, transparent, and data-driven.

Cisco Partners and Sustainability Strategy

On the partner ecosystem front, Cisco unveiled an Environmental Sustainability Specialization for partners in early 2022. That effort's lead sponsor is Andrew Sage, VP of global distribution sales.

Dig a little deeper, and you'll see that Cisco continues to promote a Takeback and Reuse Program. And the company is rolling out and activating Circular Design Principals for all new Cisco products by 2025.

The efforts don't end there. The timeline below, updated regularly, further explains Cisco's sustainability strategy, key milestones, customer engagements, partner integrations and more. Check back regularly for updates.

February 2025: Updates

• Venture Capital and Climate Investments: Cisco Investments is seeking to "invest in organizations that align with Cisco’s own climate goals and those of its customers," according to a lengthy article from the networking company.
• AI Networks and Energy Efficiency: Cisco Systems outlined an AI network optimization strategy for service providers. The Agile Services Networking architecture is a "more energy efficient and less resource-intensive architecture" compared to traditional networks, Cisco asserted.

December 2024: Sustainability Strategy Updates

• Networking and IT Services: Cisco is now publishing life cycle assessments (LCAs) for some of its hardware products. The LCAs estimate a product's environmental impact associated with its production, transport, use, and end-of-life.

November 2024: Sustainability Strategy Updates

• Startup Funding - E-Waste Reduction: DEScycle, a startup that recycles metal from electronic waste, has raised €12.2 million (US$12.8 million) in Series A funding. BGF and Vorwerk Ventures led the round. Cisco Investments, Kadmos Capital, and Nesta also participated as new investors.
• Honorees - IT Services and Networking: Cisco has named SPIE Switzerland as its Sustainability Partner of the Year for Switzerland.
  

October 2024: Sustainability Strategy

• Partner of the Year - IT Services: For the second consecutive year, Cisco named Logicalis as its global sustainability partner of the year. Key Logicalis focus areas include circular IT solutions, sustainable network transformation, smart buildings and sustainable managed services.
• Partner Program - IT Solutions and Services: Cisco plans to overhaul its partner program to help partners "power AI workloads anywhere, and keep their organizations secure, resilient, and high-performing." Much of the Cisco 360 Partner Program announcement focused on AI, security and networking. The company did not mention energy management or sustainability in the launch statement.

September 2024: Sustainability Strategy

• Climate Week NYC: At the conference, multiple Cisco executives described how the company's products are becoming "more energy efficient, as well as modular, recyclable, and reusable (that is, circular)," delivering benefits that can "cascade across industries, countries, and continents."

August 2024: Sustainability Strategy

• Partnership - Smart Buildings: Cisco Systems and Honeywell have reinforced their smart building partnership to help customers improve energy efficiency while reducing carbon emissions.
• Partner Program - Sustainability Specialization: ePlus Technology and its IGXGlobal UK subsidiary have successfully renewed their Cisco Environmental Sustainability Specialization.
• Funding - AI Startup: --Groq, a potential Nvidia rival, has raised $640 million in Series D funding at a $2.8 billion valuation. BlackRock Private Equity Partners led the round, with participation from Neuberger Berman, Type One Ventures, Cisco Systems, Global Brain's KDDI Open Innovation Fund III, and Samsung Catalyst Fund. 
• Honorees: SustainableIT.org, a CIO-led nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing global sustainability through technology leadership, announced the honorees of the 2024 SustainableIT Impact Awards. The awards recognize "outstanding contributions to technology-driven sustainability across Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) categories," the organization said. Honorees from the technology and IT services sectors included Cisco Systems, Cognizant, NTT Data Group and Rackspace, among others.
  

April 2024: Sustainability Strategy

• IT and Solar Power: Cisco and Morgan Solar are testing a renewable energy solution that powers collaboration and meeting spaces. The solution involves Morgan Solar’s Energy Blinds, Cisco’s Power-over-Ethernet (PoE) switch, and Webex. Early tests produced up to 50W of renewable energy per window -- enough to effectively run the pilot room’s required equipment and devices. When the room is not occupied, the system stores excess solar energy for later use.

March 2024: Sustainability Strategy

• MSP Partner: Logicalis, a major managed IT services provider (MSP), is the first partner globally to achieve Cisco’s Sustainable Campus Access add-on specialization, the companies said.

More: Continue to next page for additional Cisco sustainability updates & the associated channel partner implications.