T-Mobile, Verizon and AT&T are under pressure – and it's not from each other this time
Mobile Net Zero report shows momentum is building. | Image credit – GSMA
Still, to hit net zero by 2050, the pace needs to more than double. Emissions must fall 7.5% per year until 2030 – so far, we're not even close.
Quick hits from the GSMA report: 2024 is off to a decent start: emissions are estimated to be down another 4.5%.
37% of electricity used by mobile operators came from renewables in 2023, up from just 13% in 2019.
81 operators (covering almost half the planet's mobile connections) have committed to science-based climate targets. Operational emissions dropped in most regions between 2019 and 2023, with Europe leading the way at -56%. North America followed with a 44% cut and Latin America trimmed 36%.
Greater China, on the other hand, saw an 8% increase during that time – but early 2024 data shows a nearly 4% drop. If that trend holds, it could be a game changer globally, since China is the world's biggest smartphone market.
– Steven Moore, Head of Climate Action at the GSMA, June 2025 A huge chunk of emissions still comes from power use. Operators like T-Mobile, Verizon and AT&T used 290 terawatt-hours of electricity in 2023 alone – roughly 1% of global energy use. That includes running networks, stores, data centers and even EV fleets.
But the big elephant in the room? Scope 3 emissions – things like phone manufacturing and supply chains – make up over two-thirds of the industry's total carbon footprint. And they're still a mess to track.
The good news: more people want greener tech. Nearly 90% of users care about repairability and longevity and almost half say they'd consider a refurbished phone. Refurbs generate up to 90% fewer emissions and the second-hand phone market is booming – expected to hit $150 billion by 2027.
Video credit – GSMA So, why should we care about this? Well, it's pretty simple: the networks powering your life – yes, I'm looking at you, T-Mobile , AT&T and Verizon – are major players in this global effort. Their commitment (or lack thereof) to sustainability directly impacts our planet's future, and let's be honest, it's increasingly becoming a competitive battleground, too. T-Mobile 's been loud and proud about its green goals. In 2023, it pledged to hit net-zero emissions across the board, and earlier this year, it came up with a clever idea: turning old phones into Wi-Fi routers to cut down on e-waste.
Verizon is also in the game, targeting net zero by 2050. To get there, it just expanded its deal with Invenergy, locking in 640 megawatts of solar power across four US states. But, still, it's not all about carbon cuts. There's also growing attention on "energy justice" – making sure these green shifts also benefit underserved communities. Sustainability isn't just a tech problem – it's a people problem, too. And being aware of what each company does is a good idea.
It's honestly pretty exciting to see the mobile industry – usually slammed for being wasteful – start making real moves on sustainability. Seeing emissions drop while data usage keeps climbing shows there's some serious behind-the-scenes innovation happening.
It shows that innovation doesn't just mean a faster chip or a better camera; it can also mean a greener network.
That said, the hard part is still ahead. The GSMA report makes it clear: cutting emissions twice as fast and cracking down on those giant Scope 3 numbers won't be easy. And it's not just about throwing up more solar panels (though, hey, that helps). It's about rethinking how phones are made, where the parts come from, and what happens when we're done with them.
For us, that means looking a little closer at which brands and carriers are actually doing the work. Would I pick a phone or a plan based on how green it is? If the performance and price are solid, too – definitely. Sustainability should quickly become part of the decision-making checklist.
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