Akamai Releases Sustainability Annual Report 2021

Akamai publishes its Sustainability Report for 2021. The report updates on the company's five goals expected to be reached by 2030. Goals include 100% renewably sourced energy; 50% more energy-efficient platform; 100% platform emissions mitigation; and global expansion of 100% e-waste recycling.

Akamai Technologies, Inc., the world's most trusted solution for powering and protecting digital experiences, has released its Sustainability Report for 2021. The report contains updates on the company's five goals, which are expected to be met by 2030: 100% renewable energy; 50% more energy-efficient platform; 100% reduction in platform emissions; responsible supply chain management; and global expansion of 100% e-waste recycling. Significant progress has been made in each of these areas.

"The internet has become a critical lifeline for all of us in the last two years, powering the way we work, live, transact, learn, and play. "This necessary tool, however, accounts for a significant portion of global electricity demand," said Nicole Fitzpatrick, deputy general counsel and chief ESG officer.

"Akamai is dedicated to reducing the internet's carbon footprint and last year, announced high reaching goals to do so. We are pleased to report that we have made significant progress over the past year and will continue to do so."

Energy derived entirely from renewable sources Akamai focuses on adding renewable energy to the global grid to reduce the emissions impact of platform growth. By 2021, renewable energy would power more than half of the Akamai Intelligent Edge Platform.

20% of that was generated by Akamai's three existing renewable energy projects: a wind farm in Texas, a solar array in Virginia, and an Illinois wind farm. To make progress toward this goal, Akamai entered into a fourth renewable energy project in 2021, the Enel Green Power Azure Sky wind project in northern Texas. The new project is scheduled to open in 2022.

Platform that is 50% more energy efficient A more efficient Akamai Intelligent Edge Platform is a critical step toward effectively utilizing power across Akamai's operations. The company's 2030 target is to increase platform efficiency by 50% over its 2020 baseline. Despite increases of 60%, Akamai's network has become 28% more power efficient per unit of platform capacity since announcing its 2030 goals in 2021.

Mitigation of 100% Platform Emissions The goal of Akamai is to reduce 100% of its platform's greenhouse gas emissions by 2030. This goal is especially difficult to achieve because Akamai's operations are spread across more than 830 cities worldwide, and power source availability is rarely under Akamai's direct operational control. In order to meet this challenging goal, Akamai continues to collaborate with data center partners on best practices for renewable energy procurement.

Furthermore, in 2021, Akamai joined the Science Based Targets' Business Ambition for 1.5°C initiative, joined the Race to Zero through the Global Citizen Live campaign, and became a founding member of Greening of Streaming to address growing concerns about the energy impact of the streaming sector.

Supply Chain Management that is Accountable In its approach to supply chain, Akamai takes the concept of collective action seriously, engaging and working closely with trusted suppliers. Akamai's supply chain program evolved in 2021 with the launch of a Responsible Supply Chain Program (RSCP) to achieve supply chain goals, including a focus on environmental sustainability.

100% Electronic Waste Recycling Program Global Expansion Currently, Akamai ships all e-waste, including servers, to e-Stewards certified facilities in the United States for proper processing. This enables the highest standards of customer data security, effective downstream management of all toxic materials, and legal and responsible exporting. In 2021, Akamai continued to recycle 100% of its e-waste in accordance with these standards and began the process of identifying certified recycling facilities closer to e-waste collection points, in accordance with its stated public goals in this area.

"The 2030 goals we set last year are ambitious, and we have already made significant progress toward meeting them," said Mike Mattera, Akamai Technologies' director of corporate sustainability. "Akamai is moving forward to build a more environmentally friendly internet, but we can not do it alone. The opportunity for genuine, long-term progress is industry-wide. We can only truly help build a more sustainable internet for all if we work together as a collective driving force."

Source: Akamai newsroom