Ch. 3 - Ethics & Social Responsibility

Apple has set as one of their main strategic goals, as is stated in their Facilities Enviromental Report, to be " committed to protecting the environment, health, and safety of its employees, customers, and the global communities in which it operates". For more than 20 years, Apple has been working on ways to minimize the impact of the company and of their products on the environment. Apple is working toward 100% renewable energy. In fact, in 2012 it launched the redesigned iMac, which uses 68 percent less material and generates 67 percent fewer carbon emissions than earlier generations. In addition, the aluminum stand on the iMac is made using 30 percent recycled content. Also, Apple achieves 100 percent renewable energy use in corporate facilities in Austin, Elk Grove, Cork, and Munich; at many sites in Australia; at the Infinite Loop campus in Cupertino; as well as at data centers in Newark, Maiden, and Prineville. Impressing, when considering all the Apple corporate facilities worldwide; 75 percent of the total energy used comes from renewable sources — a 114 percent increase since 2010. According to Apple's official site, Apple states that "the most important thing we can do to reduce our impact on the environment is to improve our products’ environmental performance. That’s why we design them to use less material, ship with smaller packaging, be free of many toxic substances, and be as energy efficient and recyclable as possible. So as we continue to grow faster than the rest of the industry, we’re doing it with products that are friendlier to the environment than ever, and we remain committed to creating products that have the least amount of impact on the environment. Though our revenue has grown, our greenhouse gas emissions per dollar of revenue have decreased by 21.5 percent since 2008. And we’re still the only company in our industry whose entire product line not only meets but exceeds the strict energy guidelines of the ENERGY STAR specification. "

Source: http://www.apple.com/environment