SUSTAINABILITY
The business imperative: From future risk to present-day reality For years, sustainability was framed as a future concern. That is no longer the case. The motivation for major vendors like Nokia to accelerate their net-zero target by a decade to 2040 is driven by the fact that climate change is a pressing, present-day business risk.
Subhagata provides a stark operational example.“ For a long time, we had already seen it in our value chain, that it’ s been almost impossible to have our service engineers work in the middle of the day,” he says, referring to the effects of extreme heat in the global south. It directly impacts operations, safety and the bottom line.“ The reason we had to accelerate our net-zero target is that climate change is a business issue for Nokia. It is a business issue for our customers.”
Such an imperative is driving tangible innovation. Concrete actions are being taken to address the industry’ s most significant energy consumption points, like the RAN.“ Our mobile networks business, which is one of the largest businesses we have, has been able to reduce its 5G base station average power consumption by 50 % since the baseline of 2019,” Subhagata notes.
Ultimately, the business-led approach recognises that the ICT sector must lead for others to follow. As Subhagata puts it,“ If, as a player in the ICT industry, we don’ t accelerate and leap forward to bring the target to 2040, we can’ t expect the energy sector to take the benefit of it and reach the Paris agreement goal of 2050.”
The journey towards a sustainable telecommunications industry is undeniably complex. Yet, the path forward is becoming clearer. The transformation means a profound shift in mindset: from viewing sustainability as a compliance cost to recognising it as a driver of efficiency, innovation and long-term value. By embracing datadriven frameworks, pioneering circular economies and collaborating on new network models, the industry can resolve its central paradox. With major players like Nokia moving their net-zero targets to 2040, it is clear the“ baby steps” of change are accelerating. The time for deliberation is over; the era of implementation has begun.
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