UN Race To Zero' Celebrates Mobile Breakthrough'
Almost Two-Thirds Mobile Industry Committed to Science-Based Carbon Reduction Targets
20 April 2021, London: The global mobile industry's race to net zero emissions is gaining pace as the UN's Race To Zero campaign declares the industry has made a critical Breakthrough'. More than a third of the mobile industry, by revenue, has now credibly committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2050 or earlier, according to the rigorous criteria of the UN Race To Zero campaign. In January, the mobile industry was the first sector to break through the 20% tipping point necessary to accelerate the systems transformation needed to deliver a zero-carbon world rapidly.
The momentum continues to build as almost two-thirds of the mobile industry has set science-based carbon reduction targets to cut emissions rapidly over this decade.
As an industry, we are serious about our ambition to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050. There is no time to waste. That's why we are acting now with 65% of the industry committed to reaching, over this decade, science-based targets that rapidly cut emissions. The mobile sector clearly demonstrates that, when at least 20% of a market moves, change accelerates, said Mats Granryd, Director General, GSMA. Our ambition goes beyond our own sector, as we help other industries reduce their carbon emissions through the use of mobile and network services for their digital transformation.
Race To Zero, the UN-backed global campaign, aims to reach Breakthrough Ambition' for at least 10 industry sectors by COP26. Its goal is to rally leadership and support from all non-state actors for a healthy, resilient, zero carbon recovery as the largest global alliance of credible net zero commitments. Industries achieve this critical Breakthrough when 20% of the key actors within each sector join the Race to Zero and commit to transforming their sectors, consistent with Climate Action Pathways.
Nigel Topping, UN High Level Climate Champion for COP26, said, The mobile sector has shown us what real sectoral climate ambition can look like - and I hope the rest of the world is taking note. We need to see this level of climate ambition across every sector of the global economy if we are to deliver a zero-carbon world in time. I would like to recognize the GSMA as one of our first Race To Zero Accelerators' for their unique role in orchestrating this huge industry effort in support of the Race To Zero campaign, from the start.
Today, the GSMA launches its new annual report, Mobile Net Zero - State of the Industry on Climate Action 2021. This is the first analysis of how the mobile industry is progressing towards its ambition to be net zero by 2050. Insights include:
Mobile operators covering 50% of global mobile connections and 65% of industry revenues have now committed to science-based targets
36% of the mobile industry by revenue and 31% of the mobile industry by connections have credibly committed to net zero emissions by 2050 or earlier through the UN Race to Zero campaign.
Mobile operators worldwide[1] are stepping up and committing to undertaking the relevant actions necessary to deliver a net zero world as laid out by the Climate Action Pathways.
By 2020, 60 mobile operators providing 69% of the world's mobile connections and 80% of revenue disclosed their climate impacts, risks and opportunities to the Carbon Disclosure Project.
Research conducted by the GSMA with the Carbon Trust found, while the mobile industry is currently responsible for around 0.4% of carbon emissions globally, it enables carbon reductions in other sectors that are 10 times larger, equivalent to approximately 4% of global emissions
5G networks are built with network energy efficiency in mind; 5G's specification calls for a 90% reduction in the energy use to transfer each bit of data.
To advance its ambition, the GSMA created a Climate Action Taskforce in 2019. The task force has grown rapidly over the last two years and now has 50 members, with networks in most countries globally.
Last month, 13 GSMA members across Europe declared they would reach net zero by 2040 as part of the European Green Digital Coalition launch. And in February, one of Africa's largest mobile operators, MTN, announced a 2040 net zero target as well as 2030 targets averaging a 47% cut.
Today, Turkcell announced its commitment to use 100% renewable electricity before 2030. Embracing renewable electricity is critical to achieving net zero. GSMA members were among the first companies in the world to embrace renewable electricity. Nine operator groups are members of the global RE100 campaign[2], and more operators are committing to renewable electricity targets[3].
As a global citizen, we believe that climate change is an urgent and significant issue to be resolved, and that it is our social responsibility as a mobile operator to pass on the irreplaceable global environment to the next generation. We are proud to be part of GSMA Climate Action Initiative and happy to announce that Turkcell is committed to use 100% renewable electricity before 2030, said Murat Erkan, Chief Executive Officer, Turkcell. We will continue to use our technological competencies for producing environmentally friendly solutions and provide the most sustainable services to our customers for a better future together.
All participants in Race To Zero are committed to the same overarching goal: halving emissions by 2030 and achieving net zero emissions by 2050. Race Breakthroughs must accelerate in all areas of the economy and society in order to deliver a resilient zero carbon world, said Patricia Espinosa, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC).
Click here to download GSMA's new annual report,
Europe Stories
09/11/2025
Dalet today announced a transformative leap forward for media operations: Agentic Artificial Intelligence (AI) that unifies the Dalet ecosystem under one natura...
06/10/2025
France T l visions, France's leading broadcaster, has received the 2025 EBU ...
17/09/2025
It was the ultimate convergence of pop culture and literary prestige: Last night, Dua Lipa brought her Service95 Book Club podcast to the stage for a special li...
17/09/2025
Transatlantic collaboration combines experience and agility to drive innovation in network design and delivery
Luxembourg, September 16, 2025 - SES, a leading ...
17/09/2025
Wednesday 17 September 2025
UK artists capture icons of stage and screen, inclu...
17/09/2025
For the Moon Safari anniversary tour, AIR opened the doors to their backstage. Just a few hours before the Paris concert, DPA met with two key figures of the te...
17/09/2025
Auditions will be held in Dublin, Cork and Galway
The County Parade returns f...
16/09/2025
Hace una d cada, la m sica latina representaba apenas el 8% de las reproducciones globales en Spotify. Hoy, constituye m s de una cuarta parte (27%) de toda la ...
