Facebook information center will highlight science-backed data on climate change
It's based on the social network's COVID-19 information hub.
“Climate change is real,” Facebook wrote in a Newsroom post detailing how it’s stepping up its fight against climate change. As part of its efforts, the social network has launched the Climate Change Information Center, which will give you access to science-based information from the world’s leading climate experts. Facebook modeled the center after its COVID-19 hub that has successfully directed over 2 billion people (so far) to information from health authorities. The company says its coronavirus hub showed it “how powerful Facebook can be for connecting people to accurate, expert advice and information during a global crisis.”
Just like its coronavirus information center, the one for climate change will have a prominent placement at the top of the website where you can easily see it. And good thing, too, because climate change denial has been spreading on the platform. As Scientific American previously reported, there are climate change denial groups promoting misleading information about global warming on the website. Also, a prominent climate scientist said the social network blocked her from promoting videos related to climate research.
Zuckerberg says Facebook’s climate hub will feature facts, figures and data from organizations like the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and The Met Office. It will put a focus on climate science news and will include actionable steps you can take in your everyday life.
Aside from announcing the information center, Facebook has also revealed its plans to reduce its operational greenhouse gas emissions in the coming years. The company will achieve net zero emissions and be 100 percent supported by renewable energy this year by adding more and more renewable energy to the grid. In its first ever sustainability report, Facebook announced that it achieved 86 percent renewable energy for its operations in 2019, so it’s on track to powering its operations with 100 percent renewable energy. The social network is also committing to reach net zero emissions across its value chain by 2030.
Facebook’s climate change information center has launched in France, Germany, the UK and the US. It will roll out to other countries “soon.”
