The future of transport is shaped by sustainability. Swedish manufacturer Scania is positioning itself as a leader of change by putting the Paris Climate Agreement into practice. Fossil fuels to be phased out by 2050, with Kofi Annan's blessing.
Transport is changing, radically. Sustainability is no longer an abstract concept far removed from vehicle production and infrastructure development, but a concrete goal, achievable in the short term. Evidence of this includes hybrid, electric and plug-in hybrid cars, the testing of the first electric motorways, the development of hybrid lorries or fully battery-powered ones, and the growing commitment shown by manufacturers towards environmental responsibility. Manufacturers who are not merely following an established trend, but are positioning themselves as genuine engines of change. A Copernican revolution.
"Becoming a more sustainable society is more urgent than ever and should be a priority for all businesses, in every sector. Businesses cannot succeed in a society that fails," stressed Kofi Annan, the former United Nations Secretary-General who spoke in Paris at Scania's Sustainable Transport Forum "Driving the Shift". The French convention highlighted how the transport industry can and must contribute to the transition towards a sustainable future. The ambition of Swedish manufacturer Scania — specialised in the production of trucks, road tractors, buses and engines — goes even further, as the Nordic giant aims to be not merely a partner, but the driving force behind the transition to an eco-compatible system for the movement of goods and people.
"We must bend the CO2 emissions curve globally within four years, and then continue to rapidly reduce pollution in order to achieve a world economy free of fossil fuels by 2050. In my view, it is no longer a question of whether humanity will move in a sustainable direction, but of understanding whether we will manage to do so quickly enough. The transport sector plays a vital role in the transformation process," said Johan Rockström, director of the Stockholm Resilience Centre, a Swedish research centre dedicated to studying the interaction of socio-environmental patterns. Recent technological developments, moreover, mean that companies no longer have to choose between economic growth and sustainability, since the two objectives converge.
"Industry, society and politics are called upon to work together to adopt new models of production and consumption. Manufacturers active in the transport sector must move from being active to becoming proactive, taking on a leading role in the climate debate," said Andreas Renschler, chairman of the board of directors of Scania. A position that is in many respects revolutionary and that opens the door to a new era of sustainability, in line with the 2015 Paris Agreement and in the conviction that the transport of goods and people, the lifeblood of economic growth and social development, plays an essential role in building a sustainable community by turning collective promises into actions.
Henrik Henriksson, president and chief executive of Scania, went even further, arguing that "eliminating waste of space, time and energy from the system is the key to changing the rules of the game in the movement of goods and people." And so, let it be a war on waste. Starting with fossil fuels.