As Chief Sustainability Officer at FedEx, Karen Ellis leads the global sustainability strategy for the world’s largest global express transportation company. Ellis’ deep technical expertise across engineering, environmental compliance, and aviation informs her solutions-oriented approach to leadership and her work guiding FedEx towards a goal of carbon neutral global operations by 2040.
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John: Welcome to another edition of the Impact Podcast. I’m John Shegerian, and I’m so lucky and honored to have with us today, Karen Ellis. She’s the Chief Sustainability Officer and VP of Environmental Affairs at FedEx. Welcome to the Impact Podcast, Karen.
Karen Ellis: Thank you for having me, John.
John: Hey, this is your first time on this show, and this is FedEx’s first time on this show, and I am truly honored, Karen, and thank you for making some time to visit with us today. Before we talk about all the cool and important things you’re doing in sustainability at FedEx with your colleagues, can you share a little bit about your background, Karen. Where did you grow up and how did you get on this very important journey that you’re on at FedEx?
Karen: Sure, John. Well, I am a native of the Show-Me State. I’m from St. Louis, Missouri. After getting my chemical engineering degree, I really had planned to spend all my time, my whole career in plants with hard hats and safety shoes. That was going to be my deal. I really liked that environment, but that is not what happened. What happened was I spent a little time in labs doing research and development for consumer products. Then I moved to a diesel engine manufacturer, which seems a strange place for a chemie, but I was doing their chemical cleaning technology engineering. So I did that for a few years, but I’m also one of those personalities that sometimes tries to fix or address what I can’t accept or what I want to change. So when there came an opportunity for me to begin managing their environmental matters at the Memphis plant, that’s what I did. So that was my first entree into environmental management. So I had a chance to do some cool things at their Memphis plant or California plant, the Mexico plant as well. I built and designed a wastewater treatment plant. I was managing air emissions from diesel engine test sales. So I thought it was pretty cool stuff. I’m a little geeky though. But then I moved on. About 28 years ago, I came to FedEx and started my contribution to building the environmental compliance program for just under a thousand facilities at that time. And then I moved on to the environmental engineering side of the department and got a chance to do some cool things there, cleaning up contaminated properties, managing the stormwater runoff from aircraft deicing. Even began in the latter years began mitigating our use of PFAS containing materials, which is a big deal now. I know you’ve heard about those forever chemicals.
John: Sure.
Karen: But in that role, I really got a chance to be great partners with properties and our air operations team and vehicles and our sort operations teams around the country. I really got to learn the business from the ground up as best I could from that role. And so about six months ago, when our very first chief sustainability officer retired, I got an opportunity to take this role and to continue the good work. And really John, for me, personally, I try to live my life where I’m a good steward of what I have and what I’ve been given. So this work, and environmental sustainability is a good extension of that stewardship for me. So it really resonates with me personally and gives me a chance to use my talents to help a company or multiple companies when we’re able to collaborate. Make a difference in this space. I’m really excited about the evolution of my career, but the Show Me State girl never thought that I would be here.
John: 28 years ago, when you joined FedEx, like this is 2025. So we’re talking about 97 or so. Sustainability, circular economy, ESG, impact. These were not words that were floating around in our lexicon then. So you’re saying you and FedEx were really very early on to embedding sustainability as part of the FedEx DNA?
Karen: I would say that at the time we thought of it as environmental responsibility.
John: Okay.
Karen: And so it’s a very pragmatic approach to that. But it was our first chief sustainability officer that raised the flag inside the company and brought attention to the fact that FedEx needed to pay attention to sustainability. And that happened about 2006 or so. And so then we more formally began our sustainability journey. But before that, I would call it environmental responsibility. I think that’s the proper term.
