Global technology giant IBM announced today that it has joined the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD), a global, CEO-led organization of over 200 leading businesses, representing combined revenue of more than USD $8.5 trillion and 19 million employees, working together to accelerate the transition to a sustainable world.

Mark Foster, Senior Vice President, IBM Services, said:

“IBM is proud of our long-standing record for sustainable practices in developing our products and managing our company in ways that conserve resources and limit our impact on the environment. We have a shared vision with WCSBD that purpose-led companies can be the driving force for societal innovation that addresses the world’s most pressing sustainability issues at scale, from feeding the world’s growing population to renewable energy production.”

According to IBM, connecting with WBCSD’s network of forward-thinking businesses across a variety of sectors will enable the company to continue to enhance and implement its sustainability ambitions in collaboration with like-minded partners. IBM intends to participate on WBCSD’s strategic work including:

• Food & Nature program to build data driven and AI powered future farms leveraging weather, IoT, remote sensing data to help enhance farm yield and produce better quality sustainably grown crops, making farmers more resilient while restoring natural resources to avoid climate shocks.
• Climate & Energy program to help enable the scaling of distributed and centralize renewable sources through AI, advanced weather forecasting and asset resiliency capabilities, creating sustainable energy supply through electrification.

Additionally, WBCSD has initiated a special COVID-19 response program, a special call to action for to members to leveraging their combined business expertise to address the crisis and support the critical role of business. IBM stated that it plans to leverage its experience working with clients and partners like Yara, Shell and Equigy to help deliver cost efficiencies, speed to delivery, sustainability and new ways of working to keep workforces safe.

WBCSD President and CEO Peter Bakker said:

“WBCSD is pleased to welcome IBM to our network of forward-thinking companies. From artificial intelligence to quantum computing, technology is a critical enabler of the systems transformation that we need to ensure a stable and healthy world for all. We congratulate IBM for taking an active role in shaping the future for the benefit of people and our planet.”