Vodafone at COP31: resilient connectivity for a changing climate

From helping communities prepare for climate shocks to decarbonising African networks and giving unwanted devices a second life, Vodafone is bringing practical examples of climate action to COP31 in Antalya, Türkiye.

As COP31 gets underway in Antalya, Türkiye, attention is turning from climate commitments to delivery.

The two-week conference takes place on the Mediterranean coast, a region where rising temperatures, wildfires, water stress and other climate pressures are increasingly visible. Under the banner “From consensus to concrete action”, COP31 is focusing on practical implementation, with action-agenda priorities including climate-resilient cities, electrification, green industrialisation and zero waste.

For Vodafone, delivery means helping communities adapt to a changing climate while reducing the environmental impact of the networks, technology and supply chains on which connectivity depends.

Connectivity when it matters most

Climate change is placing growing pressure on the infrastructure and services that communities rely on. Floods, storms, wildfires and extreme heat can disrupt electricity, transport and public services - often when the need to communicate is greatest.

Vodafone’s recent Connectivity as a Lifeline: enabling climate resilience in a disrupted world report showed how mobile networks and digital services can support every stage of the resilience cycle, from early warnings and preparation to emergency response and recovery.

Drawing on experience across Europe and Africa, the report illustrates how services were restored after floods and storms, and how digital payments and vouchers supported affected communities. During a crisis, connectivity becomes a lifeline.

How Vodafone is working to minimise its carbon footprint

Adapting to the effects of climate change is only part of the challenge.

Vodafone is also working to minimise the environmental footprint of its operations, value chain, products and services, working alongside the telecoms industry towards net zero by 2040. Vodafone is planning towards net zero emissions from its own operations in Europe by 2028 and in Africa by 2035.

The biggest source of Vodafone’s operational emissions is the fossil-fuel energy used to run our networks. Our approach therefore includes improving energy efficiency and optimising energy use across its infrastructure and estate, including by modernising networks, reducing electricity consumption and improving network configuration. Our Scope 1, 2 and 3 greenhouse gas emissions have fallen 31 per cent since 2020.

This work goes hand in hand with building more resilient networks. Vodafone’s climate transition plan sets out measures to reduce emissions while managing climate-related risks and strengthening resilience. In our networks, this includes newer energy-efficient radio equipment, smart power-saving features and AI-based energy-management tools.

And while cutting emissions will not remove the immediate need for resilience, slowing climate change is fundamental to limiting the risks that networks and the communities they serve will face over time.

Decarbonising Africa’s digital growth

That challenge is particularly acute as demand for digital services grows. In April, Vodacom published Decarbonising Africa’s ICT Sector, examining the practical barriers to cutting the sector’s emissions.

Many African markets face unreliable power supplies, carbon-intensive electricity grids and limited transmission infrastructure. Mobile operators therefore continue to rely on diesel generators to keep essential services running, particularly in rural and off-grid areas.

Vodacom’s work sets out a route forward through electricity-market reform, renewable energy procurement, mini-grids, onsite generation, greater energy efficiency and new financing models.

Its financing analysis also highlights the potential role of independent power producers, power purchase agreements, development finance institutions and blended finance in lowering investment barriers.

Cleaner, more distributed sources of power can reduce emissions, strengthen reliability and make networks less dependent on diesel and weak electricity grids. In this case, sustainability and resilience reinforce one another.

Giving technology a second life in Türkiye

Reducing climate impact also means using resources for longer. Extending the life of devices and recovering materials at the end of their useful life can cut electronic waste, reduce demand for newly mined resources and lower emissions associated with manufacturing and supply chains.

COP31’s emphasis on implementation is reflected in Vodafone Türkiye’s circular-economy programme. Through its “Dünya İçin Lazım”, (“Needed for the Planet”) initiative, Vodafone Türkiye has collected 40 tonnes of electronic waste for recycling.

The programme, delivered with WWF-Türkiye, Habitat Derneği and licensed recycling partner Ouno Green Campus, converts value recovered from electronic waste into nature-protection education. More than 87,000 people have been reached through the educational programme.

The initiative brings together several of COP31’s host-country priorities, particularly zero waste, youth and education. Rather than treating device collection as an isolated environmental activity, it connects circularity with awareness and longer-term changes in behaviour.

From commitments to delivery

The examples Vodafone is bringing to COP31 show how climate resilience, decarbonisation and circularity intersect. Networks must be able to withstand worsening climate pressures, but they must also become cleaner and less resource-intensive.

Progress depends on collaboration across connectivity and energy providers, governments, emergency services, financiers, suppliers, humanitarian organisations and local communities.