FedEx’s Enviromental Director Discusses Role Multinationals Play in Promoting Sustainability

Profile Image of Federal Express Delivery Truck

Doug Barry, a representative of the United States Commercial Service, recently interviewded Mitch Jackson, FedEx‘s Senior Director of Environmental Affairs and Sustainability for the United States Commercial Service, about a range of environmental issues.

MR. BARRY: How does one get to be a senior director of environmental affairs and sustainability? What sort of background – and does it ever put you in conflict with senior management?

MR. JACKSON: That’s actually, that’s a great question. Well, I came out of the properties group within FedEx – engineering background. And I think maybe in some ways that that actually helps a little bit because it provides a systemic way of thinking. You have to have more of a holistic approach to this. I think I’m very lucky at FedEx because our chairman understands the importance of trade, the intersection between trade and sustainability and prosperity. And so in that respect, I think I’m lucky. I think the issue for us is one of – that we need to be thinking long term, we need to be thinking holistically and we just really need to be planning for the future.

MR. BARRY: Have you had to take unpopular positions and insist on certain things ever that put the environment before bottom line?

MR. JACKSON: Well, I think absolutely it’s important when you’re talking about regulatory issues and issues of compliance, absolutely – I mean, those are paramount. Those take precedence with respect to what’s underway. Usually those are not the difficult things, however. The difficult issues and the challenging issues are those that – those issues where you’re trying to find balance between environmental sustainability, economic viability and social good. And so the compliance piece is usually very easy. It’s doing the best in the discretionary space that sometimes gets to be –challenging sometimes.

MR. BARRY: Can you give us an example of what it’s like to be in that discretionary space and the challenge that you confronted?

MR. JACKSON: Sure. A few years ago, we entered into a project with e Environmental Defense Fund. And what we were looking for is transformation of transportation. And the idea for this was we know what type of vehicles work. We were looking for a different way to innovate. And so we entered into the project with the Environmental Defense Fund, and we had developed for us by Eaton Corporation, hybrid electrics trucks. The irony of this is that the vehicles have worked very, very well. We’re almost at 5 million miles of revenue service. The issue is now is one of commercialization; it’s to bridge the gap between development and commercialization. And I think we’re well on our way. We have a hundred fleets that are using commercial hybrid electric vehicles in 37 different truck applications. I think that’s a testament to what can be accomplished through collaboration and decisions that involve discretionary issues.

MR. BARRY: And what’s the next step with the commercialization of those vehicles?

MR. JACKSON: I think the next step is to raise the volumes such that the price comes down. We have work across the different continents and with different truck sizes that operate in those different markets.

MR. BARRY: Some developing countries have charged that transnational corporations have a double standard when it comes to protecting the environment. Yes, in their own markets, they’re happy to abide by the regulations and support them. But in the developing countries, they sometimes misbehave by sending their garbage and engaging in various polluting activities. What is Federal Express’ approach to green in differing markets?

MR. JACKSON: It’s an interesting question. I mean, we’re a global company, and so we feel that the way we operate within the U.S. is the way that we should operate around the world. So we have to be a good corporate citizen in those communities as well. If you think about it, what we do is carpooling for packages. You have to be just as responsible because we’re a global brand, and it has that global presence. And you need to be operating consistently.

MR. BARRY: Have you found yourself in some of these developing countries actually leading the effort rather than having to wait for government to catch up and impose various regulations and restrictions?

MR. JACKSON: I think that’s the fun of it in some cases, is to look for those areas to do these efforts that are really beyond regulation. But understand, there are business reasons for doing it as well. I mean, because if we can get people into mass transit, that helps us with our safety initiatives on pedestrian safety. It helps with respect to congestion. It allows us to be more efficient in picking up and delivering the goods that we carry for our customers. So there are – there are vested reasons to undertake this as well.

MR. BARRY: There have been the FedEx ads in the past where trucks arrive next to what looked like an outdoor market in Asia. And I’m sure, you know, there are issues with getting chicken feathers in your exhaust systems and so forth. What are some of those interesting cases?

MR. JACKSON: We use differing types of equipment to deliver in – around the world. I mean, all of the way from big pickup and delivery trucks that we have here within the United States down to bicycles with baskets on them in some cases, or electric little scooters. One of the interesting things is just the different type of vehicles that we have around the world, and the ingenuity of those operations.

MR. BARRY: In places like Europe that is now contemplating a carbon tax on airlines, that a lot of people are becoming concerned about environmental damage caused by these big jet engines. What is your approach to that?

MR. JACKSON: Right now it’s about 3 percent of the global carbon footprint as far as the inventory of emissions. Interestingly enough, it’s the only sector of transportation where emissions have actually been getting better. Now, as aviation grows, especially international aviation grows, those emissions will go up. So it’s important for the industry, for the carriers and for the industry at large to be dealing with greenhouse gas emissions. For FedEx, what we did last year is we established a global greenhouse gas reduction or carbon dioxide reduction goal, and we said that we were going to reduce our carbon dioxide emissions by 20 percent per available ton mile by 2020. So we’re at about 9 percent towards that target from a 2005 baseline. Our new Boeing 777 freighters will let us fly from Guangzhou, China, our Eastern hub, all the way to mid-America in Memphis without a stop, and carry a hundred tons of freight in the process. So as we make these improvements in efficiency that reduces greenhouse gases as well.

MR. BARRY: What’s next in new green technologies?

MR. JACKSON: Improvements in battery technology and battery-powered vehicles. And I think what you’re seeing in the developing world is distributed energy concepts being implemented where towns and villages are actually being powered themselves by renewable energy.

MR. BARRY: And is FedEx trying to be a thought leader in that area too, in its relations with governments and –

MR. JACKSON: Yeah, I think one of the areas that’s very important to us is the issue of trade and how trade is – we know that as the economies around the world increase, natural resources will be consumed more than they would have been before, but the fact of it is, is that innovation gives us the ability to help – to do two things: It helps us to reduce our environmental footprints, if you will, but also to raise those standards of living. And so we see the intersection between the two, and the challenge is to make sure that both are coming up together. What we think, however, though, a certainty is that if there is no economic development, there’s very likely no environmental stewardship because the people of those countries and those towns are simply trying to survive. And the issue is they will try to prosper; we just need to make sure that they have the tools and the ability to do so in the most environmentally responsible manner.

MR. BARRY: There seems to be a need to go far beyond just recycling waste paper and empty bottles and plastics and so forth, and to cover a huge range of human and business activity all over the world.

MR. JACKSON: Well, it’s consistent with what we do. I mean, if you think about – we help with trade, and what we really do is we help to connect the world. With respect to sustainability, what we’re really doing is connecting the world responsibly and resourcefully. But that’s a team sport. That takes everybody working together on this. And so that’s how we look at it and that’s what we’re trying to do.

Related articles by Zemanta

Tags: , , ,

Comments are closed.