Producing less CO₂ over its lifetime than competing materials, steel is one of the most versatile materials in the world. Steel and steel production and application are at the top of the history of human technological achievements, and are also responsible for massive improvements in the quality of life of billions of people around the globe. The challenge is now how to make steel an instrumental part of ecological solutions for huge and urgent challenges faced by our planet, rather than a component of the problem.

Our success depends on our ability to understand and address the ecological impact of our production process as well as the impact that our steel products and solutions have on the world around us. We aim to make sure that every research project we take on is designed with sustainable development in mind.

Through our Sustainable Innovation (SI) Tool, our global R&D team now analyzes every new research program in our development pipeline to determine whether it will contribute to a more sustainable way of life. If not, it simply doesn’t move forward. While greenhouse gas emissions are a primary focus, the criteria include all social and environmental trends identified in our sustainable development outcomes. When combined with our expertise in Lifecycle Analysis - or the study of the environmental impact of products during their production, use and disposal phases - this information allows sustainability to be a central part of the design principles of our research program.

We know that CO₂ is a challenge for the entire planet. Our R&D segments across the globe, in partnership with our leadership, operations and customers, have developed a realistic and comprehensive roadmap to reduce carbon emissions by 30% by 2030. We are dedicating more resources to changing the way we produce steel to address climate change and sustainability as a whole.

We believe that steel has the power to positively influence the world, through the innovative products it creates and by contributing to sustainable development through energy and resource efficiency, recyclability, and full lifecycle impact. Steel is already the most sustainable material on the planet and the possibility of what’s to come can push the boundaries even more.