This document discusses opportunities for green ventures and reducing carbon emissions. It outlines key areas for corporations like telecom companies to participate in the decarbonization economy, such as scaling up carbon sinks, leveraging circularity, and upgrading infrastructure for renewables. Green Ventures explores new green business opportunities focused on customer enablement for telecom companies, such as reducing their own operational emissions and providing services to help customers reduce emissions. The document analyzes approaches to climate innovation based on technology maturity and business models, and provides four lenses to identify target opportunities based on their market impact and potential, viability, ability to succeed, and impact on reducing emissions.
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Corporates must own the next horizon of
innovation. Our mission is to invent, launch and
invest in industry-changing businesses with the
world's most influential corporations.
We build businesses
160+ ventures launched
2-3x venture success rate vs market
We build, scale and invest into businesses that
enable a 1.5 °C world. Our ambition is to launch
a portfolio of ventures with the collective potential
impact of 1 Gt CO2e.
We build green businesses
25+ green ventures launched
$200m investment fund
3. 3
3
Corporations can meaningfully participate and create value in the
decarbonisation economy—5 key areas particularly relevant for telcos
Non-exhaustive
SCALE UP &
SUSTAIN
CARBON SINKS
Develop economically
sustainable models based on
nature, utilizing the carbon sink
power of forests, marine
habitats and technology-led
solutions
LEVERAGE THE
POWER OF
CIRCULARITY
Enhance recycling, reuse &
waste management practices
as well as end-to-end
traceability to enable a fully
circular economy across
sectors
UPGRADE
INFRASTRUCTURE
FOR RENEWABLES
Support higher demand for
electricity with upgraded grids
that efficiently match variable
supply (solar, wind) with
increasing demand
UNLOCK
SUSTAINABLE
CAPITAL
Instill a new mindset to activate
sustainable capital flows,
leveraging new incentives,
investment mechanics and
business models
ENABLE
EFFICIENCY
Make products, services and
processes more efficient as a
stepping stone to becoming
fully green
PLUG INTO CLEAN
AND CHEAPER
ENERGY
Replace high carbon energy
supply (coal, oil, natural gas)
with ‘clean’ and ‘abundant’
energy supply (solar, wind,
hydrogen, etc.)
REDUCE CARBON-
INTENSITY OF
GROWING FOOD
Move to regenerative
agriculture & produce
alternative offers to animal
proteins (plant-based,
synthetic)
SHIFT TO LOW
CARBON
MATERIALS
Transform heavy industries
(steel, chemicals, cement) to
have net zero emissions
processes; scale-up alternative
low carbon materials & circular
model solutions
ACCELERATE
SUPPLY CHAIN
DECARBONIZATION
Reduce & remove CO2 via
increasing transparency across
e2e supply chains & facilitating
connection to nature-based and
innovative offset solutions
INCREASE
ELECTRIFICATION
Electrify all devices (vehicles,
heating, manufacturing,
cities, etc.) & enhance
efficiency so they are
capable of consuming clean
inputs
INCENTIVIZE
CLIMATE-POSITIVE
BEHAVIORS
Enable the global population to
switch to lower carbon ways of
living and working, and raise
awareness of climate-positive
behavior
ENABLE PROTECTION
& SUSTAINABLE USE
OF NATURAL
RESOURCES
Protect the natural
environment, reverse damage
and build resilience; make
economic growth and the
natural environment mutually
compatible
Particularly relevant for telcos
4. 4
Green Ventures explores growth-driven, transformational opportunities via new
green businesses focused on customer enablement
Telcos have a historic opportunity to drive new value via green business opportunities
Reducing own operational emissions from scope 1 and 2 via
offset opportunities and efficiency plays with subset also
addressing scope 3 in downstream supply chain via demand for
greater transparency
Reduce Own Footprint
Pursuing new green businesses opportunities that may either
disrupt core business with low-carbon alternative or provide
opportunities for others to avoid/reduce scope 1-2 emissions via
new services (“scope 4” improvements)
Customer Enablement
Scope 1 Scope 2 Scope 3 Scope 1 Scope 2 Scope 3
”Scope 4”
(customer
enablement)
“Make my operations CO2 neutral” “Drive new growth and climate action”
Cost & compliance Value generation & investment
See more in “Putting Sustainability at the Top of the Telco Agenda” report
6. 6
4 key lenses to identify target opportunities
DOES IT
MATTER?
• Address big markets globally
choose large (global) markets to
play in
• Value creation potential –
measured by revenue, market
share potential
• Solve clear challenges – focus
on must-haves versus nice-to-
haves
WILL IT
WORK?
• Product-market fit – attractive
market with a product / clear
vision that satisfies it
• Scientifically possible – vetted
technology with real potential to
scale
• Commercially viable –
scalable business model with
attractive unit economics
CAN WE
WIN?
• Unlock of corporate assets
and unfair advantage
• Disrupt markets or create
entirely new ones
• Strong execution and
operations
• Potential for ecosystem
action – opportunities to
collaborate with wider
ecosystem to amplify impact
IS THERE
IMPACT?
• Superior to the current
system – cleaner, cheaper,
safer and less wasteful than
incumbents
• Tangible decarbonization
potential - 50+ Mt pa CO2e
reduction potential at scale
• Changes the game – pioneers
new industry standards for
competitors to follow