Delta to Provide Carbon Offsetting for Global Goal Live Campaign

Delta Air Lines, a Global Citizen partner, announced that it will be ensuring the Global Goal Live campaign to end extreme poverty by 2030 is carbon neutral.

“One of our first steps with Global Citizen is committing to make the Global Goal Live campaign entirely carbon neutral through investments that address poverty and environmental sustainability,” Ed Bastian, CEO of Delta, announced at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) Tuesday in Las Vegas.

Global Goal Live is a campaign led by Global Citizen and Teneo, the global CEO advisory firm, which seeks to bridge the $350 billion funding gap in the 59 poorest countries in the world to reach the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals focused on sustainability, gender equality, education, health, and food.

The campaign will include a global music celebration with festivals around the world on Sept. 26, 2020, featuring world leaders, corporate leaders, all-star musicians, and artists. It will be the largest broadcast and livestream cause event in history. Read more about Global Goal Live here.

As part of the partnership, Delta will offset the carbon footprint associated with Global Goal Live, which will be verified by South Pole, a leading provider of global sustainability solutions.

 

Image: Courtesy of Delta

Delta also announced that anyone flying Delta to and from Las Vegas during CES would be traveling carbon neutral, as it invests in renewable and natural environment solutions to offset emissions for its flights.

“There is just no substitute for the power that travel has to change lives and make the world a better place. And we’re committed to making our business of connecting people to the world one that also is environmentally minded,” said Bastian in a press release. “Starting with voluntarily capping our carbon emissions at 2012 levels, we continue to reduce our footprint and invest in natural climate solutions as well as projects that support local economies worldwide.

At CES, Bastian and Global Citizen co-founder and CEO Hugh Evans discussed, as part of a keynote address, some of the exciting initiatives they are supporting to combat climate change and reduce global poverty, such as the Great Green Wall in Africa.

To cover the carbon associated with all Delta flights into and out of Las Vegas during CES 2020, Delta will invest more than $100,000 into the International Small Group & Tree Planting Program (TIST), a program that supports subsistence farmers in countries such as Kenya and Uganda to reverse the devastating effects of deforestation, drought, and famine through tree planting and conservation farming.

Delta is committed to reduce its emissions 50% by 2050. Since 2005, Delta has reduced its jet fuel consumption through fleet renewal and fuel efficiency initiatives, leading to an 11% decrease in emissions, and is the only airline to voluntarily cap emissions at 2012 levels. The airline has purchased 12 million carbon offsets since 2012. Delta in 2007 became the first US airline to enable customers to offset the carbon emissions associated with their travel.

Source: Global Citizen