John: For our listeners and viewers, most of everybody who listens to this show, anywhere in the world really knows who FedEx is. But just to give a little quick overview, annual revenue of over $88 billion, over 500,000 employees, and over 220 plus countries and territories worldwide that are served. You know, the great part about having a chance to have a wonderful human being like you on the show, Karen, is that when FedEx and when your division and your colleagues move the needle of FedEx, it truly moves the needle of sustainability, not only on an inspirational basis, but in terms of real substance of what’s getting done, because you are so big in scope and size and scale of what you do now. So that’s fascinating. And for our listeners and viewers to find FedEx and all the great work they’re doing in sustainability, you can go to www.fedex.com. And if you want to find exactly where the sustainability area is, you can go to fedex.com/sustainability. All those URLs will be in the show notes. Karen, talk a little bit about, some of the more topical issues that every organization is facing now in terms of goals that we need to set out to really help improve the entire planet as a whole, such as carbon neutrality. FedEx has a goal of carbon neutral, by if I’m not mistaken, 2040. Talk a little bit about how you came up with 2040 and what’s the plan in the next 15 years to get there in an orderly and efficient way.
Karen: Yeah, at the time 2040 seemed far out, but 15 years from now it’s coming quickly, but we set that goal, John, in 2021. And really it was a couple of decades after we started taking, again, a very methodical and practical approach to environmental management and sustainability goal setting. Again, my predecessor was also an engineer and so that kind of methodical strategy is just in our DNA. But our 2040 goal, currently includes our scope one and two emissions and also our scope three contracted transportation emissions. So it’s huge. We have a three pillar strategy to biting that elephant just a little bit at a time. So the first pillar is to decarbonize what’s possible. So John, as you said a few minutes ago, your listeners, know now that FedEx serves 220 countries and territories, but they may also want to know that we handle an average of 16 million packages a day.
John: Wow!
Karen: That’s a lot.
John: A lot.
Karen: Yeah, that’s big. So with that kind of customer demand, it takes an expansive and diverse network to deliver the outstanding service that’s expected of us, right? So we have thousands of facilities. We have hundreds of thousands of small and large trucks of vehicles. We have nearly 700 aircraft making us one of the largest airlines in the world. So it takes dedication and commitment from leaders all across the enterprise to continue to discover and execute on ways to reduce our fuel and our energy usage. It takes all hands on deck. We’ve been fortunate that we’ve had the support from our board, from our executive chairman, our CEO, all the way down to the front line. And so we’re very proud to be able to say to you in this moment that between our fiscal year 2009, and 2023, we collectively reduced by 48% our emissions intensity, even while our business grew, our volumes grew 121%. And just like you said a few minutes ago, we want sustainability to be more than when people think about emissions or tailpipe emissions and things of that nature. No, it is about helping the company be in a position to grow and meet our financial responsibilities, as well as respect the communities in which we operate. So we’re very happy to be able to support the business growth, even as we are reducing emissions. So that’s, that’s pillar. Number one, decarbonize was possible. Second one is co-create with purpose. So just like the collaborations that I just mentioned are critical internally, externally, we need to collaborate as well. So we work with manufacturers and suppliers to get the technologies and the supplies that we need to meet those goals. We can’t do it without them. And we also work with nontraditional partners like NGOs and global government agencies because they are also key in the success of sustainability across the globe. So we work with them as well. And then finally, our third pillar of our strategy is to neutralize what’s left. So we don’t control the advancement of technology necessarily, or the ability for infrastructure to keep up with those changes, or even how quickly any of those solutions come to scale. And so we’re being very realistic about the likelihood that carbon offsetting will be necessary. That’s why we are supporting research in natural carbon capture. Because we think the scientific research in this area will help push forward and push through some of the issues that the carbon markets have been experiencing lately, but also provide scalable and durable carbon credits, which our industry in particular, very much needs. So remember, we’re going to decarbonize first, and then we’re going to co-create with others, and then we’re going to neutralize what’s left.
