How IBM’s Think Summit London focuses on the future of the planet

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We are experiencing a time of rapid change. A movement led by people who are passionate about protecting our planet.

As many of us are looking for new ways to minimise our footprint while maximising our contribution, innovation and big thinking will help make a major difference. On 16 October, at IBM Think Summit London, we will turn our focus to the great minds we’ve assembled for our summit, many of whom will echo our own push for change. It will also be World Food Day, a global drive to end global hunger and raise awareness of the importance of many food issues, such as minimising food waste, making these two events a natural pairing.

At IBM our focus on the environment and sustainability has been at the heart of our business since 1971 when we established our first environmental policy. In the time that has passed, we have seen monumental amounts of positive change within our business. Globally we’ve set ourselves aggressive goals to increase our use of renewable energy and reduce CO2 emissions.

On top of our own efforts to be more sustainable we are working with clients around the world to help save energy, preserve clean water and refine agricultural processes. IBM technology has been instrumental in the positive outcomes of many projects with global significance. Take, for example, the Green Horizons project, an IBM initiative that harnessed the power of cognitive computing and IoT to work to improve air quality. Our technology has also been utilised to help communities around the world facing extreme drought to analyse their water wastage. Then there’s the Plastic Bank initiative, which swaps plastic ocean waste with blockchain-based token rewards and life-changing goods for challenged communities, and Wastenet, IBMs innovative waste classification system for Marwell Zoo which uses IBM Watson AI to tell visitors which bin they should recycle each recyclable material in. Our hands-on approach to issues impacting the climate is a source of pride for us.

We push hard for change by investing in new thinking. IBM researchers are developing a new polymer that is fully degradable in response to the multitude of problems that plastic is causing for our world. We also frequently challenge developers to use our products’ capabilities to find solutions to climate change. The $200 million we’ve invested in helping citizen scientists combat climate change speaks volumes about our commitment to a greener world.

With the significance of World Food Day, we should also call out the IBM Food Trust. The work of the trust reaches all parts of the food ecosystem, and aims to promote food freshness, safety and minimise waste. Through innovative use of blockchain technology, the IBM Food Trust has created a delivery mechanism for food that gathers data at every touchpoint to ensure increased visibility and accountability for consumers.

At Think Summit London we hope to encourage our audience to find new ways to minimise their own impact and think bigger when it comes to seemingly small decisions. This will be an opportunity to discover how technology can help protect the future while helping to sustain not just business growth but also people and environments around the world. Because even the smallest shifts have the power to influence big change towards protecting our future.

Find out more about what’s on at Think Summit London.