Climate protection

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) published a report in November 2019 calling for global emissions of greenhouse gases to be reduced by 7.6 percent annually between 2020 and 2030. Otherwise, the goal set in the 2015 Paris Agreement of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees cannot be achieved. Despite the urgent need for action to counter climate change, the Madrid climate conference in December 2019 produced only a minimum compromise with vague wording and postponement of critical issues.

Under the umbrella of the European Health Union, the European Green Deal presented by the EU Commission at the end of 2019 envisages leading Europe to climate neutrality by 2050. With the establishment of a circular economy and research and innovation, industry plays a central role in this project.

Switzerland is playing a pioneering role in the implementation of the international climate goals. The country’s 2050 climate target envisages Switzerland achieving climate neutrality (known as net zero emissions) within the next 30 years. This means that no more greenhouse gases will be emitted than can be absorbed by natural and technical reservoirs.

Pharmaceutical industry activities

The pharmaceutical industry is committed to making a positive impact on patients’ lives. At the same time, it wants to operate sustainably, contribute to a healthy environment and take a leadership role in mitigating climate change.

The research-based pharmaceutical companies in Switzerland are actively involved at the interface of health, well-being and climate protection. Manufacturing processes and business activities in the pharmaceutical industry generate CO₂ and other greenhouse gases, and the Interpharma members have therefore set themselves the goal of actively minimising their emissions and reducing their impact on the environment. Here, a large number of technologies and activities will be employed, among them the sustainable design of production processes, the integration of sustainability principles into supply chains, and increased self-regulation and monitoring.

In the course of these efforts, the pharmaceutical companies will increasingly enter into private-public partnerships and leverage synergies in order to achieve global and sustainable health. At a local level, too, efforts to protect the climate will be intensified. For example, many pharmaceutical locations in Switzerland now obtain energy from sustainable sources and use solar energy, thus making a significant contribution to the reduction of CO₂ emissions.