Climate change is one of the critical global challenges of our time as it affects all sectors and industries. The amount of greenhouse gas in the atmosphere has reached dangerous levels. At the status quo, global warming will have increasingly severe impacts on human health, well-being, social structures, the economy and the environment. The time for action is now and nations and businesses must work together to address climate change effectively. As one of the most significant contributors to greenhouse gas emissions, the transportation sector has made commitments and has set goals to help decarbonize its operations. Telematics company, Geotab, is uniquely positioned to champion measures aimed at decarbonizing the transportation industry.  

“Geotab was founded in 2000 and today is one of the largest telematics companies in the world,” said Geotab’s CEO Neil Cawse.  “We have more than 500 engineers and computer scientists that work on our products, we have over 2.5 million vehicles that are connected with more than 49,000 customers,” he cited. Cawse is acutely aware of the reality of climate change and the responsibilities facing today’s companies. “Now we need to take action, it's just pure and simple, and I think that almost all humans now realize that we need to take that action, and the pressure is coming from all sorts of points of view.” 

The question then becomes what manner of action will lead to the best and most sustainable results?As a global telematics provider, Geotab has access to and can provide data-driven insights to help reduce and eliminate its own environmental impact but more importantly, it can help others change their transportation habits to achieve climate goals, as Senior Manager of Fleet Electrification, Charlotte Argue, explains. “At Geotab the core of what we do is helping businesses and organizations operate their fleets more efficiently. This includes improving their optimization, productivity and safety, and these are all related to sustainability.” Organizations who invest early and make commitments towards transitioning to sustainable business practices — enabled by data-driven technology solutions - will see significant improvements in their efficiency and environmental impact.  “Telematics is really essential for businesses with goals to reduce or eliminate their carbon emissions because connected vehicle data can provide companies with insights that help them measure their impact, identify inefficiencies, and offer tools to minimize or eliminate those inefficiencies.” Such data allows companies to optimise their fleets and operations, a process that helps ensure efficient resource management and reduction of emissions.

Geotab does not restrict its value offering to private businesses, with its methods just as valuable for cities with their own sustainable goals. Argue offers an example, “[The] City of Seattle is using Geotab's telematics data to help them drive their decisions to meet their overall sustainability targets.” By making use of Geotab’s services, cities like Seattle can optimise their fleets and achieve targets.

 As the attitude towards sustainability shifts from awareness to action, companies are being directed by legislation to alter their practices to more sustainable alternatives. This is particularly relevant in Europe, as Edward Kulperger, Geotab’s Senior Vice President of Europe, notes, “The European Parliament has announced that light commercial fleets must reduce their emissions by 55% before 2030.” This legislation has made electric vehicle adoption more appealing for European fleets and many are working to slowly transition to electric vehicles to help decarbonize their fleets. T. Geotab’s comprehensive suite of electric vehicle assessment and performance monitoring tools can help support fleets at any stage of their sustainability journey.  

While there is a long and difficult road ahead, the transportation sector and others are ripe for green innovation. By leveraging technology and working collectively, Geotab believes we can reimagine the way the world moves and transition to a net-zero carbon future.