John: I love it. You know, I shared this with you before we went live today, but I love your jacket, because when we started our company, I made all of the salespeople either wear, for women, green outfits where they went on sales, and for men, green ties. So I love the green. Now on your jacket on the lapel is an airplane. And I know you serve on the board of the International Aviation Women’s Association, and you’re also the former chair of the Airlines for America Environmental Sustainability Council. Given that you have 700 plus planes and that you are deeply embedded in the aviation industry, because of what you do and your history. Talk a little bit about what you just touched on, Karen. The new technologies, but those that haven’t scaled yet. We had some of the great chief sustainability officers from some of the great airlines on last year, and they talked about the challenges of sustainable aviation fuel. It’s coming, but it’s nowhere near the ability to keep up with the demand and the technology, it’s not at scale yet that everyone would wish it to be. How does your engineering background- how are you able to leverage that to understanding which technologies to bet on, which technologies not to bet on, which technologies you think are going to be scalable and which technologies maybe aren’t? How does that all interrelate as you focus on continuing to decarbonize FedEx? As you say, also collaborate with partners around the world.
Karen: Yeah. Well, John, first, thank you for the compliment. My pen is what you get when you’re a member of [inaudible]. But the way we do it is we have a lot of really smart and dedicated people inside the company in various departments. We’ve consistently focused on exploring solutions that are both technically feasible, but also economically viable. Again, we are a for-profit business. We have obligations to our share owners. And so we don’t dismiss that in this journey or in this pursuit. So to help us transition to some of those sustainable practices, we use this talent inside the company to make sure we’re doing that without compromising service or efficiency. So for example, Aviation is 2% to 3% of the global emissions footprint. But for us, it is the predominant contributor to our emissions footprint. So we’ve put a lot of focus on aviation. And like other airlines, we’re reducing emissions by using every available solution. We’re not taking any of them off the table.
John: Right.
Karen: So one of them that’s worked really well is fleet modernization, so our fleet upgrades. I remember back in 2013, we had a huge celebration when we retired our last 727, which is a three engine aircraft and less fuel efficient than we desire today. So that was our first step toward modernizing our fleet and getting aircraft in use that meet both our mission as well as our emissions expectations. So the 727 was replaced. We followed that up in 2023. We retired our last MD-10. That’s also three engine aircraft and we continue to have some additional plans scheduled in that regard. But, some of the aircraft that replace those older models are anywhere from 18 to 30% more fuel efficient.
John: Wow!
Karen: Including the Boeing 777 freighter. That’s a fantastic aircraft that we have and use mostly on our international routes. But fleet upgrades in our aircraft operations is one of our main levers that we’re pulling. The other one, it involves a diverse set of talent and employees from the frontline and engineers and pilots and aircraft dispatchers. It’s a whole group of folks that implement what we call the collection of programs in our fuel sense program. So those are operational efficiencies. Those are fuel conservation steps that group of talented folks that know our airline intimately, they imagine new ideas and put them into practice. So we’re very happy that program started in 2006. Since its inception, we’ve been able to save 972 million gallons of jet fuel, about nine and a half million metric tons of CO2E avoided. That is something that we are incredibly proud of because again, not only did it take employees from the front line to again, in the offices and in our dispatch operations, but it has been so successful. Most recently, there was one initiative that was deployed in 2023. It’s called vertical optimization. It allows on some aircraft, on some routes to fly to higher altitude where the air is less dense. So you can use less engine thrust. Therefore, you’re saving fuel, your fuel consumption goes down. It’s been so successful that in one quarter in 2023, compared to 2022, it saved 3 million gallons in one quarter. So these are the kinds of ideas that our employees, our team members come to the table with. Sometimes we have to work with FAA to deploy some of these ideas. But again, we have a history of working with government agencies. So we’ve had some success in that space as well. But between those two efforts, we are approaching a 30% aircraft emissions intensity reduction over that time period between 2009 and 2023. You might remember that back in 2008, we were one of the only airlines to set out a public goal on aviation emissions reductions. We were the first in the US transportation and logistics sector to do so. It’s not been without its challenges. It’s taken us a long time, but we have had some success in that space. And again, all options, all solutions are on the table, including you hear a lot about sustainable aviation fuel. We believe that it has a place. in this set of solutions as well, but there’s some challenges there. The aviation industry needs a ton of fuel. In 2024, 0.3% of all the fuel used or produced came from a sustainable source. So 0.3% was staff in 2024. That’s minuscule and we can’t wait for that to scale in order to continue to make improvements. So FedEx and other airlines also are continuing to look for offtake agreements, continuing to believe that volumes will increase, but until then we are implementing some of the other actions that I mentioned. But I told you that’s 700 aircraft and they dominate our emissions footprint. I told you we have hundreds of thousands of vehicles too.
