On April 25, 2022, Christian Belady and Dean Nelson took the stage at the Broadgroup Awards in Monaco to announce the official start of the iMasons Climate Accord. On the launch date, 73 companies signed up. Less than two months later, the number of committed companies had more than doubled to 161.
Supported by smaller companies as well as major players like AWS, Google, Meta, and Microsoft, the ICA agreement will help guide data center builds and practices around the world to maximize existing data center capacity, utilize more sustainable materials in new builds, find more efficient ways of using power, develop more environmentally-friendly technology, and reach carbon neutral targets—all without compromising customer or enterprise needs.
The agreement will also help hold the industry accountable by putting transparency and traceability at the forefront of every decision that involves embodied or operating carbon. Every product or facility will declare a carbon footprint—which can be monitored and reported globally—to demonstrate everything it is doing to reduce carbon in data centers. Pledging to this open standard of operation is an important step in moving the digital infrastructure toward more responsible and more proactive sustainability. To get more insight into this momentous agreement and the drivers behind it, we spoke to Dean Nelson, Founder and Chairman of Infrastructure Masons.
