Over 1,000 Google employees call on company to release climate plan

More than 1,100 Google employees on Monday signed an open letter calling on the company to commit to a wide-ranging plan to address the “urgency of the global climate crisis and its disproportionate harm to marginalized people.” 

The letter, posted on Medium and addressed to Google Chief Financial Officer Ruth Porat, calls on the tech giant to commit to zero emissions by 2030 and to stop agreeing to contracts that “enable or accelerate the extraction of fossil fuels.” In addition, the letter asks the company to cease funding for think tanks, lobbyists and politicians who deny climate change. 

{mosads}It also asks that the company commit to zero collaboration with “entities enabling the incarceration, surveillance, displacement, or oppression of refugees or frontline communities.”

“Google is a global company with billions of users across the world, many of whom are already bearing the brunt of climate disaster,” the letter says. “Google’s code of conduct requires respect for users and for opportunities. As Google workers, we are committed to putting our users first, and Google must do the same.”

The open call for Google to take action on climate change comes as employees in the tech sphere put more pressure on corporations to make a proactive effort to address the issue. In September, Amazon announced a comprehensive new plan to tackle climate change amid escalating pressure from employees to make the company more green and sustainable. 

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos announced the business would commit to carbon neutrality by 2040 and 100 percent renewable energy by 2030. 

Microsoft employees in September shared an open letter saying that it was “no longer possible for us to ignore Microsoft’s complicity in the climate crisis.” The demands from Microsoft employees are identical to the ones Google employees listed in their letter. 

The letter from Google employees specifically invokes Microsoft and Amazon workers’ efforts to challenge their employers’ efforts to combat climate change. 

Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the letter from The Hill.