John: Yeah.
Karen: So we haven’t forgotten them either. So I think by the time we introduced our first sustainability goals in 2008, we had already brought or helped to bring to market some of the first electric vehicles and certainly some of the first or the first diesel-electric hybrid and pick up and delivery service. That was in the late 90s and early 2000s. So again, we talked about this earlier. We have been on this journey quite a while and have had some success. And today, happy to say that FedEx has electric vehicles on six continents. Every continent we operate on, we have deployed electric vehicles. So we are making some progress, but just like in the aviation sector, it’s not without its challenges, which don’t get talked about enough. Everybody gets excited about electric vehicles, but the infrastructure cannot outpace the deployment of electric vehicles, either in the commercial sector, like we’re deploying, or even in the passenger sector. You have to have expansions of the capacity for utilities to deliver on the electricity demand increases that are happening or are desired to happen with those type of deployments. Some of those upgrades can take years to get permits, to get the utility demand upgraded, their infrastructure upgraded to deliver and transmit those volumes of molecules. So it doesn’t come without its challenges, but we continue to advance. Against our goals, by 2040, we expect for our entire pickup and delivery fleet to be zero tailpipe emissions. That’s our goal and that’s what we’re working towards. We even have partners, I talked about co-creating with purpose. We even are supporting a tool from RMI. It’s called Grid Up. And it allows utilities and regulators and even fleet owners like us to use it to better predict what the increases will be from this EB charging so that grid investments can be planned better. So we don’t have a stoppage in the aggressive plans that all of us have to try to green our vehicle usage.
John: So I understand better, the RMI tool, helps you gather historical information to give you better predictive analytics in the future of what your infrastructure needs to look like?
Karen: All stakeholders. So we do have some infrastructure that we have to put on our sites, but it is also for the utilities because they are more important in the long-range planning to support that kind of rollout. So it is for all stakeholders that are involved in the deployment.
John: You’ve quoted some amazing statistics in terms of from 2009 to ’23 and the amount of savings you’ve made and the accomplishments on the 30% reduction on aviation fuel and other types of savings there. I just want you, since you are truly Karen, and I only say this with amazing affection and real delight, that you are a sustainability OG. So you’ve been doing this since ’97. With that said, as you and I know, back then, and even when I started this show back in 2007, which is even there’s a 10 year gap there, sustainability used to, you know, when the C-suite heard the word sustainability, it used to mean, we’re going to have to spend more money to accomplish some new goals. And I don’t even know what’s the benefit of that. But as you just pointed out, when done correctly, sustainability can create so much resilience for a company or an organization and also massive savings, cost savings.
Karen: Yeah, there’s absolutely money on the table to be saved, but I’m not going to sit here and suggest that all of these efforts come without a price tag because that’s incorrect. But there are many ways that savings are possible, even as all of these regulatory agencies around the globe are moving toward mandatory disclosures and what looks like a carbon tax or even inside the EU, emissions trading schemes. Some of these actions will save you on compliance costs and why not invest in something that makes your company more resilient, that makes it more attractive in the communities that we serve and to the customers that we support instead of paying compliance feeds inside these programs. If it reduces those costs, why not invest the money in these other initiatives?
