Accelerating Action To Decarbonize Healthcare in the U.S.
Healthcare sector responsible for 8.5% of nation’s greenhouse gas emissions — more than aviation sector
Originally published by Politico
by Kate Silver
Cross-sector partnership is needed to create and shape policies and practices that advance decarbonization and the energy transition more broadly, as well as building more resilience into health systems.
An example of this type of cross-sector innovation in action is a new partnership between AstraZeneca and Vanguard Renewables, a leader in waste-to-renewable energy projects. They are working to decarbonize the pharmaceutical leader’s U.S. facilities with renewable natural gas created from agricultural and food waste. “We have seven manufacturing plants, multiple R&D centers and many collaboration hubs in the U.S. And by 2026, all of them will be powered by biogas,” said Pam Cheng, AstraZeneca’s EVP, global operations & IT and chief sustainability officer.
John Hanselman, founder and chief strategy officer of Vanguard Renewables, noted, “You need multiple industries to come together. It can't be tackled just in energy or just in waste. It requires folks like AstraZeneca to lead the charge.”
