Cassandra Garber joins General Motors as Chief Sustainability Officer

Former Dell CSO Cassandra Garber has announced that she will start a new role as General Motors’ Chief Sustainability Officer next week.

Garber stepped down from her role at Dell Technologies just a few days ago after 10 months as CSO and four years leading sustainability at the firm.

Now, she is taking the helm of General Motors’ sustainability strategy, a few months after former CSO Kristen Siemen retired. Siemen had been substituted by Kathi Walker as interim CSO since November, while the company searched for a permanent replacement.

“If there’s one thing I’ve learned during my career, it’s that sustainable business is smart business. Reducing risk, seizing innovation and growth opportunity WHILE delivering real and meaningful impact is where it’s at. It’s hard, but when done, and done well, it’s transformative for both business and our world,” Garber said in a post announcing her new position.

“Now I get the chance to help General Motors accelerate a zero-emissions future and drive circular-economy solutions that reduce costs and material waste. GM is helping advance the EV transition, adoption of renewable energy and much more.”

GM reduces operational emissions, but Scope 3 stagnates

In the last few years under Siemen’s leadership, General Motors set a science-based target to reduce absolute Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions by 72% and Scope 3 emissions from the use of its light duty vehicles by 51% per vehicle kilometre by 2035 – both from a 2018 base year. 

Scope 1 and 2 emissions have been reduced by 37% so far, with the company switching to 100% renewable energy for its US power needs – and 39% globally.

But Scope 3 emissions have been rising or stagnating over the last few years, which GM has blamed on customer demand for traditional internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles, combined with low demand for electric vehicles.

In its 2023 sustainability report, the carmaker noted that “slower reduction in ICE volumes, based on customer demand, impacts emissions intensity progress”. “In the interim, as we work to transition to EVs, deploying plug-in hybrid technology in strategic segments will deliver some of the emissions reduction benefits of EVs as the communities where we sell our vehicles continue to build out charging infrastructure,” the company added.