Mercedes-Benz has unveiled an enhanced sustainability strategy, emphasizing six key areas deemed vital for its stakeholders and society. This announcement was made during the company’s 17th Sustainability Dialogue, a platform dedicated to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) discussions. The six focus areas—Decarbonization, Resource Use & Circularity, Employees, Human Rights, Digital Trust, and Traffic Safety—represent a comprehensive approach to aligning the company’s operations with its commitment to sustainability.
The revised strategy is based on a comprehensive multi-step analysis, which included internal and external stakeholders as well as performing a materiality assessment aligned to the European Union’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) and the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS). This way, the company will ensure that its activities target the areas that are most important to its operations, society, and planet.
Renata Jungo Brüngger serves on the Mercedes-Benz Group AG Board of Management as a member responsible for Integrity, Governance, and Sustainability. She stressed why the initiative is so important: “We want to make the greatest possible impact with what we do. In our six sustainability focus areas, we can make a real difference.”. They are of crucial relevance, both now and in the future – for us as a company, for many of our stakeholders, and for society at large,” as she put it.
Each focus area has measurable targets that have been integrated into a company-wide scorecard, and Mercedes-Benz has committed to ongoing review of the indicators, incorporating them into its annual sustainability reports as a way to maintain transparency and accountability.
A crucial part of this strategy is the Decarbonization area, through which the company reaffirms its “Ambition 2039” target: to have a life cycle carbon-neutral fleet of passenger cars. This is on track to be achieved through accelerating vehicle electrification; increasing the utilization of recycled materials; adapting renewable energy in production processes; and promoting the use of green energy for the charging of vehicles.
Resource Use & Circularity focuses on the decoupling of resource consumption from production growth, efficiency, and closing material cycles. The company will adopt policies to make significant reductions in waste, energy conservation, and minimum use of resources at its facilities.
The company is committed to its employees through its Sustainable People Plan, investing €2 billion in employee training by 2030. Again, the company identifies and addresses human rights risks proactively through a risk-based approach and early identification of challenges.
The company further aims to enhance Digital Trust through responsible use of innovation, including artificial intelligence. It specifies principles regarding responsible development and application of digital innovation. Moreover, as an ally to Vision Zero by the EU, the company commits to half reduction of road fatalities by 2030 compared to 2020, in elimination objectives by the year 2050.
Brüngger reiterated the company’s mission to deeply anchor sustainability in its operations, saying, “The goal is for us to anchor sustainability even more solidly in our operational business. This is only a way we can achieve sustainable improvement.”
This new policy clearly illustrates Mercedes-Benz’s commitment to solving global problems with innovative, sustainable, and responsible business practices.