Climate change is a challenge too great for any of us to solve alone. But, by coming together, we have the power to make sustainable change.
We collaborate with organizations focused on many aspects of sustainability and climate action. These partnerships will help us advance our goals of achieving net zero emissions across our value chain and becoming water positive in 2030. And we continue seeking opportunities to share what we have learned with the tech industry and beyond.
Fact Checking
We partner with more than 80 independent, third-party fact-checking organizations who identify, review and take action on the content on our platforms.
For claims rated false by our partners, we:
- reduce the distribution of these posts in Feed so fewer people see them
- show warning labels with more context for people who do see them
- may revoke the ability to advertise or monetize for accounts that post misinformation repeatedly
There are concerns that climate change attention is waning as competing global threats intensify. To investigate this possibility, we analyzed all link shares and reshares on Meta’s Facebook platform in the United States from August 2019 to December 2020.
We found an 80% decrease in climate change content sharing and resharing as COVID-19 spread during the spring of 2020, which briefly rebounded in the autumn of 2020 during a period of record-setting wildfires and droughts in the United States before returning to low content sharing and resharing levels.
This fluctuating pattern suggests new climate communication strategies–focused on “systemic sustainability”–are necessary.
The Open Compute Project (OCP)
The Open Compute Project (OCP) is a collaborative community focused on redesigning hardware technology to efficiently support the growing demands on compute infrastructure.
Sustainability and circularity were identified as 2021 strategic initiatives for OCP. We helped lead the scoping and definition of the strategic initiative, helping co-author the community’s first white paper dedicated to a call-to-action on climate change.
Advancing Industry Change
Climate action policy is critical to achieving a sustainable economy and protecting our planet.
In 2021, we showed support for key policies across the world:
- The U.S. rejoining the Paris Agreement
- The Climate Action Now Act (HR 9) in the 116th United States Congress, a federal bill requiring the U.S. to meet its nationally determined contribution under the Paris Agreement on climate change
- The “We Mean Business” sign-on letter in support of the U.S. NDC
- The European Green Deal and the European Union’s Climate Pact
- The “Corporate Leaders Group” sign-on letter in support of the EU NDC
COP26 (Conference of the Parties)
During COP26 in Glasgow, we delivered our biggest activation yet at the core of which was our live studio at the UNFCCC pavilion. 2021 was our sixth year and we ran a Facebook and Instagram Live Studio – a space for policymakers, advocates, businesses, and nonprofits to broadcast progress, challenges, and reflections on the urgency of climate change to audiences around the world.
Internal Engagement
The success of our sustainability program depends on having our Metamate voices at the table. Some of the ways we engage our employees include:
- SustainabiliTEA Talks – our live executive Q&A series where our sustainability leaders engage in a dialogue about their personal passions, program work and ways for employees to get involved.
- Annual Earth Week, Climate Week and Sustainability Summit events – live global events and interactive forums focused on sustainability action and education. Climate Reality Project Leadership Corps – In partnership with Al Gore’s training organization, Climate Reality Project, our employees were provided the opportunity to learn and build community around climate education and action.
- Green@ Chapters – employee groups focused on building sustainability culture by encouraging sustainable choices and behaviors for all Metamates on and off our campuses.
- Climate-Focused Hackathons – Metamates are invited to apply their technical expertise to sustainability product ideas for rapid iteration and fast feedback.
2021 Sustainability Report
We envision a just and equitable transition to a zero-carbon economy, and are working to scale inclusive solutions that help create a healthier planet for all.