Acer pursuits for a more sustainable world

In a world ravaged by pollution and natural disasters, it is time to take the fate of our planet in our own hands. The collective effort for a greener world starts from individual responsibility: each of us can make a number of small gestures that leave a greater mark on the environment, for better or for worse, than many realise.
However, major companies have the power, and therefore the duty, to help citizens make the right choices when it comes to preserving the environment, and Acer has answered the call for more sustainable products in a world that needs everyone’s help to face the threat of climate change.

Live smarter, live healthier

With the help of its subsidiary companies, Acer is striving to make city life smarter and eco-friendly: from batteries for electric bicycles that can connect to your phone for real-time info on battery status, ride time, position and speed, to e-ticketing systems to streamline and promote public transport, up to electric cars with an autonomous driving system, Acer is working hard to ensure that in the cities of the future, mobility will be accessible to everyone with minimal impact on the environment. Acer’s research and development is looking in the direction of a world where public transportation is an attractive choice, made easier and more efficient by the latest technological solutions, and personal vehicles, where necessary, contribute as little as possible to air pollution. Thanks to technology, smart cities can produce smarter citizens, and our planet will thank us for it.
In accordance with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, technology can even be used to promote public health and guarantee a better quality of life for disadvantage categories such as the disabled, the elderly, and the chronically ill: epidemic monitoring and prevention through big data and AI, chronic disease management in the workplace, easier implementation of social welfare, VR training to help people with disabilities get started in the job market, and encouraging blood donations through smartphone apps are only some of the ways Acer is planning to use technology for a healthier world.
However, personal health means little when Earth as a whole is suffering, and Acer is implementing strategies to reduce the influence of its activities on the planet. Here are some examples of what we are doing to ensure that the next generation will inherit a world that is greener than we found it.

Cycle & Recycle

One of Acer’s greatest goals is to minimise the impact of its products on the environment. This can be accomplished in a number of ways, from increasing the efficiency of said products’ energy usage, to striving for a circular economy model—that is, prolonging the life cycle of products with design choices that encourage repair and refurbishing as opposed to creating e-waste, and being part of the chain of recycling by reusing and remanufacturing parts and using recycled materials to begin with. Acer is contributing to the creation of more and more locations for the collection and reuse of lithium batteries, which decreases the need for raw cobalt for the production of new ones, thereby making the world not only a less polluted place, but also fairer and more humane, as cobalt mining has a worrying correlation with child labour.
Acer cares for the environment at every stage of production, from the design of a new product to the natural end of its useful life: recycling makes the beginning and the end of the process eco-friendly, but there are plenty more ways to make sure Acer products leave as small a mark as possible on planet Earth. From restricting the use of potentially harmful chemicals in the raw materials used in their design to rethinking their packaging, we are striving to ensure that buying Acer products is an all-around safe choice for environmentally conscious users. A simple solution sometimes goes a long way: Acer has been using recycled paper and reducing package sizes so that not only the product, but even the box it comes in is eco-friendly. Smaller, lighter packaging also results in increased shipping efficiency, which – coupled with environmentally savvy choices in the means of transportation we employ, favouring rail and maritime shipping over air shipping – means less fuel has been used to deliver your Acer product to your doorstep.

Preventing climate change

Product shipping is only a fraction of the activities with which a company inevitably influences the environment: from staff travel to usage of energy and water, every aspect of the work behind your Acer computer can still be improved for the sake of our planet. Becoming eco-friendly is a constant work in progress that can be accomplished step by step, by setting realistic aims and enlisting everyone’s help in our mission to save the environment.
Acer’s mid-term goal is to reduce carbon emissions by 60% by 2020, with the ultimate objective of bringing that figure up to 80% by 2050 – the carbon reduction target is compared with the base year 2009. This can be achieved in a variety of ways, the chief strategy being to promote the use of green electricity in all our facilities worldwide: all work requires energy, but not all energy has the same environmental impact. By switching gradually to wind and solar power and disincentivizing the use of natural gas and combustion, we are actively striving to make our carbon footprint smaller.
As well as reducing the impact of our production activities, we are also taking measures to ensure that the everyday life of Acer employees is environmentally conscious. Online meetings, for example, cut down on the need to travel: a video conference damages the planet far less than boarding a plane. Simple strategies such as improving the efficiency of air conditioning and lighting in our office buildings, reusing and recycling water for our employees’ personal uses, and implementing ways to discourage waste production can go a long way in making Acer an eco-friendly company. In our facilities, we frown upon disposable cutlery and bags, have discontinued the offering of bottled water in conference areas, promote trash sorting and recycling, and favour digital documents over printing—all small steps towards a greener world, seemingly insignificant by themselves, but much more meaningful when combined.
From single employees to overall company policies, Acer is working at all levels to make the world a more sustainable place—now it is your turn to do the same.
To get more info, learn more about Acer Corporate Social Responsibility.