FreightWaves hosted its second annual Net-Zero Carbon Summit, sponsored by Convoy, on Friday. The summit included a variety of industry experts discussing the role of the logistics industry in a more sustainable future and strategies to decarbonize the transportation sector.
“When we did the first one last year, it was really the start of our journey on understanding what our role is in sustainability,” said Danney Gomez, managing director of financial and emerging markets at FreightWaves. “It’s always good to stop and bring people together to talk about what’s happening in regards to reducing emissions in transportation.”
Speakers included Dan Lewis, co-founder and CEO of Convoy; Mark Yaeger, CEO of Redwood Logistics; and Josh Raglin, CSO of Norfolk Southern Corp.
“We are creating this community of collaborators — some that are competitors and some in adjacent industries,” Gomez said. “But we are all trying to lock arms together to come and solve this global problem and create sustainable industries that can ensure that our kids and grandchildren have a world to live in that we want them to be in.”
Convoy’s Dan Lewis highlighted this theme of collaboration when speaking about Convoy’s new program, Convoy for Brokers. Convoy for Brokers allows other freight brokers and 3PLs to put their loads into the Convoy network, providing more loads and convenience to drivers in the network.
When asked why Convoy would open up their network to other Brokers and 3PLs, Dan said “We talk about it from the lens of the carriers. These truck drivers are simply trying to keep their trucks full and that’s our priority. Not only does this help brokers secure efficient capacity, many times it also helps them cover loads at a cheaper cost, while also having the potential to reduce wasted emissions.”
Another key speaker was Eszter Tóth-Weedon, director of the Sustainable Freight Buyers Alliance, led by Smart Freight Center, a leader in setting the standard for how those in the logistics industry are measuring, collecting and sharing data — a large part of the task ahead regarding sustainability efforts.
Topics at the event included how to build sustainable strategies within an organization, “green freight” efforts and autonomous vehicles.
Despite the buzz surrounding the future of green energy and tech in the industry, Gomez encourages companies to not always look too far ahead and continue to have collaborative conversations around what’s happening right now.
“In this journey it is important to be doing things and learning as quickly as we can to refine. New technologies will come but don’t look so far out in the future that you miss the things that are already within your reach,” Gomez said. “These events are great opportunities because it brings us together and introduces us to new people to reach out to and have more collaborative conversations.”
To watch the event on demand, go to tv.freightwaves.com.