Amazon.com, Inc.

At a Glance

Industry

Internet, Software, Hardware and Technology Services

Project Types

Supply Chain, Sustainability and Energy Management Strategy

Year

2021

Location

Bangalore

Summary

Grishma Bheda conducted a statistical study of Scope 3 data and proposed a roadmap for the real estate team at Amazon India to meet its net-zero carbon commitment by 2040.

Goals

Amazon India's real estate team, under the direction of the World Wide Sustainability (WWS) team, tasked Grishma and another EDF Climate Corps fellow to:

  • Identify roadblocks in obtaining Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) for construction materials
  • Gather Scope 3 emissions data across the project supply chain
  • Integrate the data into Building Information Modeling (BIM) and Embodied Carbon in Construction Calculator (EC3) tools for their various building typologies
  • Recommend strategic plan for the team to meet the Climate Pledge—a commitment to be net-zero carbon by 2040 (10 years ahead of the Paris Agreement)

Solutions

After interaction with internal and external stakeholders, Grishma divided the tasks into three parts:
1. Market Research: 

  • Create a database of local manufacturers whose values align with the Climate Pledge and send out a survey to analyze their support of Amazon’s goals
  • Educate external stakeholders with regular training to encourage them to develop transparency throughout their supply chain for Scope 3 data gathering

2. Basis of Design: 

  • Collaborate with organizations to conduct workshops about Amazon’s goals, develop strategies, and integrate the tools for all teams involved to achieve their sustainability targets
  • Develop a sustainability team with accredited professionals to bridge the gap between internal teams, WWS, vendors, and consultants

3. Process Mapping: 

  • Audit current documentation to include sustainability goals and strategies in the project cycle, scope of work, and bill of materials
  • Set a baseline and create short and long-term goals to better fit the ambitious climate target of Amazon India

Potential Impact

The administration of the sustainability survey for current and future manufacturers will enable Amazon to quickly and confidently choose partners to implement decarbonization strategies. The synchronization of tools between teams and consultants will lead to smoother execution of projects while saving time and money. Following the milestone roadmap will help the team to track and reduce Scope 3 emissions, which is the bulk of their portfolio’s carbon impact. Grishma’s aforementioned recommendations will contribute to Amazon’s goal of net-zero carbon by 2040.

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