The IT consultancy industry joins forces for a fossil fuel-free Sweden

Below is the pressrelease for an initiative with very significant potential. A big thank you to everyone who made this happen...

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1 June 2018

More than 40 companies in the IT consultancy industry are now joining forces with a roadmap for a fossil fuel-free, climate-positive and competitive IT consultancy sector by 2045. The roadmap, which is being developed within the framework of the Fossil Free Sweden Initiative, will clarify how the IT consultancy industry, in partnership with users of digital solutions, politicians and other decision-makers, can help power the transition to a fossil-fuel free Sweden that drives global sustainable solutions.

The Swedish Riksdag decided in June 2017 that Sweden will be climate-neutral by 2045. This is going to require a transformation of the entire society and a great many technical leaps must be made quickly. The solutions that IT consultants are helping to implement have tremendous potential. For example, the GeSI report Smarter 2030 stated as early as 2015 that they can make a 20% reduction of global CO2 emissions possible. The IT infrastructure accounts for about 2% of global carbon emissions. By generating consensus in the industry, the IT consultants’ roadmap can further and hasten development towards fossil fuel-free and climate positive business opportunities by means of strategic challenges and proposals.

“Digitalisation and the transition away from fossil fuels are two areas that are currently progressing rapidly. If we can get them to dovetail, the potential for change is huge. The IT consultancy industry can contribute with solutions and speed up the work for other industries and in so doing strengthen fossil free competitiveness for all of Sweden,” says Svante Axelsson, national coordinator of the Fossil Free Sweden Initiative.

IT consultants are playing a central role in shaping the foundations of the fourth industrial revolution, from the smart use of IT solutions and development of new business models in a digitalised world to the implementation of AI solutions and dematerialisation via digitalisation. These areas are crucial to what the society of the future will be like, not least from the sustainability perspective. But they do not automatically deliver fossil fuel-free and sustainable solutions. They should instead be regarded as powerful catalysts that can accelerate development towards a future that is free of fossil fuels, or accelerate unsustainable trends, depending on how they are used.

“We in the IT consultancy industry have a responsibility to make sure that some of the most powerful tools humanity has ever created are used to accelerate a change towards a smart and sustainable future. We are delighted that we have already been able to bring together more than 40 industry colleagues and several leading experts in the field to implement this project,” says Dennis Pamlin, Accelerator for Net Positivity and Digital Sustainability at Cybercom and convener of the steering group for the IT consultancy industry’s roadmap.

Cybercom is acting as the project manager for the roadmap which purpose is to make available the total body of knowledge about the climate impact to which the IT consultancy sector’s value chain contributes. It will shed light on the trends, drivers, obstacles, targets and business benefit of climate work for a wide group of roles and stakeholders.

“We will take care to clarify that IT consultancies can contribute to both increased and decreased emissions through their businesses. IT consultants can contribute both to smart solutions that move companies from products to services, but also to more people travelling by air and consuming to excess. The roadmap will present the direction of our contribution towards a fossil fuel-free future and be presented to the Riksdag and the Prime Minister of Sweden in autumn 2018, after the September election,” says Dennis Pamlin.

The support from all different parts of the value chain will be a success factor for the roadmap. Accordingly, various representatives are invited to get involved in the working process. It is important that we gain the participation of a wide array of stakeholders relevant to the IT consultancy sector, such as clients, suppliers, cities and investors. All are invited to notify us of their interest by email to [email protected]

The Steering group for the IT consultants’ roadmap has a wide representation from large and small companies in the industry as well as from academia, research and investment companies. Dennis Pamlin, Cybercom, is convener.

 A total of 40 firms are already involved in finishing the roadmap. Among these are: Acando, Advania, Antrop, Avega, B3IT, Boston Consulting Group, Berge, Bouvet, Caperio, Capgemini, Cartina, CGI, Cybercom, Designit, Dewire, Dustin Group, Eicorn, Etteplan, eWork Group AB, Jayway, Knowit, Matters Group, Microsoft Enterprise Services, Netlight, Prevas, ProactIT, PWC, Semcon, SigmaITC, Softronic, Sweco Position, Tieto, Tritech, Usify, XLENT.

Like the UN Global Compact, the Fossil Free Sweden Initiative is aimed at creating partnerships between the private and government sectors. A great deal of the practical work required to reach the 2045 target will be up to businesses. The Fossil Free Sweden Initiative has partnerships with several industries aimed at identifying needs and opportunities. All initiatives combined thus work together like a jigsaw puzzle that provides a picture of what a fossil fuel-free Sweden might be like and how it can create competitive advantages for Swedish business in an international market.

For information about other industries that are working on or have already presented roadmaps for fossil fuel-free competitiveness and information about the Fossil Free Sweden Initiative, please visit https://fossilfritt-sverige.se/in-english/