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Williams F1 Team Vows Carbon Positive Footprint by 2030

Photo credit: Williams F1 Team
Photo credit: Williams F1 Team


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  • The Williams Formula 1 team is committing to going climate positive by 2030.

  • Williams Racing has created a "Sustainability Strategy" to address environmental challenges facing racing, global sport and the planet.

  • Williams has a strong heritage in transferring Formula One technology to the EV. In fact, Williams Advanced Engineering was the sole supplier of the battery systems for for the Formula E grid from 2014 through 2018.


The Williams F1 team is determined to win at least one race—a race many people is more important than any race the team could win on the racetrack.

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Williams has declared a goal of becoming a climate-positive organization by the year 2035. The Williams team is the first F1 team to align with the United Nations Sports for Climate Action Framework for such a pledge. The pledge is in line with the racing series, as Formula 1 established in 2019 a goal of carbon neutrality by 2030.

The Mercedes F1 team says it has already reached carbon neutral goals as an entire sporting industry continues to focus on clean energy and climate change initiatives.

According to the Williams team, it plans to reach its goals through "a series of robust technological and data driven initiatives, as part of a comprehensive purpose driven sustainability strategy, aiming to address some of the most important environmental and societal challenges facing Formula One, global sport and the planet."

Williams Racing CEO Jost Capito said his team will parlay its role at a pioneer of F1 into a role as leader in environmental awareness and solutions.

“Williams Racing is a pioneer in Formula One and the racing world and has a strong heritage developing Formula One technology and transferring it to the EV and sustainable transport and energy sectors," Capito said in a press statement this week. "We are living in a time when our planet and society is changing faster than ever. Building on the progress the global motorsport industry has made on sustainability in recent years, we have taken time to thoroughly analyse our entire operation and develop a comprehensive purpose driven, Sustainability Strategy to accelerate our sustainable transformation.

"As a team, we wanted to push the envelope and be the pace setter for sustainability in global motorsport and in the wider automotive industry. So today we are making the commitment to be climate positive by 2030 and we will be using our knowledge to nurture and develop advanced technology to meet this goal."

Capito continued by saying that it's important for teams like Williams use its F1 platform as a loud voice in this movement.

"As a huge global sporting platform, Formula One has the power to inspire millions of people across the world and as the pinnacle of so many advanced technologies, Formula One has the ability to create technical solutions to help tackle the challenges we face as a planet," Capito said. "As we progress towards our goal to be climate positive in the years ahead, my hope is that Williams Racing can inspire all those connected with our sport and beyond, using motorsport as a catalyst for significant and long-lasting change.”

Photo credit: Richard Pardon
Photo credit: Richard Pardon

The Williams Racing Sustainability Strategy, as it is being called, covers five bases, according to the team:

Climate Action. Covers the strategy and targets for how the team will reduce carbon emissions for travel and energy consumption at HQ, reduce waste and water usage and over time create its own energy, on its journey to becoming climate positive.

Biodiversity Stewardship. Covers the strategy and targets for how the team protect and preserve the biodiversity on the 60 acres of the HQ campus, including the Letcombe Brook - one of only 240 chalk streams in the world.

Sustainable Innovation. Covers the strategy and targets to foster sustainable and innovative solutions that tackle global challenges in and outside of F1™. This includes Williams Racing undertaking full life cycle management of its racing cars, deploying circular economy strategies within the team and being actively involved in projects such as carbon capture technologies.

• Industry Access for All. Covers the strategy and targets to make motorsport more accessible by creating an environment in which anyone can thrive, and a workforce that reflects our community through academy programmes, scholarships and Esports.

Purpose Driven Leadership. Covers the strategy and targets for Williams Racing to act as pace setters for sustainability within the motorsport industry. Building a strong, transparent and accountable culture in our team, at races, with our partners, suppliers, local community and fans.