Accelerating our climate commitments on Earth Day
This month, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change published a new and alarming report, underscoring the urgency of the climate crisis – “immediate and deep emissions reductions,” they wrote, are necessary to turn the tide on global warming.
Now more than ever, meaningful climate action, from all of us, is critical. Today – on #EarthDay2022 – we’re sharing more about our work to serve the climate conversations happening across Twitter, plus the latest on our own sustainability commitments.
Climate-forward approach to ads People around the world use Twitter to connect with others passionate about protecting our planet. Last year, we introduced a dedicated Topic to help people find personalized conversations about climate change. And, to support conversation around #COP26, we rolled out pre-bunks — hubs of credible, authoritative information across a range of key themes, like the science backing climate change, made available in the Explore tab, Search, and Trends.
To better serve these conversations, misleading advertisements on Twitter that contradict the scientific consensus on climate change are prohibited, in line with our inappropriate content policy.
We believe that climate denialism shouldn’t be monetized on Twitter, and that misrepresentative ads shouldn’t detract from important conversations about the climate crisis. This approach is informed by authoritative sources, like the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Assessment Reports.
We recognize that misleading information about climate change can undermine efforts to protect the planet. In the coming months, we’ll have more to share on our work to add reliable, authoritative context to the climate conversations happening on Twitter.
Sustainability at Twitter We continue to accelerate our sustainability efforts, and we’re laser focused on reducing our own carbon footprint. Through targeted work, we’ve lowered our emissions for the second straight year – even as the company grew.
In 2019, we shared plans to achieve 100% carbon-neutral power sourcing in our current data centers by the end of 2022. With the help of our partners at Watershed, we’ll be utilizing zero-carbon electricity for all of our data centers, and for surrounding offices in the US and Canada. Our Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) are sourced from solar and wind power projects in the same geographic region in which energy was used, and cover 100% of Scope 2 emissions from these sites.
Earlier this year, we joined the EU climate pact, committing to ambitious North Star and Pathway pledges, in line with Paris Agreement goals. We’re committed to transitioning to renewable electricity in all our EU leased operations; using 100% carbon-neutral energy in our directly leased buildings by 2025;
and upping our investments in carbon removal technologies. In 2021, we were proud to join the Science Based Target Initiative (SBTi), and we’re actively pursuing those targets. By 2030, we’re set to have significantly reduced our greenhouse gas emissions, paving the way for our net-zero journey.
Since 2020, we’ve measurably advanced our CDP score, achieving a B grade for our comprehensive reporting on Twitter’s sustainability efforts. We believe that transparency should be central to our approach to sustainability. We’ll continue to report on our progress, providing regular, public-facing updates against our declared targets.
Tackling the climate crisis requires meaningful, sustained collaboration. Through #AdsForGood grants, on-service support, trainings, and more, we’re partnering with organizations committed to environmental conservation and sustainability. These include Earth Day Network, United Nations (UN) Environment Programme, UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, UN Development Programme, Greenpeace, Voice for the Planet, Let Me Breathe, WWF, 350.org, FridaysForFuture, We Don’t Have Time, Climate Reality Project, and others.
What people are saying
The climate conversation happening on Twitter is ever-expanding and uniquely global. Since 2021, conversation about sustainability has grown by more than 150%. We’ve seen a 60%+ increase in terms like “restoring” and “rebalancing.” Discussion around waste reduction has increased by over 100%, and decarbonization by more than 50%. We know that protecting the environment is something that people on Twitter care about, and we’re always thinking about other ways to serve these conversations.
How to get involved
We all have a part we can play in tackling this urgent, global crisis. From volunteering with an environmental organization in your community, to joining a Twitter Space with environmental experts, to learning more about protecting our planet, there are lots of ways to get involved. We encourage you to Tweet along with the #EarthDay2022 conversation happening on Twitter and follow the Climate Change Topic for more.
Seán Boyle@boylerDirector of SustainabilityCasey Junod@dontjunodGlobal Sustainability Manager
Source: Twitter blog
