Resilient ecosystems
Thriving economies depend on stable environments and inclusive societies. That’s why Cisco recognized resilient ecosystems as a priority in our next-generation environmental sustainability strategy, the Plan for Possible.
Our value chains benefit from resilient ecosystems, both financially and ecologically. It is in our shared interest to help humans and nature navigate a changing climate by investing in regenerative technologies, workforces, and nature itself. This includes activities like climate restoration in depleted bioregions, preservation of the world's remaining biodiversity, and moving from conventional to regenerative forms of agriculture.
For Cisco, investing in resilient ecosystems includes enabling communities to adapt to climate realities, cultivating skills and talent for the regenerative economy, and protecting and restoring ecosystems and biodiversity.
We recognize that the people who are most impacted by climate change are often those in underserved communities and least responsible for the crises we face. To reverse the impacts of climate change and power an inclusive future for all, we need holistic solutions that acknowledge the complex relationship between humanity and nature. We must rebuild connectivity between these systems and integrate social equity and economic opportunity into climate solutions.
Climate grants and investments—Cisco Foundation
In 2021, the Cisco Foundation—a charitable organization established in 1997 with a gift from Cisco— committed US$100 million over 10 years to support resilient ecosystems. The Foundation has a 25-year record of supporting early-stage solutions that now includes climate as a focus area. As part of this commitment, the Foundation expanded its impact beyond grant-making to include impact investing in early-stage climate ventures and funds.
The Foundation’s climate initiative focuses on supporting solutions in six key areas:
- Protecting natural carbon sinks
- Promoting inclusive clean energy solutions
- Adopting regenerative agriculture
- Advancing the circular economy
- Building sustainable infrastructures
- Resourcing action and connection efforts
The Foundation’s funding takes two forms: impact investments (venture and fund investments in early-stage climate companies from Pre-Seed to Series A) and grant funding to nonprofit organizations. This flexible approach helps the Foundation more comprehensively fill critical climate financing gaps and catalyze impact. For example, grants to nonprofits might support community climate education and engagement, building markets, or developing proofs of concept. Impact investments into a combination of for-profit companies and climate impact funds provide capital for that critical growth period that allows us not only to identify their innovations but scale them as well.
In fiscal 2024, the Cisco Foundation invested in Canopy, a company that is working to protect the world's forests by providing commercial alternatives to wood pulp for paper, packaging, and wood-based textile products like rayon. Canopy partners with hundreds of worldwide brands to accelerate the commercial use of its next-generation alternatives to materials that are derived from trees. Learn more from this article and video.
Another funding recipient example is grantee Kara Solar, an initiative to train Indigenous community members as technicians who build, operate, and maintain solar electric shuttle boats in rainforest communities. This approach can reduce deforestation by removing the need to build roads, while creating economic opportunity for community members.
This reflects another key tenet of the Cisco Foundation climate commitment—a deep respect for the rich tapestry of Tribal, local, and Indigenous knowledge cultivated over millennia. The Foundation supports this Tribal and Indigenous knowledge alongside science and cutting-edge technology to co-create solutions that anticipate, prepare for, and respond to climate-related events, as well as seeking to support a dynamic balance.
“Kara Solar's initiative equips people with skills in the clean energy economy while also reducing pollution and deforestation.”
-Francine Katsoudas
EVP and Chief People,
Policy & Purpose Officer
| Grants | US$17M |
|---|---|
| Impact Investments | US$18M |
| Total | US$35M |
You can learn more about our approach and funding recipients on our Climate Grants and Investments page.