John: You’ve been very clear, these things not only don’t come without a cost, but also they’re not easy. This isn’t just automatic, write a check and then life is all fun. It’s not a barrel of monkeys, it’s not. Talk about, you just brought up the R word though. Let’s do a little deeper dive on that, regulatory. Next week, Gary Gensler is now exiting with the last administration. But as you and I know, there is a you are sitting on top of, as we talked about earlier in the show, 220 plus countries and territories. You have a fascinating view on the world and on regulatory issues on the world, but also amazing challenges because right now it’s still the beginnings of times and the world has not gotten harmonized with regards to regulations. What is your thoughts on future harmonization with regards to the EU, US, Asia, South America, the UAE. There’s got to be an easier way here to harmonize and make it easier for great leaders like you to do the important business that you’re doing.
Karen: Yeah, that’s a good question. We’re waiting with bated breath to see how that advances. I can tell you that we have a success story in the carbon and reduction scheme for international aviation, where it is unusual to have 190 plus countries come together on anything. And they came together instead that for international aviation, when you and I had a quick conversation before this, that the environmental impacts, they don’t stop at the border. They don’t have geographic respect for those borders. So, those countries came together under ICAO to say that international aviation, those emissions should be handled in a common way collectively. So not only did we set some pretty aggressive reduction targets, but we also came together in CORSIA to say, like in our strategy, at the end of this journey, we may have some emissions left. So what are we going to do about them? And so, CORSIA sets out a multi-year plan to reduce those emissions in a way that airlines can predict, airlines can plan to comply with, and airlines can see meaningful reductions in those emissions. So, I have hope that if 190 countries can come together and come to some conclusions on this slice of the industry, then maybe there’s some harmonization on the horizon in other areas.
John: You mentioned also earlier, you gave great credit to your team at FedEx for people bringing ideas forward to think about sustainability on how to either make or save money. Talk a little bit about your leadership. You have 500,000 or plus colleagues and how do you encourage folks to get involved with thinking about sustainability and filtering the ideas up from the ground up? Because sometimes, as you and I know, sometimes the greatest ideas are coming from the ground up. They’re not all top down. How does that work and how do you manage that delicate dance and balance?
Karen: I can say that I’m fortunate that I don’t have to do that alone. We have had a consistent model of infusing sustainability principles and adding environmental aspects to the decision matrix of the teams that lead in the subject matter areas. So somebody from my team doesn’t necessarily have to be in the room with an air ops engineer or management team or one from vehicles or one from properties all the time for them to put those ideas on the table for consideration, for them to allow and have processes within their divisions to bring those processes forward. What we are is a team that kind of rides on top of that and confirms that yes, that does have real material sustainability impact. Yes, we can measure the reductions that you think you’re going to achieve with this action. So we’re in partnership with all of these divisions that really have successfully added environmental improvements to their decision-making processes because they understand those areas more than my team ever will. We don’t manage the maintenance processes for vehicles or aircraft or the buildings. The people that do that understand those processes and the needs for both the business and planning for the future better than we ever will. So I think FedEx has done an outstanding job. Again, even before sustainability became a thing, environmental responsibility was added to the decision matrix in those divisions. So we have their support, their leadership support, and more than that, we have our executives at the C-suite level, at the board level, they have sent the signal that this is a part of how we will do business. So we are aligned with that direction for our executive leadership.
John: I love it. For our listeners and viewers who just joined us, we’re honored to have Karen Ellis with us today. She’s the chief sustainability officer and VP of environmental affairs at FedEx to find Karen and all her 500,000 plus colleagues and all the great work they’re doing in sustainability. Please go to www.fedex.com. We’ll also include the link that goes right to their sustainability section. Karen, what month of the year do you guys put out your sustainability report?
Karen: It will come out in the spring. This is spring 2025.
John: Got it. And those reports live in perpetuity up on your website in the sustainability section.
Karen: They do.
John: Let’s change channels now just for a moment and talk a little bit about the 2021 commitment of $100 million to establish a Yale Center for Natural Carbon Capture. What was the thinking behind that and how did that investment work and how has it been working now that we’re in 2025 and you’ve had three or four years to play it out, how’s it evolving and are you happy with it?
