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Cisco Systems honored by EPA for reducing Greenhouse Gas emissions

Release Date: 02/25/2014
Contact Information: David Yogi, yogi.david@epa.gov, 415/972-3350

SAN FRANCISCO – Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Center for Corporate Climate Leadership announced the third annual Climate Leadership Award winners in partnership with the Association of Climate Change Officers (ACCO), the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES) and The Climate Registry (TCR). Nineteen awards were given to 15 organizations and two individuals in the public and private sectors for their leadership in addressing climate change by reducing carbon pollution. Cisco Systems, Inc. has received an award for Excellence in Greenhouse Gas Management-Goal Achievement for meeting its greenhouse gas reduction goal at its campus through renewable energy purchases, upgrading building energy efficiency, and reducing business travel.

"Today’s winners are champions in their communities because of the steps they’ve taken to reduce carbon pollution harmful to the environment,” said Jared Blumenfeld, EPA’s Regional Administrator for the Pacific Southwest. "We are proud to recognize Cisco Systems for its leadership in fighting climate change.”

The national awards program recognizes exemplary corporate, organizational, and individual leadership in response to climate change. Award recipients represent a wide array of industries, including finance, manufacturing, retail, technology, higher education and local government.

Cisco Systems, Inc., headquartered in San Jose, Calif., designs, manufactures, and sells internet protocol-based networking and other products related to the communications and information technology industry, and provides services associated with these products and their use.

Cisco is being recognized for the following accomplishments:

· Cisco set a global absolute Greenhouse Gas (GHG) emissions reduction goal of 25 percent between 2007 and 2012 under the EPA’s former Climate Leaders program. Cisco surpassed its goal and reduced absolute emissions 38.7 percent by 2012.
· Cisco achieved these GHG emissions through a combination of renewable energy on-site generation and purchases, improved building energy efficiency, and reductions in business travel. In addition, Cisco purchased a combined 458,700 MWh of renewable energy in the U.S., which amounted to more than 449,000 million metric tons of carbon dioxide emission reductions.

This is Cisco’s second GHG reduction goal. Previously, Cisco set and accomplished a commitment to reduce GHG emissions from all business air travel worldwide by 10 percent between 2006 and 2009. Last year, Cisco was recognized with a Climate Leadership Award in the Supply Chain Leadership category and a Green Power Leadership Award for Partner of the Year.

The President’s Climate Action Plan calls on the federal government to work with all stakeholders to take action to cut the harmful carbon pollution that fuels climate change. These organizations and individuals are working to do just that.

The awards were presented at the 2014 Climate Leadership Conference at the Hyatt Mission Bay Hotel in San Diego, Calif.

More information about the 2014 Climate Leadership Award winners is available at www.epa.gov/climateleadership/awards/2014winners.html

The EPA's Center for Corporate Climate Leadership was launched in 2012 to establish norms of climate leadership by encouraging organizations with emerging climate objectives to identify and achieve cost-effective GHG emission reductions, while helping more advanced organizations drive innovations in reducing their greenhouse gas impacts in their supply chains and beyond. The Center serves as a comprehensive resource to help organizations of all sizes measure and manage GHG emissions, providing technical tools, ground-tested guidance, educational resources, and opportunities for information sharing and peer exchange among organizations interested in reducing the environmental impacts associated with climate change.

More information about EPA’s Center for Corporate Climate Leadership: www.epa.gov/climateleadership

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