Impact stories
Examples of organizations, startups, or venture funds that have received Cisco Foundation funding:
Reconnecting Northland
Reconnecting Northland, a nongovernmental organization (NGO) based in Te Tai Tokerau (Northland, New Zealand), brings communities, agencies, and resources together to support thriving ecosystems and revitalize biodiversity. In response to environmental degradation, community taiao (environment) groups are responding by taking action to protect biodiversity and improve ecosystem health by removing pest and weed species, planting native vegetation, installing fencing, restoring wetlands, and more. These groups of,ten face significant challenges in acquiring the funding, expert advice, skills, administrative support, and other resources necessary to undertake complex restoration projects. Responses are also often disconnected, leaving well-intended agencies and local communities struggling to achieve desired outcomes.
Reconnecting Northland designed their central program: Te Kete Hononga (The Basket of Connections) to support and grow the capabilities of community and Indigenous groups as they work toward socio-ecological regeneration across the region with benefits for climate, freshwater, and biodiversity. The Cisco Foundation supports Reconnecting Northland’s Te Kete program to build local capacity and agency for communities to create, deliver, and measure their own ecological solutions. To do so, the program provides tools (monitoring, project management, and story mapping) and services (business development, leadership training, communications, and research) to communities across the region. Reconnecting Northland found the program led to increased collaboration between diverse community groups, agencies and iwi (Māori tribes); deeper government involvement and funding in community-led initiatives; increased knowledge exchanges; and the growth of more sustainable systems and practices at the community level.
Terraso product manager Derek Caelin
in Kenya with Kijabe
Environment Volunteers (KENVO)
Terraso
As the climate crisis continues, many challenges are being addressed at the national and international level with governments and businesses. But daily decisions of farmers, foresters, Indigenous people, and local investors directly impact many climate outcomes, such as biodiversity and human welfare. Their ability to plan and make decisions is a vital missing piece of a full-stack strategy for positive climate outcomes.
Terraso supports data and decision-making for local economies at the farm, district, country, province, and state levels. The platform is a set of open-source applications and services that provide resources for local landscape leaders, conservationists, and environmental NGO members to successfully plan and fund goals that benefit people and the planet. With the support of a Cisco Foundation grant, Terraso developed and launched the program to the public. In the first 15 months after the launch in March of 2023, Terraso quickly scaled to over 800 users across 85 landscapes, covering over 50 million hectares of land. By 2030, Terraso aims to be used in 1000 landscapes where 1 billion people live, positively impacting environments and economies worldwide.
RapidAIM
In the realm of more sustainable agriculture, the transition from chemical insecticides to biological alternatives is a critical step. Cisco Foundation made an investment into RapidAIM, a climate-tech solution based in Australia that is at the forefront of this movement, providing innovative pest detection solutions that reduce reliance on traditional pesticides. Their real-time monitoring system uses artificial intelligence (AI) and low-powered sensors to detect pests like fruit flies, sending immediate alerts to farmers through a mobile app. This technology not only improves pest management efficiency but also reduces the need for chemical insecticides, aligning with the growing demand for more sustainable farming practices. The shift also addresses key environmental pollution and public health outcomes that may result from chemical-based processes.
The Catalyst Fund
The continent of Africa is impacted the greatest by climate change, while contributing the least to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, with some estimates showing nearly half of the region’s gross domestic product is at risk. Africa’s communities are vulnerable to these impacts and have an urgent need for adaptation and resilience solutions while also experiencing a dramatic funding gap for climate finance, an estimated US$453 billion over this decade. The region is also, however, well-positioned to be a leader in climate action with a dynamic startup ecosystem, abundant natural resources, and rapid digital inclusion.
Cisco Foundation made an investment into The Catalyst Fund, an opportunity to catalyze this work by accelerating and investing in early-stage, tech-enabled resilience solutions across Africa, utilizing pre-seed capital and bespoke venture-building support. The fund is accompanied by a grant-funded facility, the Catalyst Ecosystem Hub, which promotes shared learnings, builds community, and engages ecosystem actors to create a more vibrant, informed, and effective climate resilience ecosystem in Africa.