Karen: Yeah, I am definitely happy with it. So I want to remind you, John, it’s important to remember that our 2040 strategy includes that we’re going to neutralize what’s left behind on the table after we take all those other actions. And so we need some good carbon removal that is measurable, that’s scalable. Because, of course, I talked about the aviation industry. We have a lot of emissions to address. So we’re looking for solutions that we can count on. So we want carbon removal projects that are going to capture carbon not just for a few years, that’s been some of the discussion about carbon credit validity recently. We want durable carbon credits, those that are going to capture carbon for 50, 100, 200 years. And so we created a pathway that would allow the pipeline for science around natural carbon capture to happen. And so that $100 million investment in starting the Yale Center for Natural Carbon Capture was intended to capitalize on what scientists are saying. Scientists say that the Earth’s biological processes, what the Earth naturally does, cycles about 800 gigatons of CO2 emissions annually. That is in comparison to about 35 gigatons from industrial activities. So if we can enhance the earth’s natural capability into cycle and capture carbon dioxide, we are either on our way to solving the whole problem or materially reducing that problem, right? And so one of the success stories that Yale has had in just this three year period is around enhanced rock weathering. That’s a process by which basalt rocks are applied to farmlands. Let me tell you how we get a win-win out of this. That application, basalt is from Lava rock, that application onto farmlands has the early application of it has seen crop yields increase anywhere from 10% to 30% or 40% depending on how degraded the soil was before the application. So you can imagine how excited farmers are to get that kind of improvement in yield. So that’s a win for agriculture. That’s a win for those communities. It’s a win for those farmers. And at the same time, they’re removing carbon. What’s not to get excited about here? So in just three years, that science is being applied by three startup companies. Three startup companies are using the science that was initiated by our investment to start this center just three years ago. That’s unheard of. We don’t get that kind of success in that kind of short period of time often in our space. So those three companies are currently applying the science. They’ve gotten grant money from USDA and the Department of Energy, and they are showing progress. The farmers are happy, more farmers are applying the science and seeing some of the same type of success. I think at least one of those startups is even already putting carbon credits on the market. So that is the thinking behind our investment. We need solutions that at the end, when we get to that third pillar and we have to neutralize, we need some carbon credits that we can count on and have trust in and that are measurable and unmistakably making a difference in the removal of carbon.
John: You know, obviously, Karen, you’re not the only leader in sustainability that’s thinking and working on these very important, but also difficult topics. Did that investment and donation inspire other organizations to make similar investments to tackle that very important problem of durable, reliable carbon credit that can be used?
Karen: Yes, I believe Southwest Airlines and I think Boeing as well and other companies are still considering investments too because they have a fundraising plan that they haven’t yet met. And so with the success that they have, they are certainly getting traction and attracting more investments to make this science even more applicable.
John: Right. Back in ’97, when you joined FedEx and you were doing the important work in environmental management, as you said, wasn’t called sustainability really yet. It was nerdy work. It’s actually said nerdy. That was important work nonetheless. Now sustainability is a hot topic. And as we know, there’s a whole generation of young people that are interested in not only making a paycheck anymore, but making a difference. And that’s a blessing to us. We have a new generation that we could pass a torch to, Karen. Talk a little bit about what you’ve learned over the years working at FedEx with your colleagues in sustainability and environmental management on what your customers want from you. What do your customers expect FedEx to do with regards to sustainability and good environmental stewardship?