16/09/2025
A decade ago, Latin music made up just 8% of global Spotify streams. Today, it a...
16/09/2025
Spotify is expanding our video lineup with a new partnership with Zoo 55, part of ITV Studios. For the first time, acclaimed content from ITV Studios is landing...
16/09/2025
Calrec has strengthened its collaboration with audio metering expert RTW by integrating RTW's new TMxCore metering platform across its full range of Argo IP...
16/09/2025
Leading space solutions company will use optical ground stations to deliver faster, more secure data from space
Luxembourg, September 15, 2025 - SES, a leading...
16/09/2025
Comscore Unveils The Scoreboard: An Interactive Destination Surfacing Consumer B...
15/09/2025
Global K-Pop sensation aespa is redefining what it means to be rich with the r...
15/09/2025
Every day, millions of people around the world turn to Spotify to enjoy the audi...
15/09/2025
After months of intensive planning and implementation, Brembo SGL Carbon Ceramic...
15/09/2025
Unique sports content orchestration platform builds momentum among SES's cus...
15/09/2025
-- Opens door to growth in renewable energy New Delhi, India - 15th September -- Global business and industry leaders from around the world are joining technol...
13/09/2025
Harmonic's Software-Based XOS Advanced Media Processor Provides Unparalleled Efficiency and Unlocks New Business Models SAN JOSE, Calif. - Sept. 13, 2025 -...
12/09/2025
For fans, we know how important it is to stay plugged into music culture and dis...
12/09/2025
Link ping, Sweden and Shipley, United Kingdom, September 12, 2025 - Agama, the expert in video observability and analytics for service quality and customer expe...
12/09/2025
Feature-length retrospective from Studio Crook to air in 2026
Sir David Jason returns to the nation's favourite comedy channel, U&GOLD, for Open All Hours:...
12/09/2025
Friday 12 September 2025
The Boomtown Rats, Nyah Grace, Soweto Kinch, Royal Ballet and Madness also announced to perform at the ceremony on Tuesday
Sky today ...
12/09/2025
Wuppertal September 12, 2025
Riedel Unveils Ultra-Light Bolero Mini Wireless Intercom BeltpackAt IBC2025 in Amsterdam, Riedel Communications unveiled Bolero M...
12/09/2025
Wuppertal September 12, 2025
Riedel Communications Acquires hi human interfaceRiedel Communications today announced the acquisition of hi human interface fro...
12/09/2025
CORE+ virtually removes distortion, setting a new standard for church sound and giving worship teams the clarity and confidence they need.
Read the full artic...
12/09/2025
The Late Late Show is back with a bang after the summer break, and Patrick Kielt...
12/09/2025
The World Athletics Championships, Ireland v France in the Women's Rugby World Cup quarter-final, the Irish Champions Festival, and two Sports Direct Men...
12/09/2025
The Records Show starts Sunday at 6.30pm on RT One and RT Player.
Katie Hanno...
11/09/2025
RADAR, Spotify's program for emerging talent, recently hit a major milestone...
11/09/2025
Link ping, Sweden, September 11, 2025 - Agama, the expert in video observability & analytics for service quality and customer experience, announced today the la...
11/09/2025
Under the USD 89.6 Million award, SES Space & Defense will provide global commer...
11/09/2025
Leading Balkan DTH provider adds capacity to consolidate its m:Sat TV platform at 23.5 degrees East and serve more customers across the region
Luxembourg, 11 S...
11/09/2025
UKTV's free streaming service U launches on Sky Q
Free streaming service U has launched on Sky Q in the UK, UKTV and Sky confirm today, expanding the footp...
11/09/2025
From the discreet 2061 lavaliers to 4099 and 4011 mics, the setup delivered clean, natural sound in one of the most challenging broadcast environments.
Read th...
11/09/2025
From rugged build quality to natural, detailed sound, the verdict is clear: big performance can come in a very small package.
Read the full review here!...
11/09/2025
Tonight on Prime Time
RT One and RT Player at 9:35pm
Tonight RT Prime Time...
11/09/2025
RT Statement: 2026 Eurovision Song Contest
At the General Assembly of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) in July, a number of EBU members raised concerns ...
10/09/2025
Lossless on Spotify Premium is here.
Lossless audio has been one of the most a...
10/09/2025
The Television Will Be Revolutionised Sep 10, 2025
Written by Sunit Kotecha, Director of Delivery and Operations, YouView
2025 marks a century since the f...
10/09/2025
First of Spains F110 frigates get future-ready with Rohde & Schwarz communicatio...
10/09/2025
Harmonic's cOS Platform Supports DOCSIS and Fiber, Enabling Midco to Deliver Reliable Multi-Gigabit Connectivity to Subscribers SAN JOSE, Calif. - Sept. 10,...
10/09/2025
RT brings three days of live radio, live entertainment, live news, live weather, personal appearances, and more
Join RT Radio 1: Morning Ireland, The Oliver ...
09/09/2025
Since 2020, Spotify's RADAR program has been a launchpad for emerging talent...
09/09/2025
In 2020, Spotify launched RADAR with a clear mission: to identify, nurture, and ...
09/09/2025
If you're on BookTok, you know the drill. You scroll, you tap, and suddenly your To Be Read list is overflowing with trending must-reads. Not unlike Spoti...
09/09/2025
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......
09/09/2025
Harmonic's VOS360 Ad SaaS Enables Personalized Ad Delivery and Seamless Integration with the Ad Tech Ecosystem SAN JOSE, Calif. - Sept. 9, 2025 - Harmonic ...
09/09/2025
St. Luke's Episcopal Church in New Jersey needed audio that truly connects and they found the answer.
Read the full case study here!...
UN Race To Zero' Celebrates Mobile Breakthrough'
