About Annemarie Gardshol
At the Universal Postal Union's World Leaders Forum in October 2021, Annemarie Gardshol presented PostNord's sustainability agenda. She stated that the company's business strategy includes a commitment to fair conditions in the industry, workplace safety, inclusivity, and gender balance (aiming for 40/60). Gardshol also said that PostNord has taken a scientific approach to reducing its climate impact and that its targets are aligned with the Paris Agreement, including Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions. She noted that in 2020, the company achieved a target of reducing carbon emissions by 40 percent compared to 2009.
Gardshol outlined further ambitions, including aiming for a fossil-free business operation by 2030 and a zero-emission last mile by 2027. She discussed a specific initiative, "the packaging journey," aimed at reducing "air" in e-commerce parcels, which she estimated contributed to roughly one-third of carbon emissions in parcel transports. Gardshol also described PostNord's involvement in the "pathway coalition" and its partnership with the Nordic Swan ecolabel to develop criteria for more sustainable transport services, with criteria expected to be in place by 2022.
Source: AI-verified profile updated from Annemarie Gardshol's recent appearances.
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Transcript (1 segments)
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Annemarie Gardshol0:00
Thank you for having me. I'm sorry I couldn't join you in real life, but I'm happy to talk about PostNord's sustainability agenda. Our business strategy includes a distinct sustainability agenda with three key areas: being a voice for fair conditions in the industry, ensuring a safe and inclusive workplace, and leading the industry into a low-carbon economy. We've taken an ambitious approach to reduce climate impact, aligning with the Paris Agreement. In 2020, we reached our target of reducing carbon emissions by 40% compared to 2009. This success has encouraged us to aim for fossil-free business operations by 2030.
To achieve this, we are transitioning to emission-free vehicles, with about 4,000 electrically charged vehicles in our fleet, representing approximately a third. For heavy transports, we use biofuels extensively, around 40 million liters yearly, with the share rising to 31% by Q2 this year. We also focus on energy-efficient driving and green electricity.
Despite efforts, we still have 300,000 tons of CO2 emissions left, so we've developed a green technology roadmap: fossil-free by 2030, reduce emissions by another 40% by 2025, and zero emission last mile by 2027.
Innovation and cooperation are key. We're part of the Pathway Coalition with companies like Scania, H&M, Ericsson, Siemens, and E.ON to achieve fossil-free commercial heavy transports by 2050.
One area with untapped potential is reducing air in e-commerce parcels, as roughly 30% of what we transport is air. Through our Packaging Journey initiative, we orchestrate discussions across the logistics chain. With academia, we have a research project with Chalmers University of Technology and Beiersdorf.
For example, with Telia, we optimized packaging for routers, reducing air by 19% on average and packaging costs by 15%.
We also engage consumers through the Nordic Swan ecolabel, developing criteria for sustainable transport services by 2022.
These efforts mobilize all industry actors to reach our fossil-free target by 2030 and lead the industry into a carbon-neutral economy.
