Sustainability has been a core value for Google since it was founded, more than two decades ago. Our work is focused on three key pillars: empowering individuals to take action, working together with our partners and customers, and operating our business sustainably. As we enter our third decade of climate action, we’re setting ambitious goals for ourselves. We’re pursuing net-zero emissions
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across our operations and value chain by 2030. This is supported by our ambitious clean energy goal to operate our data centers and office campuses on 24/7 carbon-free energy, such as solar and wind.
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We are aiming to reduce 50% of our combined absolute Scope 1, 2 (market-based), and 3 absolute greenhouse gas emissions when compared to a 2019 base year, and planning to invest in nature-based and technology-based carbon removal solutions to neutralize our remaining emissions.
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Carbon-free energy is any type of electricity generation that doesn’t directly emit carbon dioxide, including (but not limited to) solar, wind, geothermal, hydropower, and nuclear. Sustainable biomass and carbon capture and storage (CCS) are special cases considered on a case-by-case basis, but are often also considered carbon-free energy sources.