Microsoft gathered a lot of appreciation after announcing its latest climate-friendly plan, the 'Moonshot'. This stands out since most of the other big companies such as Amazon, Walmart, Google, etc are pledging to go carbon neutral, and here, Microsoft pledged to go negative. This is an unprecedented move by the tech giant, which can open doors to numerous possibilities, that can revert the effects of climate change. Reducing carbon is where the world needs to go, and we recognized that it’s what our customers and employees are asking us to pursue." He also added that the company will be removing all the carbon that it has emitted since the establishment in 1975.
Microsoft currently has around 148000 employees, having offices in more than 100 countries, has been in news for efforts in reducing carbon emission beyond its corporate responsibilities. The company has been changing its approach to calculate its carbon emission. The latest plan is expected to take into account the emission from the entire supply chain, including the lifespan of the product and how much it is used by the consumer. Microsoft is a big name when it comes to software and consumer electronics such as XBOX, PCs, etc.
The decision faced some backlash as Mircofost is still doing deals with fossil fuel companies. In September 2019, Mcriofst made a deal with fossil fuel giant Chevron and Schlumberger, aiming at stimulating cloud-based solutions using Microsoft cloud-computing platform Azure. This was followed by a protest by the employees, questioning the 'complicit' contribution to climate action.
The plan is expected to be heavily dependent on Nascent Technology such as machine sucking carbon out of air. The futuristic idea called 'DirectAir Capture (DAC)' outlines the basic principle for the plan. It involves machines working lie artificial trees, reducing the amount of carbon in the air. Though it sounds optimistic, it is going to be quite the expenditure. The plan is expected to cost around $3.5 Bn, which is more than 10% of their earning in the last fiscal quarter of 2019, which was $33.7 Bn. The firm has already planned its model for raising more funds internally. Even though some models of carbon-negative technology has faced failure in the past couple of years, but Microsoft is expected to beat the odds and succeed.
Sources: Microsoft blog BBC News
Compiled by: Subhasri Banerjee
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