The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author and should not be attributed to the European Payments Council.

We continue our series of interviews focusing on sustainability in the payments industry with the contribution of Valerie Nowak, the Chief Product and Innovation Officer at Mastercard Europe. In this interview, we invite you to learn more about Mastercard’s vision, challenges and actions concerning more sustainable choices in the payment area.

In your opinion, what are the most effective ways to make payments more sustainable?

It is the responsibility of every industry, company and individual to take steps to drive positive environmental action. Humanity’s greatest opportunity today lies in its ability to leverage data and technology to create a digital economy and realise the true potential of sustainable and inclusive growth. Thoughtful collaboration and innovation are key. 

We believe payments can have a positive impact on climate action because of the acceleration of digitisation and the potential to influence sustainable consumption. 

Could you tell us more about how your company is contributing to more sustainable payments?

At Mastercard, environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) matters are fundamental to our business strategy, and we leverage our employees, technology, resources, partnerships and expertise to drive positive, lasting impact.

Our ESG strategy is expressed through three pillars – People, Prosperity, Planet – and all the work we do is grounded in strong governance principles. Our commitment to environmental and social responsibility – and our core value of operating ethically, responsibly and with decency – is directly connected to our continuing success as a business.

Our environmental work centres on reducing emissions and resource use in our own operations and across our full value chain, and offering innovative solutions that help our customers, partners and consumers do the same. 

We have a goal to achieve net zero Green House Gas (GHG) emissions across our Scope 1¹, 2 and 3 emissions by 2040, in alignment with Science Based Targets Initiative² (SBTi) recommendations. 

Mastercard also has a unique position within the ecosystem where we connect with millions of merchants and thousands of partners that in turn connect us to billions of cardholders. Leveraging this network allows us to have a bigger impact.

For instance, to help accelerate the transformation to low-carbon, regenerative systems and practices, we are designing and developing differentiated products and solutions that help our customers, partners and consumers make environmentally conscious choices. For example, our Carbon Calculator allows consumers to view the estimated carbon footprint of their purchases.

Through our Sustainability Innovation Lab – our global research and development centre for climate-conscious digital products and solutions – we co-create solutions with our partners and develop tailor-made solutions with sustainability at their core.

We continue to develop the Priceless Planet Coalition, leveraging Mastercard's network effect to strive towards the common goal of restoring 100 million trees by 2025. We now have 18 projects worldwide and over 100 partners across many industries joining our coalition.

I will also mention our industry-leading Sustainable Cards Materials certification and the fact that we have mandated our partners to issue physical cards made from sustainable material by 2028.

What are the challenges of adopting and creating sustainable payments?

One challenge is that different markets, partners and consumers are at different stages of the sustainability journey. From a business perspective, we work to help market players take a long-term view on the bottom line of various sustainability initiatives, demonstrating the value of being recognised as a sustainable brand that will drive preference by and engagement with consumers. 

To build initiatives that are best-in-class, we work hard to take a science- and evidence-based approach, whether through the robust testing of sustainable materials or through partnering with leaders and experts in their field, such as Conservation International and Doconomy. We believe this will alleviate those concerns and enable companies to start that journey.

If all players in the ecosystem embrace their role as positive enablers of climate action, together we can drive a more inclusive and sustainable world for everyone, everywhere.

Finally, a broader question: how do sustainable payments impact the future of our planet?

Climate action is more urgent than ever, and sustainability is increasingly at the top of consumers' minds. We believe the Mastercard network can be a powerful means to drive action. Tackling this global crisis is going to involve all of us from governments to communities, companies and consumers.

The bottom line is that creating real impact requires collective action across the public and private sectors, and society generally. No single actor can do this alone, but by harnessing the network effect, we can expand the reach of our actions and multiply our positive impact.

^{1 _{Scope 1 emissions— GHG emissions that a company makes directly — for example while running its boilers and vehicles.
Scope 2 emissions — these are “indirect” emissions created by the production of the energy that an organisation buys. 
Scope 3 emissions —also indirect emissions – meaning those not produced by the company itself – but they differ from Scope 2 as they cover those produced by customers using the company’s products or those produced by suppliers making products that the company uses. For example, from buying products from its suppliers, and from its products when customers use them.}
2 _{Science Based Targets provide a clearly-defined pathway for companies and financial institutions to reduce GHG emissions, helping prevent the worst impacts of climate change and future-proof business growth.}}