This month Greenpeace issued a challenge to Facebook to “unfriend coal,” by embracing a clean energy future. They ask Facebook executives to make a plan that would end its use of coal to provide electricity to the company’s rapidly expanding computer network. The goal date for the plan’s implementation: Earth Day (April 22nd).
This latest move in Green peace’s “Facebook: Unfriend Coal” campaign, already backed by 600,000 supporters, follows the World Economic Forum in Davos, where Greenpeace International Executive Director Kumi Naidoo discussed Face book’s potential to become a world leader in clean energy with Face book’s director of marketing, Randi Zuckerberg. Naidoo presented Ms. Zuckerberg with a pledge for her brother, CEO Mark, to sign by Earth Day. The pledge calls upon Facebook to agree by April 22nd to what Greenpeace calls The Big IDEA, which is a commitment to:
- Increase Face book’s use of clean energy;
- Develop a plan to mitigate Face book’s climate footprint and to become coal free by 2021;
- Educate Facebook users about how the company powers its services.
- Advocate for clean energy at a local, national and international level.
“Facebook has become a household name used every day by millions of people; unfortunately, it’s relying on 19th century dirty coal power to deliver its 21st century services,” said Greenpeace energy campaigner Casey Harrell. “People from all over the world are asking the website they love to lead the Energy Revolution by un-friending coal. Will Mark Zuckerberg rise to the challenge?”
“Face book’s visionary approach to business changed how we live our lives online,” Harrell said. “The company has a real opportunity to lead by example by extending this spirit of innovation to the environment, by showing that businesses can flourish by being clean energy-powered, like PepsiCo, and Proctor and Gamble have pledged to do.”
IT companies are rapidly increasing their consumption of electricity, and present one of the largest areas in the growth of electricity demand. The amount of electricity produced and consumed to power just the Internet, would placww.greenpeace.ore it 5th if ranked among countries by electricity consumption. More detailed information can be found at www.greenpeace.org/unfriendcoal
Amy Lou Jenkins is the Author of Every Natural Fact: Five Seasons of Open-Air Parenting. The Minneapolis Star Tribune calls it “Nothing short of sensational.” Read more atwww.AmyLouJenkins.com
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