Karen: You know, we are a key part of many supply chains for many customers. And so, yes, they are increasingly concerned and increasingly expressing their desires about what we’re doing in the sustainability space. And so, we recognize really that our scope one, all those planes and buildings and vehicles that I talked about, our scope one emissions are their scope three emissions. You can’t read an article or set of articles today and not hear customers talking about my supply chain in many ways, but sustainability being one of them. So we recognize then that customers want to know more about what we’re doing. They want more transparency. We believe that we’ve been transparent at least since 2008 about not only what we’ve achieved but also our challenges and so we will continue to do that. So one, I would say our vision is to be a part of a smart supply chain, right? So we accept that progress is impossible without change. One of the things that’s happening right now at FedEx is the biggest transformation in the history of our company, where we are optimizing our physical network, which I talked about earlier, but also transforming our digital capabilities. When we complete that transformation, we are expecting to show and demonstrate and be transparent about both the improvements in service, as well as the emissions reductions that we’re able to achieve from those new efficiencies. But we know many of our customers are looking for ways to really understand the environmental impact of the services that we provide to them.
John: Right.
Karen: They’ve been doing that for decades. In fact, my team partnered with a department internally called Sales Solutions. We partnered with them back in 2006, 2007, and we did develop the first generation customer emissions calculator. And so we were providing even back then, transparently to our customers, these are the admissions associated with the services that you select for us to provide to you. That allowed them as they were also like us beginning their sustainability journey, we were providing them with data. So one, they could use it to set their own goals, but they could also make informed service selections. If they wanted to balance price and time of service with some emissions expectations or goals, then they can choose from the suite of services that we offer to balance all of that. So we were providing that kind of information so they could make informed decisions even back then. But since then, we have another division or another department internally called FedEx Data Works and they are our powerhouses in the IT space. They have taken that tool and taken the emissions methodology behind that tool and they have evolved it into something I never thought about really. It has always used FedEx actual data to make those calculations. But you can imagine with the network as big as it is now and the number of packages that we’re moving, data behind such a calculator is immense.
John: Right.
Karen: Yeah, in order to provide our customers with accurate calculations. So they have taken that tool, it’s called the FedEx Sustainability Insights Tool now, and they have made it into something magnificent and even includes a predictive feature so that some of our partners that have platforms where the individual consumers making a decision on shipping speed, they can see the emissions associated with that. So again, if they’re balancing time of delivery with costs and other things, they can also balance it against the emissions if they have priorities in that space.
John: Has that tool taken over then for the original tool that was created in terms of the transparency of the emissions of your clients?
Karen: Yes.
John: Well, I assume the uptake from your clients was massive because you’re giving them this transparent data that they make a report to their C-suite, their analysts, their constituents, and also put in their own sustainability annual report. So obviously, you created a tool that there was a big void in the marketplace and that your clients really wanted and needed.
Karen: Yeah, it has definitely been well received. It’s been third party certified so they can count on the data and have confidence in it. So that’s just one of the things that we provide. I mean, we have evolved over the years, even in our FedEx branded packaging. Its environmental footprint is tremendously better than what it was in the late 90s. Again, intentionality by our sourcing team, our marketing team, all of them, nobody had to come and tell us, “Hey, this is a space that’s material to your business, and you should look at it and try to find some improvement.” So our customers and even our investors appreciate the accomplishments that we’ve had in this space. But there is also more work to be done. We know that they know that. And we’re going to continue to be transparent about our progress forward.
John: I mentioned earlier that you serve on the board of the International Aviation Women’s Association. What’s your thoughts on the role of women involving in the sustainability sectors, particularly Karen, in logistics and aviation?
Karen: I’m not going to be biased here, John.
John: I’m giving you a point to talk about woman power now. Come on.
Karen: Yes. Ladies rule, but girls rule the world. What is that song?
John: I’m all down with that. I’ve got a daughter and a wife. So I understand.
Karen: I certainly think that we bring a unique perspective, right? Especially a female leader who is also mom and wife and active in our community. Not that men can’t be the same, their parents too, whatever, but it is a different perspective that we bring to the challenges in this space, how to engage people on a level where they feel valued and where their contributions are visible to others and they can see the progress, they can appreciate the impact. So I definitely feel like women bring a unique perspective to that. I certainly spend time in mentoring programs as a mentor on the board and that organization and other organizations trying to encourage young women not only to pursue STEM careers, which is true to my heart, close to my heart. But also even if they’re not in STEM, just to make sure that you pursue all opportunities that you can dream of. There was a time in our history when that was not what women were encouraged to do and that is not where we are today. We have lots of example examples of women who’ve been successful and we may not have it all at one time, but we get it all eventually on the journey. So I definitely invest some of my personal time encouraging women to pursue. engineering, sustainability, or anything they’re interested in, but make an impact in that space.
