In San Francisco on January 31st, Samsung Electronics hosted Galaxy of Impact, the event highlighting how Galaxy provides sustainable solutions that help open up possibilities for a better tomorrow. During the roundtables, Samsung sustainability leaders and partners talked about the steps Samsung is taking today — and in the future — put sustainability at the center of its innovations. The event unveiled new sustainable features of the Galaxy S23 series, highlighting how Samsung strives to integrate sustainability throughout the design and production lifecycle. These efforts embody Samsung’s focus on designing more durable and innovative devices that minimize environmental impact without compromising quality.
Galaxy of Impact also highlighted the importance of organizations working together across sectors and creating innovative tools and technologies that empower communities around the world to achieve the Global Goals. Leaders of Samsung’s partner organization, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), and its youth-led initiative Generation17, a joint project between Samsung and UNDP launched in 2020 to make further progress on the global goals, spoke about the power of global corporations to solve today’s most pressing environmental and societal issues.
The first panel highlighted how Samsung and the Galaxy S23 series are empowering every Galaxy user to embrace a more sustainable lifestyle.
Samsung’s technology and sustainability leaders discussed their work to meet the 2025 and 2030 goals by innovating to design more sustainable products. The new Galaxy S23 series represents these efforts by minimizing Samsung’s environmental footprint while maximizing performance.
Inhee Chung, Vice President of the Corporate Sustainability Center at Samsung Electronics, kicked off the panel with an overview of Samsung’s new commitment to its concept of everyday sustainability. “It’s the idea that by integrating sustainability into product design and user experience, we and the billions of users of our products can contribute to a healthier, more livable planet,” he said. she declared.
Chung said, “Everyday sustainability is built on the goal of achieving net zero carbon emissions by the end of 2030 for our Device eXperience (DX) division, and as part of the DX division, the Samsung’s Mobile eXperience (MX) business is key to helping deliver on our commitment. She added: “MX Business aims to achieve its own sustainability goals. — incorporate recycled materials into all mobile products, eliminate plastics in packaging, achieve zero standby power consumption for smartphone chargers, and achieve zero waste to landfill by 2025.”
Won-Joon Choi, Executive Vice President, Head of Mobile R&D Office, Mobile eXperience Business at Samsung Electronics, focused on how Samsung’s sustainability commitments come to life in the new Galaxy S23 series. “For Samsung, breakthroughs in durability can be breakthroughs in performance,” he said. “We aim to create an experience where you don’t have to sacrifice the things you love to be a more environmentally conscious consumer.” He added that the Galaxy S23 series has been “built with uncompromising innovation and durability, and it will allow users to make a positive impact while enjoying an excellent mobile experience.”
Choi explained that with the Galaxy S23 series, Samsung is “delivering a high-performance device that meets the highest quality standards while using more recycled materials than any other Galaxy smartphone to date.” He went on to point out that “Samsung has increased the amount of recycled materials from six internal components in the Galaxy S22 Ultra to 12 internal and external components in the Galaxy S23 Ultra”.
He went on to explain that the Galaxy S23 series uses more recycled plastics and newly incorporated pre-consumer recycled aluminum and glass.
Choi stressed that all of these efforts are “significant steps in the right direction, helping us extend the Galaxy legacy to be more than just performance innovation. These are innovations designed with the planet and you in mind.
Mark Newton, Director, Head of Corporate Sustainability at Samsung Electronics America, noted that “we are working diligently to extend the life cycle of our devices to encourage users to reliably enjoy the optimized performance of the Galaxy as long as possible.” He pointed out, “The Galaxy S23 series was built to last longer, optimizing durability with IP68 water and dust resistance. We also provide five years of security updates and four generations of operating system upgrades.
He added, “In the US, customers can use our Certified Re-Newed and Trade-In programs to send their old devices to us for refurbishment and reuse. We also partner with iFixit, the leading online repair community, to allow users to repair their own devices with self-repair kits. He also explained how Samsung will continue “its efforts to improve the circularity of resources throughout the product life cycle”.
Newton also explained that the Galaxy S23 series features redesigned packaging that uses 100% recycled paper for the packaging box and front and back cover protectors.
Each panelist expressed their excitement and hopes for the future of sustainability at Samsung. All agreed that there will be even greater challenges ahead; however, panelists emphasized that by working together, Samsung can have a positive and tangible impact for people and the planet.
The second panel delved into Samsung’s partnership with UNDP and their joint efforts to achieve the global goals.
Together, Samsung and UNDP created the Samsung Global Goals app, which raises funds for UNDP projects and amplifies stories about Generation17, a group of 14 young leaders from various countries around the world working towards the Global Goals and inspiring people. young people to do the same. . The leaders of UNDP and Samsung were joined by two young leaders of the 17th generation, who called on the public to raise their voices to accelerate progress on the 2030 Agenda.
Boaz Paldi, Creative Director at UNDP, opened the panel by saying, “When it comes to the 17 Global Goals, I cannot stress enough the importance of what is at stake here.” He continued, “To help the world achieve [the Global Goals]By 2030, UNDP plays a critical role in delivering integrated solutions in the communities furthest behind. In short, we help communities and governments put in place the structures and policies that help address these global challenges. »
Paldi also explained UNDP’s partnership with Samsung to unveil the power behind Samsung’s vast resources and global scale. He said: “In 2019, we created the Samsung Global Goals app, an education and donation-based mobile app that educates people about the global goals and encourages them to take action simply by using their smartphone. Today, the app comes pre-installed on nearly 300 million Galaxy devices worldwide. And through the dedication and passion of the global Galaxy community, we’ve helped generate more than $10 million for UNDP’s global programs and initiatives.
The creator of the Samsung Global Goals app, Sergey Lossev, senior director of project management at Samsung Electronics, said he has always “been passionate about making the world a better place”. To do this, his team “decided to create a centralized hub for social impact directly on a device that has become a staple of Galaxy smartphones. The app aims to raise awareness and raise funds for the work of the UNDP worldwide.”
Two young leaders of the 17th generation sat next to Paldi and Lossev and reiterated how UNDP, Samsung and the Samsung Global Goals app have greatly benefited their platforms.
Tamara Gondo, Generation17 Young Leader (Indonesia), explained that by joining Generation17 and gaining recognition from Samsung and UNDP, her B2B social enterprise Liberty Society “has been exposed to over 10 million people globally, opening our doors to connect with partners in Malaysia, London and now San Francisco.” Gondo continued, “For organizations like Samsung, UNDP and the news media, it’s about using their power and their influence to effect change in their spheres of influence.
Máximo Mazzocco, Generation Young Leader (Argentina), went on to explain that the Generation17 partnership helped grow his environmental non-profit Eco House, “helping us grow from an organization for young people in Argentina to one of the most major youth-led organizations in the climate movement.” He added that we have had “the chance to change the narrative and have an impact on a global scale”, and that we need to work across all sectors in order to make progress towards achieving the global goals.
Harnessing the power of Galaxy to deliver sustainable solutions
Galaxy of Impact highlights Samsung’s progress in embedding sustainability at every level of the company. This event also represents Samsung’s challenging journey to achieve its 2025 and 2030 commitments and progress towards global goals. The road ahead will not be easy; However, Samsung leaders are committed to working with partners to design solutions that enable every Galaxy user to integrate sustainability into their daily lives.
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