Connected Conservation
Since 2015, Cisco has partnered with the Connected Conservation Foundation (CCF) to use surveillance, data, and analytics technologies to stop wild animal poaching, prevent human-wildlife conflict, reduce habitat loss, and sustainably manage natural resources for resilient communities and ecosystems.
In fiscal 2024, Cisco continued working with CCF and Northern Rangelands Trust, to deploy Africa's largest landscape-wide Internet of Things (IoT) Conservation Network. Spanning 3 million hectares of intact wilderness, this network is connecting 22 community-led conservancies, helping them work together in sharing knowledge, and leveraging real-time data for conservation. Cisco donated networking infrastructure, as well as ongoing technical support, to make this network possible. This is also helping to transform community-led conservation.
During this period, we supported another program to help African Parks strengthen digital infrastructure across 19 park headquarters in 10 countries. This includes the forests of Rwanda; the wilderness of the Central African Republic; and the diverse landscapes of Malawi, Benin, Chad, Zambia, Congo, the Democratic Republic of Congo, South Sudan, and Mozambique. These vital refuges are now equipped with connectivity—serving as the lifeline of modern park management—supporting communities and helping protect western lowland gorillas, chimpanzees, forest elephants, and colobus monkeys.
Western lowland gorillas in
Odzala Kokoua National Park, Congo
(photo credit: Andrew Beck)
Here are some examples of other impactful projects made possible through Connected Conservation:
Africa’s largest IoT conservation network in Kenya at Northern Rangeland Trust (NRT)
Following the implementation of Cisco LoRaWan Gateways and Meraki switches and routers at Northern Rangelands Trust’s community-led conservancies and four private reserves, these technologies are enabling NRT to deliver positive impacts to recover wildlife populations and build resilient ecosystems and communities. The technology is enabling three pillars:
- Early warning systems for improved decision-making and action to protect wildlife, the environment, and pastoral community livelihoods
- Ecosystems monitoring and management
- Empowering local communities and people as stewards of their natural resources
Converging technologies to protect wildlife and support rewilding at Madikwe Game Reserve
Madikwe Game Reserve (MGR), a vital sanctuary for critically endangered black and white rhinos, faces severe poaching threats, losing 231 rhinos in the first half of 2023 across South Africa. To bolster resilience against these challenges, advanced technologies including a LoRaWan network covering 6000 new hectares of the reserve, alongside long-range thermal cameras, camera traps, drones, and IoT sensors, now work seamlessly around the clock to monitor and respond to threats. Since 2021, the convergence of on-the-ground tools and satellite technology has helped Madikwe Futures Company (MFC) assist with 16 arrests of suspected rhino poachers between 2021-2023, compared to zero in 2020, and aid the restoration of 750 square kilometers of wilderness. Through collaborative conservation efforts, Madikwe sets a model for effective wildlife protection and sustainable community development in biodiversity-rich regions.
Scaling these impactful conservation technologies is made possible through strong partnership with the field partners and technology providers, including NTT DATA, Actility, and EarthRanger.
Water, waste, and biodiversity in our direct operations
We are working to reduce our impact on ecosystems within our own operations.
Water
Water is a vital resource that we share with the communities where we operate. Water challenges are projected to grow more acute as the impacts of climate change—like droughts, extreme weather, flooding, degraded water quality, and water scarcity—intensify and become more widespread. Cisco's approach to water stewardship is aligned with the Alliance for Water Stewardship framework and the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goal 6: Clean Water and Sanitation. Read more in Cisco's Approach to Water Stewardship.
Even though Cisco does not use significant amounts of water in our direct operations, we understand the importance of reducing water consumption in our operations and supply chain. It’s essential to protect this limited resource for our business needs and for the sake of the communities in which we operate.