John: That’s so great. You know, what I’ve learned over the years, Karen, is that you’re part of one of the coolest fraternities on the planet in terms of chief sustainability officers, chief impact officers, chief ESG officers, whatever we want to call them now, but there’s a whole generation now of you leaders that are just doing amazing and important work that is truly making the world a better place. When you look for inspiration, you have a lot of colleagues at FedEx across the planet, in terms of continents and countries. Do you go internal on your inspiration or do you also go external to other people who are in the fraternity in different industries, not only aviation or logistics, but it could be retail or it could be food and beverage or it could be others. How do you balance your choices of finding inspiration on your work?
Karen: I think it’s all in, right? There are challenges that will never be a challenge for FedEx, but when I’m listening to those leaders and those companies and in those industries, it may spark an idea of how to solve one of the challenges that we have or make progress against it. So I don’t miss an opportunity inside the sustainability fraternity or sorority.
John: Fair enough.
Karen: Or to engage with those outside. Obviously I haven’t always been in aviation, so I still have colleagues and friends and contacts that are in other industries. I continue to meet those folks. I think we have the unique opportunity and there’s some organizations that I’m a member of are provided a platform to connect with one another. So there are NGOs and other groups out there that are doing just what you mentioned and they are making connections across sectors, across geographic areas so that we can all get to the goal line that we’re striving for. We want everybody to meet their goals. We want this problem to be solved. We don’t want to continue to have. the frequency of impacts and the type of impacts that we’re seeing. So this, in this space, it’s not exactly a competition. So we work together in many regards and find inspiration from each other to try to make progress.
John: Karen, you’re six months into your new role of chief sustainability officer. As you just mentioned a little while ago, sustainability doesn’t have a finish line. It’s a real ongoing journey and process. What are your thoughts about this year coming up with we have a new administration coming in and also the years ahead in terms of your goals and aspirations at FedEx, given that you’re in a new role now and you’re the boss.
Karen: I don’t know that I’m a boss, my team may disagree. They’re the bosses. I would say we’ve worked with administrations in various countries as they change. We generally always found a way, not just FedEx, but the industry at large and those trying to make progress in this space, we found ways to move forward, even if leadership had different ideas. So that’s no different than the US, it’s not any different than other countries. We will try to find a way to continue to make progress. In terms of FedEx, again, we have a strong strategy. We’re going to take a look back and acknowledge what we have achieved. At the same time, we’re going to dig in a little bit deeper and figure out some of the gaps that we have to fill in between 2025 and our ultimate goal of 2040. We have some milestone actions between now and then, but there’s some technology gaps in there. So we have to figure out. How are we going to continue to demonstrate progress? How are we going to continue to work with others to get what we need that may be stalling progress. But ultimately, it’s going to take the whole team to get to this aspirational goal of carbon neutrality in 2040. This year will be no different.
John: Got it. Well, Karen, I just want to say. For your first time on Impact, you’re always welcome back because as we know, sustainability is a journey. There’s no finish line. I know you have a lot of work to do still at FedEx that you’re in the middle of. We’d love to have you back on to continue to share the journey of what you and your colleagues are accomplishing at FedEx. For people who want to find Karen and her colleagues and all the important work they’re doing in sustainability, please go to www.fedex.com. You can also go to fedex.com/sustainability. Those will be in the show notes. You know, Karen, this was a delightful time today interviewing you. I just want to say thank you for all the important work you’ve done throughout your career. And now the work that you’re doing at FedEx to help make sure that you and your colleagues are helping FedEx deliver a more sustainable future and a better world for all of us.
Karen: Thank you, John. I certainly appreciate the time today.
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