Dell started making its enormous impact on the tech world in 1984 when Michael Dell sold his first computer from his dorm room at the University of Texas at Austin. Now the company is making a significant impact on the planet by empower people and enterprises to do more.
Dell is routinely at or near the top of the list for the “greenest” companies on several studies including this one from Greenpeace.
I had the opportunity today to host a Twitter Q&A (Has tag #DellSus) with Bruno Sarda, Director of Global Sustainability Operations, and he talked about the many initiatives that have made Dell one of the greenest and most sustainable companies on the planet.
Here are just three of the impressive sustainability programs we discussed.
- Dell’s Reconnect e-waste recycling initiative with Goodwill, which has created over 250 jobs and diverted more than 200,000 pounds of e-waste from landfills
- Their revolutionary mushroom packaging for Dell servers, made of 100% organic material (The packaging, not the servers)
- The Dell Social Innovation Challenge encourages and nurtures social innovator college students to help bring transformative ideas to pressing problems throughout the world.
Here are highlights from the Twitterview.
Q: What initially sparked your interest in corporate sustainability?
A: Our world needs help. Corporations are a huge force for change & am convinced sustainable business is better business.
#DellSus
Q: @Dell is a leader in #sustainability. What is one thing Dell does that many companies forget in their initiatives?
A:
@MichaelDell has inspired many of us at@Dell to drive positive change. Great to work for co that enables u to do ur best work.Harness passion of stakeholders. We collaborate w/ suppliers, customers, competitors, academia, govt, civil society, etc.
Together we are stronger, faster & smarter. EICC,
@TSCNews,@TheGreenGrid are good examples.
Q: What CSR achievements with Dell are you most proud of?
A: Picking only one proud outcome is tough – we have many success stories in supply chain, ops, packaging, product, customers, etc.
Would say am proudest of our e-waste takeback & recycling leadership globally. The results are powerful!
Too many people still don’t know why or where to recycle used electronics. Need to improve collection rates.
Q: Your e-recycling leadership is seen in Reconnect consumer computer recycling. Why is @Goodwill a great partner in your e-waste initiative?
A.
@Goodwill is great partner b/c of our shared goal to create a positive impact on participating communities and environment.
Q. One recent accomplishment is Plant-a-Tree w/ 1/2 million+ trees planted! @carbonfundorg @ConservationFun. What can we expect next with Plant-a-Tree?
A.
@Dell customers are true heroes, we’re so grateful to them. They donated $2M+ to help reach this milestone. Our commitment to environmental conservation goes beyond Plant-a-Tree. You can expect more in the future.
Q: How does reuse play into Dell’s sustainability strategy?
A. Much of what is collected in takeback program can be and is reused – either in whole or in part.
Q: Overall, @Dell4Good refers to a lifecycle approach to sustainability. What does this mean exactly?
A: Means being aware of all the things you touch, and to look to reduce environmental impacts at every step.
We recently produced a short animated piece to illustrate what it means
@Dell
Q: What patterns or trends are you noticing from you customers as it relates to sustainability?
A: Seeing grt interest frm govt & corp customers to green their supply chain but also their operations. We help them w/ both.
Q: What green/sustainable efforts do Dell employees practice internally?
A: Employees full of passion for
#green. Many locations globally have green teams working locally. Inspiring!
Q: As a corporate leader in sustainability, how has@Dell4Good inspired responsible change in other corporations?
A: We collaborate openly w/ suppliers, customers & peers. We’ve seen our best practices adopted & we’ve adopted others’
Q: Can you talk a bit about the mushroom packaging@Dell4Good has employed recently? Why mushrooms?
A: Packaging innovation is always on our mind. How we got to mushrooms is a great story, check it out.
The best packaging protects your product while embellishing it and leaving the smallest possible footprint in the process.
Packaging matters to our customers big & small. We’ve innovated on many fronts with phenomenal results.
Q: What patterns or trends are you noticing from you customers as it relates to sustainability?
A: Seeing grt interest frm govt & corp customers to green their supply chain but also their operations. We help them w/ both.
Q: How does everyday consumer benefit from@Dell4Good sustainability initiatives?
A: Many ways! Consumers care most abt packaging & recycling, and we also help them save on energy use.
B2B customers care most abt energy efficiency to reduce carbon footprint & operational costs.
Many products have biggest environmntl footprint during customer use. Important to design w/ that in mind.
We’ve achieved great progress helping all types of customers reduce their IT footprint as a result.
We used to focus most on what we were doing internally to be
#green. Now, we focus most on how we help our customers do same
Q: You’re also a professor @ASUgreen. What have ur students taught u about sustainability? Any of their ideas brought to @Dell4Good?
A:
@ASUgreen students r full of great ideas. Definitely learning frm them. Many ASU entries in the Dell Challenge?
Q: What can we expect to see on@Dell‘s corporate sustainability report for 2012?
A: Continued transparency in a more attractive format that’ll make it easier to track our progress & understand our commitments.
If you missed our Twitterview today and have a question for Bruno, please ask it in the comment section below. I guarantee you’ll get an answer, and one you’ll probably like.