In our direct operations, Cisco:
- Provides access to fully functioning, safely managed Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) services for all employees
- Benchmarks and reports water use and risks according to industry best practices, including via our 2024 CDP response
- Conserves water in our operations, focusing on water-scarce and water-stressed locations
Cisco’s primary use of fresh water in our direct operations is for basic services in the workplace, such as in restrooms and cafeterias. In fiscal 2024, we withdrew approximately 2690 cubic meters of water in our direct operations globally. Our primary use of recycled water is for irrigating landscapes and for use in our cooling towers at several of our major campuses. We use fresh water as a second resort. See the Water Use table below for details on Cisco’s water use.
We use the World Resources Institute Aqueduct tool to better understand our water use and risks within our operations. The Aqueduct1 tool revealed that 37% of Cisco’s water use by volume is withdrawn from water-stressed areas—mainly in Bangalore, India. Given the projected impacts of climate change, we continue to monitor our portfolio for changes in water availability and develop contextual water management strategies accordingly.
Campus water stewardship initiatives
We have implemented numerous water conservation projects in our direct operations over the past few years. These projects conserve water today and will continue to do so for many years to come.
At multiple campuses:
- Installing variable frequency drives in our cooling towers
- Installing two-way valves for toilets, waterless urinals, sink aerators, low-flow showerheads, and pre-rinse spray valves for kitchen sinks
- Replacing water fountains and turf with native planter beds that require little water and installing drip irrigation lines to improve irrigation efficiency
In San Jose, California:
- Updated irrigation controllers
At Research Triangle Park (RTP), North Carolina:
- Using reclaimed water for irrigation and cooling towers.
- Maintaining our water neutrality goal to restore a volume of water equal to RTP campus' annual water use each year by investing in water restoration projects that restore local watersheds in North Carolina and the Southeast. One of the projects we invested in is the removal of a decommissioned dam in Western North Carolina, completed in June 2021.
In Bangalore, India:
- We maintain a comprehensive water management system at this campus, which is a zero-discharge facility, meaning no wastewater is discharged to third parties or the environment. Building water discharge is sent to two sewage treatment plants that use filtration and reverse osmosis to treat the water for eventual reuse. The treated water is used in an evaporative cooling system, for irrigation, and for toilet flushing in two campus buildings.
Visit Supply chain environmental stewardship for information on how we are working to improve water security in our supply chain.
1 Baseline Water Stress using 2030 Water Stress Under Business-as-Usual Scenario.
| KPI | FY20 | FY21 | FY22 | FY23 | FY24 | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KPI: Total water withdrawn, m3, thousands | FY20: 3183 | FY21: 2902 | FY22: 2369 | FY23: 2464 | FY24: 2686 | Comments: This figure covers Cisco's facilities within our operational control. Withdrawal sources are reported below. Cisco does not withdraw water from any source not listed below. |
| KPI: Water withdrawn from municipal supply (third-party sources), m3, thousands | FY20: 2929 | FY21: 2674 | FY22: 2204 | FY23: 2303 | FY24: 2532 | Comments: The majority of Cisco's water withdrawals are from third-party sources. |
| KPI: Water withdrawn from fresh surface water, m3, thousands | FY20: 220 | FY21: 228 | FY22: 164 | FY23: 160 | FY24: 154 | Comments: We withdraw water from a nearby lake at our Vaud, Switzerland, location, use it on site in a closed-loop cooling system, then discharge it back to the lake. |
