S1E110: Big tech can help firms and consumers be more active "climate game changers": Google's chief sustainability officer

Nov 5, 2023

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Technology has the tools to help all of us cut our emissions. But to be credible, big tech firms also need to cut their own large carbon footprints.

Synopsis: Every first and third Monday of the month, The Straits Times analyses the beat of the changing environment, from biodiversity conservation to climate change.

A lot of technology at the centre of our lives, from data centres to laptop computers to video streaming and our data-hungry mobile phones, requires a lot of energy. So, what is the solution? And can clever technology really help all of us cut our carbon footprints?

Who better to tell us about this than Ms Kate Brandt, the chief sustainability officer for Google. The tech giant is also developing products and services that help people around the world cut their emissions.

ST’s climate change editor David Fogarty hosts Ms Brandt to discuss Google’s initiatives to cut emissions right across its operations and some of the new technologies that can help its billions of daily users shrink their carbon bubbles.

Highlights of conversation (click/tap above):

4:14 What are people searching for regarding steps they can take to cut carbon pollution?

7:21 How is tech/AI saving people during extreme weather events, such as early warning systems?

09:53 Steps Google is taking to cut its own emissions

13:57 What are some of the climate tech tools available, or soon to be available, in Singapore?

16:17 Ms Brandt's reflections from her discussions with political and business leaders at the New York Climate Week in September 2023

Produced by: David Fogarty (dfogarty@sph.com.sg), Ernest Luis, Hadyu Rahim & Amirul Karim

Edited by: Amirul Karim

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