Neil Rasmussen has an electrical engineer's fondness for statistics and formulas, and the numbers he shares with audiences these days are startling. Currently, 28 billion tons of carbon dioxide (CO_2) are being emitted into the atmosphere each year. By 2050, it is projected that figure will rise to 54 billion tons without any substantial technology changes.rn"The scientists are telling us that the best analysis says we have to hold the line at 450 ppm [atmospheric concentration of CO_2] in order to guarantee that we don't have massive climate change, such as melting the ice sheets in Antarctica and Greenland," says Rasmussen. That would require cutting emissions tenfold, to 5 billion tons annually. Such a drastic reduction represents both an enormous societal challenge and a huge business opportunity for Schneider Electric. With $23 billion in sales and 114,000 employees operating in more than 100 countries. Schneider is in the process of focusing its operations to become an energy management solution provider for customers in four business areas: power, industry, buildings and IT.
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