| KPI: Water withdrawn from groundwater, m3, thousands | FY20: 34 | FY21: 0 | FY22: 0 | FY23: 0 | FY24: 0 | Comments: Prior to FY21, water was treated on site at our Boxborough facilities and then discharged back to the groundwater. Starting in FY21, the site began using municipal water. |
| KPI: Total water recycled and reused, m3, thousands | FY20: 62 | FY21: 33 | FY22: 39 | FY23: 55 | FY24: 62 | Comments: Cisco recycles the water withdrawn at our Bangalore Campus in India through the use of our sewer treatment plant. |
| KPI: Total water consumption, m3, thousands | FY20: 334 | FY21: 271 | FY22: 297 | FY23: 259 | FY24: 275 | Comments: We continue refining our water accounting and reporting practices, including regarding the water we use for evaporative cooling and irrigation. |
| KPI: Total water discharged, m3, thousands | FY20: 2848 | FY21: 2631 | FY22: 2072 | FY23: 2205 | FY24: 2411 | Comments: This figure covers Cisco's facilities within our operational control. Discharge destinations are reported below. Cisco does not discharge water to destinations not listed below. |
| KPI: Total water discharged to sewer (third-party destinations), m3, thousands | FY20: 2595 | FY21: 2403 | FY22: 1908 | FY23: 2045 | FY24: 2257 | Comments: The majority of Cisco's water discharges are to third-party destinations. |
| KPI: Total water discharged to fresh surface water, m3, thousands | FY20: 220 | FY21: 228 | FY22: 164 | FY23: 160 | FY24: 154 | Comments: We withdraw water from a nearby lake at our Vaud, Switzerland, location, use it on site in a closed-loop cooling system, then discharge it back to the lake. |
| KPI: Total water discharged to groundwater, m3, thousands | FY20: 34 | FY21: 0 | FY22: 0 | FY23: 0 | FY24: 0 | Comments: Prior to FY21, water was treated on site at our Boxborough facilities and then discharged back to the groundwater. Starting in FY21, the site began using municipal water. |
| KPI: Real estate portfolio covered by water reporting | FY20: 100% | FY21: 100% | FY22: 100% | FY23: 100% | FY24: 100% | Comments: |
| KPI: Real estate portfolio where we receive water data from the utility | FY20: 70% | FY21: 68% | FY22: 67% | FY23: 69% | FY24: 69% | Comments: |
Next steps in our water strategy
The next phase of our water stewardship journey is to develop targeted strategies to conserve water and evaluate partnerships with local organizations to address local water issues at our major campuses around the world. We are preparing for this initiative by refining our approach to water and reviewing the water impacts of our business.
Waste
Cisco’s waste reduction and recycling program is a key component of our International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 14001:2015 certification and global corporate environmental policy. While municipal and regional practices vary, our facilities take steps to reduce their operational waste and reuse and recycle materials. Waste audits are conducted at several of our largest facilities to determine opportunities to improve waste diversion. Select Cisco sites covered by ISO 14001:2015 certification also set waste-reduction targets supported by action plans to minimize waste. Our strategy is to reduce both our total waste generated and the proportion of waste sent to landfill by incorporating the principles of reduce, reuse, and recycle throughout our direct operations. Employee-led teams with interest in sustainability matters, known as Green Teams, have also chosen to facilitate waste-related training and informational sessions for employees at their locations. In fiscal 2024, we diverted approximately 75% of the waste generated at our facilities from landfill globally. Information on reducing solid waste at our supply chain manufacturing facilities is addressed in Supply chain environmental stewardship.
