IAB Europe releases European Common Commitment for Sustainable Digital Advertising

According to IAB Europe, carbon emissions associated with the internet, devices, and supporting systems have reached nearly 4% of global greenhouse emissions. With these emissions projected to double in the near future.

In order to take decisive action, the European Common Commitment for Sustainable Digital Advertising lays the basis for a collaborative and consistent approach to the measurement methodology of carbon emissions. This includes the regulatory and policy taxonomy, and the mapping and standardisation of best practices for the delivery of ads across the digital supply chain.

The plan will be delivered by IAB Europe’s Sustainability Standards Committee and will involve developing strategies, guidelines, and taxonomies that align with regulations and policies while considering the broader aspects of sustainability, including environmental, social, and economic impacts. It will also help elevate work being done at a national level to bring it up to a European level in a consistent manner and will prioritise the reduction of carbon emissions specifically associated with digital advertising.

Commenting on the release of the Commitment, Townsend Feehan, IAB Europe’s CEO, said: “The aspiration to reduce CO₂ emissions in the digital advertising supply chain will test our capacity to act in unison more than any other policy or business goal.  The Common Commitment we are announcing today is a modest but critical step, enabling our European network to collaborate at an unprecedented pace internally and bringing critical mass to our engagement with global partners.”

Participants in the Commitment include IAB UK, IAB Ireland, IAB Spain and BVDW. You can view a full list here.

Find out more about IAB UK’s sustainability work here.