Certified. Validated. Committed: Zones’ Path to Sustainability Leadership

In an era where corporate responsibility extends far beyond profit margins, technology solution providers face a unique challenge: how do we enable digital transformation while minimizing environmental impact? At Zones, we've embedded sustainability into the core of our operations, creating a comprehensive framework for measuring, reporting, and continuously improving our environmental performance.

The Foundation: An Integrated Quality and Sustainability Mindset

Sustainability isn't a department at Zones-it's a mindset that permeates every aspect of our operations. Our approach centers on what we call an "Embedded Quality Mindset," which seamlessly integrates environmental considerations with social responsibility and economic viability. This holistic framework ensures that sustainability isn't an afterthought but rather a fundamental driver of business decisions.

At the intersection of environmental stewardship, social responsibility, and economic growth, we've built a quality governance model that standardizes processes, establishes measurable targets, and drives continual improvement across our global operations. This isn't just about compliance; it's about creating lasting value for our customers, communities, and the planet.

Certifications That Demonstrate Commitment

Words are easy; certifications require proof. Zones maintains multiple internationally recognized certifications across our Technology Solution Centers (TSCs) throughout the United States, demonstrating our commitment to best practices in quality and environmental management:

ISO 9001 validates our quality management systems, ensuring we consistently deliver products and services that meet customer and regulatory requirements. ISO 14001 confirms our commitment to environmental management, showcasing our dedication to reducing environmental impact and continually improving environmental performance. ISO 45001 demonstrates our focus on occupational health and safety, providing a framework for managing workplace safety risks. R2v3 Certification specifically addresses electronics recycling, ensuring best practices in e-waste management and data destruction.

What truly sets us apart is our track record: our surveillance audits for ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 45001, and R2v3 have consistently achieved zero nonconformities-a testament to the maturity of our systems and the dedication of our teams.

Measuring What Matters: Recent Achievements by the Numbers

You can't improve what you don't measure. Zones has implemented comprehensive sustainability reporting systems that track our environmental impact across multiple dimensions. Our 2024 accomplishments demonstrate the scale and impact of our sustainability initiatives:

Environmental Impact Transparency

Our sustainability reporting in 2024 quantified significant environmental benefits:

• 306,840 lbs. of e-waste recycled through our programs
• 457,000 kg CO2e potential emissions avoided from recycled e-waste—equivalent to removing 107 passenger vehicles from the roads for one year, powering 70.44 homes' electricity for one year, or carbon sequestered by 458 acres of U.S. forests in one year
• 60,000+ units remarketed, giving devices extended useful lives
• 840,400 lbs. diverted from landfills, keeping valuable materials in productive use

We break down our avoided emissions impact by commodity (desktops, laptops, servers, hard drives, monitors, wireless devices, and miscellaneous electronics) and by treatment method (recycling versus resale), providing granular transparency into where we're making the most significant difference.

Our Sustainability Journey: Achievements, Commitments, and Beyond

Zones has systematically evolved our environmental management approach over recent years, progressing from basic recycling programs to sophisticated, data-driven sustainability governance.

2025 Achievements

This year marks a transformative moment in Zones' sustainability journey with two landmark announcements:

Science-Based Targets Initiative (SBTi) Validation: In early 2025, Zones' near-term net-zero emission reduction targets were officially validated by SBTi, making us one of the leaders in the IT solutions industry to commit to science-based climate action. This validation confirms that our emission reduction targets align with limiting global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels the most ambitious goal of the Paris Agreement.

United Nations Global Compact: Zones officially joined the United Nations Global Compact in June 2025, becoming a signatory to the world's largest corporate sustainability initiative. This membership demonstrates our commitment to aligning our strategies and operations with universal principles on human rights, labor, environment, and anti-corruption.

Additional 2025 initiatives include:

• Launching an Earth Week event to engage employees in sustainability awareness
• Pursuing ISO 50001 certification for energy management system (EnMS)
• Passing surveillance audits for ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 with zero nonconformities
• Streamlining training programs to enhance sustainability capability across our workforce

This progression reflects our commitment to not just maintaining current performance but continuously raising the bar. Our surveillance audits consistently achieve zero nonconformities a testament to the maturity of our systems and the dedication of our teams.

Our 2030 Vision

Zones has established ambitious, measurable targets that will guide our sustainability efforts through 2030:

• Achieve a 57.3% emissions reduction for Scopes 1 & 2 emissions and 46.2% reduction for Scope 3, aligned with science-based targets and validated by SBTi
• Partner with suppliers to make an impact on reducing supply chain emissions, recognizing that comprehensive climate action requires collaboration throughout our value chain
• Continue pursuing best practices globally through enhanced digital transformation and automation
• Expand sustainability measurement and reporting capabilities to provide even greater transparency to stakeholders

These goals reflect our recognition that sustainability is both a business imperative and a moral responsibility. As technology continues to transform how we work, live, and connect, ensuring that transformation happens sustainably is non-negotiable.

Data-Driven Governance and Risk Mitigation

Effective sustainability management requires robust governance structures. Zones has implemented data-driven governance frameworks that enable proactive risk identification and mitigation. Through daily prioritization meetings, cross-functional collaboration, and systematic root cause analysis, we ensure that sustainability considerations are integrated into operational decision-making.

Our operations excellence managers work proactively to identify opportunities for improvement, while our comprehensive audit program-including approximately 60 internal audits per year alongside external surveillance audits—ensures accountability and continuous verification of our systems' effectiveness.

Technology Enabling Sustainability

As a technology solutions provider, we recognize that digital tools are essential enablers of sustainability. We've invested in digital transformation initiatives, including D365 ERP systems, analytics platforms, and streamlined reporting capabilities that provide real-time visibility into our sustainability performance.

This digital infrastructure allows us to collect global greenhouse gas data, track sustainability metrics across all locations, and provide transparent reporting to stakeholders. The result is an agile sustainability management system that can quickly identify trends, respond to challenges, and scale successful initiatives across our global operations.

Partnering for Impact

Through our client programs, we extend the impact of our sustainability initiatives beyond our own operations. When Fortune 500 companies and other leading organizations partner with Zones for IT asset disposition, refurbishment, and asset lifecycle management, they benefit from our mature processes, comprehensive reporting, and certified practices.

Clients choose Zones not only because of our sustainability focus, but also often because they recognize that responsible environmental stewardship aligns with their own corporate values and objectives.

Conclusion: Accountability Through Transparency

At Zones, we believe that what gets measured gets managed, and what gets reported gets improved. Our comprehensive approach to sustainability measurement and reporting isn't just about compliance or marketing-it's about accountability, continuous improvement, and creating genuine environmental benefit.

From consistently achieving zero nonconformities across multiple ISO certifications to our SBTi-validated emissions targets and membership in the UN Global Compact, we're backing our sustainability commitments with verifiable action and transparent reporting. Our journey from establishing basic environmental programs to achieving science-based climate targets demonstrates what's possible when sustainability becomes embedded in organizational DNA.

As we continue this journey toward our ambitious 2030 goals, we remain committed to transparency, innovation, and partnership. The challenges facing our planet require all of us-businesses, individuals, and communities—to take meaningful action. Through rigorous measurement, transparent reporting, and unwavering commitment to improvement, Zones is doing its part to build a more sustainable future for technology.

To learn more about our sustainability initiatives, visit zones.com and

Explore how partnering with Zones can help your organization achieve its environmental goals while accessing best-in-class IT asset management solutions.