Southwest Airlines Engages With Business Customers On Sustainability Initiatives
Media Release
DALLAS – Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE: LUV) (“the Company”) is excited to invite Southwest® Business Customers to support and advance sustainability initiatives within their corporate travel portfolios.
“As business travelers return to the sky, we’re thrilled to offer our eligible Customers the opportunity to act, measure, and learn about incorporating sustainability initiatives into their travel programs, said Kevin Sullivan, Senior Director of Sales for Southwest Business. “We believe in meeting Customers where they are on their sustainability journey and recognize the importance of building the right foundation."
Southwest Business gives its eligible Business Customers the option to act to support their company’s sustainability goals, measure with account-level reporting, and learn by discussing their goals and strategies for mitigating emissions associated with business travel on Southwest.
Act
Southwest Business is collaborating with several companies on sustainability initiatives including:
- Engaging with Deloitte, Siemens USA, and Zurich North America inSustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) beta agreements that support Southwest’s utilization of available qualifying SAF in its operation through the purchase of certain Scope 3 emissions reductions rights from Southwest’s use of such SAF.
- Launching the Green Incentive Program, a Southwest Business performance-based incentive program that provides eligible corporate Customers, including Bio-Rad Laboratories and WM, the opportunity to earn and use funds for their company's sustainability initiatives, which could include offsets or other programs.
“We’re excited to be able to collaborate with Southwest to find innovative solutions to address our carbon footprint while recognizing the need for continued business travel and maintaining our traveler’s experience,” said Kara Brayton, AVP Head of Corporate Travel for Zurich North America. “These types of relationships are a critical step toward creating sustainable business travel programs of the future. We are thankful that Southwest has been so responsive and engaged in our progress toward a goal of net-zero emissions.”
“WM continues to place sustainability at the center of all we do, and ways for our team members to travel more sustainably is part of that,” said Devina Rankin, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer for WM. “As we look to offset emissions in our own operations, we’re proud to work with a company like Southwest who is providing customers with sustainability focused initiatives for the business we do together.”
Measure
Southwest strives to help eligible Customers understand their carbon emissions from flying with Southwest by providing them with account-level reporting.
To calculate these estimates, the Company uses booking history and actual data from traveled flights, including routes and capacity information, to develop an individualized estimate of carbon emissions associated with a Customer’s travel on Southwest. Through this methodology, Southwest can produce for eligible Southwest Business Customers Scope 3 greenhouse gas emissions estimates that incorporate actual flown data and fuel consumption.*
Learn
Southwest Business engages in personalized conversations with eligible corporate Customers to discuss their goals and strategies for mitigating emissions associated with business travel on Southwest. These collaborative discussions enable Southwest Business to learn from corporate Customers, as well as educate them about Southwest’s sustainability initiatives and broader industry decarbonization opportunities and challenges.
Southwest is also highlighting its broader environmental sustainability goals, including its 10-year plan to reduce, replace, and offset, as well as partner with organizations and nonprofits whose work complements its sustainability efforts.
“We’re proud to invite corporate Customers to join us in collaborating on environmental sustainability initiatives,” said Helen Giles, Director of Environmental Sustainability for Southwest Airlines. “To address our environmental impact, we’ve made sustainability a priority at Southwest and set climate goals, as have many of our corporate Customers. We are all in this journey, and it’s exciting to be working together.”
*The reported emissions from travel on Southwest Airlines® are provided as an estimate only. Travel data only includes flights a Customer booked through the Customer's dedicated Online Booking Tool, Travel Management Company and/or SWABIZ®. GHG emissions are reported as carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e), including carbon dioxide (CO2) and other applicable GHGs for energy sources as listed in EPA's Emission Factors for Greenhouse Gas Inventories (v.2021). Emissions estimates provided in the report do not quantify the potential climate change impact of non-CO2e emissions resulting from a flight. Southwest Airlines emission estimate (flight activity based method) is based on actual flight activity and the associated fuel consumption on those flights. The emissions from each flight are divided proportionally between all Passengers and Cargo and then evenly between all Passengers on each flight.
ABOUT SOUTHWEST AIRLINES CO.
Southwest Airlines Co. operates one of the world’s most admired and awarded airlines, offering its one-of-a-kind value and Hospitality at 121 airports across 11 countries. Celebrating its 50th Anniversary in 2021, Southwest took flight in 1971 to democratize the sky through friendly, reliable, and low-cost air travel and now carries more air travelers flying nonstop within the United States than any other airline1. Based in Dallas and famous for an Employee-first corporate Culture, Southwest maintains an unprecedented record of no involuntary furloughs or layoffs in its history. By empowering its more than 55,0002 People to deliver unparalleled Hospitality, the maverick airline cherishes a passionate loyalty among as many as 130 million Customers carried a year. That formula for success brought industry-leading prosperity and 47 consecutive years3 of profitability for Southwest Shareholders (NYSE: LUV). Southwest continues to develop tangible steps toward an environmental sustainability goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, including offering an opportunity for Customers to contribute toward helping Southwest offset its carbon emissions. For more information, please visit Southwest.com/wannaoffsetcarbon. Learn more at Southwest.com/citizenship about how Southwest Airlines leverages a unique legacy and mission to serve communities around the world.
1) U.S. Dept. of Transportation most recent reporting of domestic originating passengers boarded
2) fulltime-equivalent active Employees
3) 1973-2019 annual profitability
Media Contacts:
Visit the Southwest Newsroom at swamedia.com for multimedia assets and other Company news.
Media Relations Team: 214-792-4847, option 1
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