Experts believe that humanity is at a critical moment: our actions around sustainability will determine the future of the planet and how we will be seen by future generations.

Johannes Cramer, CEO Logistics Services, Swiss Post, does not look bowed by the weight of responsibility, though he acknowledges that his industry is facing particular structural difficulties:

“The sustainability challenges facing our sector are obvious. First of all, we’re labor intensive. Second, we’re quite physical: We move letters, parcels and bulky goods. We use transportation, warehouses and operation centers. That does require CO2 emissions.”

Switzerland, where a reminder of the pristine beauty of nature is never far away, has put sustainability at the top of the agenda, and Cramer says that despite the difficulties of making Swiss Post more efficient, there are opportunities for easier wins:

“All our buildings have to adhere to the highest sustainability standards. Almost all of Swiss Post’s operations buildings are surfaced by solar roofs, making us one of the biggest solar roof infrastructures in Switzerland, so as a company we are working towards that goal of becoming CO2 free.”

Christian Pluess, CEO Mobility Services, Swiss Post, highlights the role of Swiss Post bus on achieving this goal: “With a fleet of 2,400 buses and together with a well-established railroad network, which is operated by the SBB our sister company, Swiss Post contributes to the broad offering in public transportation. Most of the buses work on diesel right now, but there is a clear goal to decarbonize the fleet.“

The most visible example of these efforts may be the replacement of 6,000 cars with 6,000 DXPs, a three-wheeled electric vehicle that can get up to a speed of around 45 km/hour. These vehicles are a major step on the path to making the full fleet emission-free by 2030.

Mike Brandli, Delivery Driver at Swiss Post says that the new vehicles are quieter, cleaner and better suited to their needs:

“It’s an ideal vehicle for Swiss Post that is tailored for our requirements. The loading requirements are extremely important to us in our job. We are also extremely agile, we have great reach which we can take advantage of. These are vital characteristics required to perform our job perfectly.”

Customers, too, are liking the changes. Samira, a Swiss Post customer, says that there is widespread buy-in for companies trying to protect the environment:

“There is a great deal of trust in Swiss Post. The problem is that the scarcity of raw materials and resources affects us all. That’s why it’s so important that we don’t always simply rely on disposable products, but instead really start looking for reusable products and recycling.”

To address the issue of wasted raw materials, Swiss Post has partnered with Kickbag to create a new concept in packaging for parcels delivered through Swiss Post. Tobias Zingg, Business Client at Kickbag explains:

“Kickbag is a reusable eco-friendly mailing bag for e-commerce. Swiss Post supported us right from the outset with the development and concept design. Instead of using conventional plastic or cardboard packaging, online retailers send out goods in the Kickbag which is made of recycled PET. Customers take out their ordered items, fold up the Kickbag and put it into a Swiss Post letter box. The Kickbags are then returned to the online retailers where they are reused for online shipping.”

E-scooters and Kickbag are just two solutions to reducing emissions across the Swiss Post ecosystem. Johannes Cramer, says that the drive to protect the environment must be a top priority for businesses now – as time is running out fast:

“As a community, as a whole, as a country and also then as a public company, we owe it to the public to take sustainability extremely seriously and to make this a top priority, which we have. Our children and grandchildren are going to ask us what we did in this short window of time that we have left to make a difference.”

The efforts are being supported by Switzerland’s Federal Council and the Sustainable Development Goals first set out by the UN. Cramer believes that there are solutions for every industry and his focus is to be ahead of schedule at Swiss Post:

“We have made it one of the top strategic priorities to become CO2 neutral as soon as we can. Right now, we are going to hit that target in 2030 for all of our delivery and 2040 for the company as a whole.”

For those who say it cannot be done – there is no time.