Drive the Change: Renault as a pioneer in the push for sustainability

Even before entering Formula E with its e.Dams team, Renault had already established its credentials as a champion of sustainability. Over the past twenty years, the manufacturer has been investing in the future of the automotive industry.

‘Drive the Change’ is more than just a slogan for Renault – it is a statement of intent. The company not only markets its products according to the principle but also implements it. Since 2010, the ‘Drive the Change’ policy has sought to reduce of CO² emissions. A project that has met with success: between 2010 and 2014, Renault managed to reduce its carbon footprint by 3.3 percent year on year.

The major focus is on electric mobility. The carmaker is currently investing no less than 60 percent of its annual development budget in strategies to reduce fuel consumption and the emission of greenhouse gases.

With models such as the Twizy, Zoe and Kangoo Z.E., Renault has emerged as a pioneer of electric mobility in Europe. “The automobile’s success in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries has come hand in hand with negative impacts including traffic jams, noise, and air pollution,” explains Claire Martin, Vice-President Corporate Social Responsibility and Managing Director of the Renault Foundation. “Our responsibility is to reduce or even eliminate those effects. For the automobile to remain a source of progress for everyone, we have made sustainable mobility a cornerstone of our approach.”

The development of new combustion engines that consume up to 25 percent less fuel and are responsible for correspondingly lower CO² emissions constitutes an important project at Renault. Likewise the concept of ‘circular economy’ which provides for the optimal use of materials for products throughout their entire lifecycle. Thus cars manufactured by Renault in Europe consist of 30 percent recycled materials and can themselves be 95 percent recycled.

An investment in the future which is bearing fruit in Formula E. After their home fixture in the ePrix which took place in the streets of Paris, Renault e.Dams occupy the number one spot in the team standings. Their driver line-up of Sebastian Buemi and Nico Prost is also enjoying considerable success in the drivers’ championship. Prost  is in sixth position, while Buemi in second place is hot on the heals of ABT Schaeffler Audi Sport driver Luca Di Grassi, who currently leads the competition.