Share INNOVATION 6 Super Sustainable Johnson & Johnson Sites Around the World
Originally published on J&J.com
It was a $40 million idea: build a system that could extract the vast reserves of hot water lying deep beneath the Janssen Pharmaceuticals (part of the Johnson & Johnson family of companies) campus in Beerse, Belgium, and use it to power everything on the site, from washing machines to air conditioners.
The geothermal energy initiative, which will help slash the site’s CO2 emissions by nearly one-third, is the first of its kind for Johnson & Johnson—and just one of the clever ways the company is investing in smart sustainability innovations across the globe.
Truth be told, Johnson & Johnson has a long history of doing its part to protect the environment—even baking its responsibility of "protecting the environment and natural resources" into Our Credo, the company's mission statement, in the 1970s.
In recent years, the company has made huge strides in everything from using renewable electricity—in 2017, more than 20% of the company’s total electricity use came from green sources—to cutting carbon emissions, which have been decreased by 10.4% globally since 2010.
And these efforts are being noticed: This past January, Johnson & Johnson was recognized by the Environmental Protection Agency as one of the top U.S. companies to use green power by leveraging such renewable sources as sunlight and wind. The company also justranked 28th on the EPA’s Green Power Partnership National Top 100 list, and came in at 13 on the list of the EPA's Green Power Partners that are Fortune 500 companies.
The future holds even more promise.
As part of its Health for Humanity 2020 goals, Johnson & Johnson has pledged to reduce absolute carbon emissions 20% by 2020 and 80% by 2050. The company also wants to produce or procure 35% of its worldwide electricity needs from renewable sources by 2020—and ultimately power all facilities with renewable energy by 2050.
As the saying goes: think globally, act locally. So we're taking a look at how six Johnson & Johnson sites around the world are breaking the mold when it comes to forward-thinking sustainability practices.