| KPI | FY20 | FY21 | FY22 | FY23 | FY24 | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KPI: Total operational waste generated, metric tonnes |
FY20: 5715 | FY21: 2112 | FY22: 2458 | FY23: 2621 | FY24: 2901 | |
| KPI: Waste sent to landfill (municipal solid waste), metric tonnes |
FY20: 1072 | FY21: 568 | FY22: 611 | FY23: 581 | FY24: 715 | |
| KPI: Waste incinerated, metric tonnes |
FY20: 5 | FY21: 4 | FY22: 2 | FY23: 6 | FY24: 2 | Comments: Data prior to FY20 is not available. |
| KPI: Landfill diversion rate, metric tonnes |
FY20: 81% | FY21: 73% | FY22: 75% | FY23: 78% | FY24: 75% | Comments: Does not include e-waste. |
| KPI: Total operational waste diverted, metric tonnes |
FY20: 4638 | FY21: 1540 | FY22: 1844 | FY23: 2034 | FY24: 2183 | Comments: This includes waste recycled, composted, hazardous/universal waste recycled, and waste to energy. Total waste diverted decreased in FY20 and FY21 due to impacts from COVID-19. |
| KPI: Recycled, metric tonnes |
FY20: 2296 | FY21: 730 | FY22: 852 | FY23: 1113 | FY24: 1172 | Comments: Municipal recycling. |
| KPI: Composted, metric tonnes |
FY20: 1945 | FY21: 438 | FY22: 691 | FY23: 779 | FY24: 768 | |
| KPI: Hazardous/ universal waste, metric tonnes |
FY20: 255 | FY21: 76 | FY22: 248 | FY23: 74 | FY24: 186 | Comments: This includes batteries, kitchen oil, lamps, printer toner. |
| KPI: Waste to energy, metric tonnes |
FY20: 142 | FY21: 61 | FY22: 54 | FY23: 68 | FY24: 58 | Comments: This is waste burned to generate energy. Data prior to FY19 is not available. |
| KPI: Percent real estate portfolio covered by waste reporting | FY20: 100% | FY21: 100% | FY22: 100% | FY23: 100% | FY24: 100% |
| Campus location | FY20 | FY21 | FY22 | FY23 | FY24 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Campus location: San Jose | FY20: 86% | FY21: 89% | FY22: 88% | FY23: 84% | FY24: 83% |
| Campus location: RTP | FY20: 69% | FY21: 75% | FY22: 70% | FY23: 63% | FY24: 68% |
| Campus location: Bedfont Lakes | FY20: 100% | FY21: 100% | FY22: 100% | FY23: 100% | FY24: 100% |
| Campus location: Bangalore | FY20: 91% | FY21: 33% | FY22: 68% | FY23: 82% | FY24: 91% |
| Campus location: Total | FY20: 81% | FY21: 73% | FY22: 75% | FY23: 78% | FY24: 75% |
Campus waste initiatives
As part of our ongoing efforts to reduce waste, we continue to evaluate where we can increase the number of reusable items (such as cups, plates, and mugs) in many offices around the world, including our campus in RTP, our Bedfont Lakes campus in the United Kingdom, and many facilities in Asia and Europe. The next phase of our waste reduction journey is to work toward setting long-term waste diversion and reduction goals at our major campuses, likely over the next few years.
Biodiversity
Biodiversity is the variability among living organisms and the ecological complexes they are a part of. Organizations impact biodiversity directly through their own activities or indirectly through their supply chains. Cisco’s primary impact on biodiversity is the land we use for our facilities. As more of our employees adopt hybrid work, we can reduce the square footage of our real estate space, thereby reducing our land use impact.
Cisco has used environmental impact assessments to evaluate the biodiversity and land use impacts of our main sites. We have experienced no major impacts or changes at these sites since the last assessment. We have worked to mitigate the potential negative impacts to biodiversity that have been identified. For example, some of the buildings we own in San Jose are located near a protected area for the American Cliff Swallow, which is a bird species on the Least Concern category of the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List. To protect the birds’ habitat during nesting season, we close our balconies on those buildings. We then remove the mud nesting locations on our buildings after nesting season is over. Cisco is also a signatory to the UN Global Compact Sustainable Ocean Principles.
Cisco continues to promote healthy pollinator habitats at its campuses. We began in December 2019 when we installed beehives near our RTP campus in partnership with Bee Downtown and the RTP Foundation. The hives in RTP are now home to over 100,000 honeybees, and they support the growing pollinator population in North Carolina, advance honeybee education across the region, and contribute to the largest pollinator corridor in the country. In April 2023 we added hives in San Jose, California, with PlanetBee, a nonprofit that provides environmental educational lessons at no cost to schools and other nonprofits with support from corporate adopt-a-hive programs. The three Cisco hives are located at the Guadalupe River Park & Gardens near Cisco headquarters. Cisco employees and the broader public are invited to visit and see our pollinators at work.