25 Years Enabling Purposeful Digital Transformation

Enabling Purposeful Digital Transformation, Together 

In 2026, the Global Enabling Sustainability Initiative (GeSI) marks 25 years of convening industry leaders, shaping dialogue, and demonstrating how digital technologies can serve as a force for change and progress—economically, socially, and environmentally. 

Our cross-industry membership is global—and so is our ambition. 

GeSI sits at the intersection of digital innovation, sustainability, and policy, translating technological potential into real-world outcomes. Through flagship initiatives such as AI with Purpose, the Digital with Purpose, the European Green Digital Coalition, the UN Solutions Hub, Water Digitalization, Scope 3 and ESG Reporting, the Digital Education for Impact Alliance and many more, we help our members move from vision to execution—deploying pilots, shaping standards, informing policy, and enabling scale. 

In a world defined by accelerating AI, expanding digital infrastructure, climate urgency, and geopolitical complexity, GeSI’s role has never been more relevant. We act as a trusted global bridge—cutting through noise, aligning stakeholders, and grounding digital transformation in evidence, accountability, and impact. 

One legacy to honor 

Still, this anniversary is more than a milestone. It is a moment to reflect on a journey that began before “digital transformation” became a global imperative, before sustainability entered boardroom agendas, and before technology’s systemic impact was fully understood. From its earliest days, GeSI has stood for a simple but powerful conviction: that digital innovation must be aligned with purpose, responsibility, and long-term impact. 

We invite you to travel with us through time—revisiting the key moments that have shaped GeSI’s journey, month by month, as we look back to move forward. This anniversary year is both a celebration of achievements and a moment of reflection: as the planet faces unprecedented challenges, it is clear that we must do more—and do better. Each month, we will share defining milestones and member testimonials that tell the story of GeSI’s evolution, guided by a vision of human- and planet-centric digital innovation. 

We begin this journey by returning to the very start—exploring GeSI’s origins and the key stakeholders who helped shape its foundation. Walk with us through this time-travel celebration as we honour the past, engage the present, and shape the future together. 

CHRIS TUPPEN: First GeSI Chairman 

“Twenty five years ago GeSI brought the global ICT industry and UN stakeholders together to address key sustainability challenges. It pioneered investigations into critical issues such as conflict minerals, working conditions in the supply chain, the climate impacts of the sector and the climate benefits accruing from ICT applications

It established a company performance framework that challenged members of the industry to invest in the development of sustainability solutions that are the icing on the cake of core, generic infrastructure. 

With the emerging challenges and opportunities offered by AI , GeSI is needed today as much as ever.” 

From Foresight to Action 

The origins of GeSI lie back in a period of rapid technological change at the turn of the millennium. As telecommunications and information technologies reshaped economies and societies, a small group of industry leaders recognised that the sector’s influence extended far beyond infrastructure and connectivity. Digital technologies were beginning to transform how people lived, worked, and interacted with the world—and with that transformation came responsibility. 

In 1999 and 2000, these ideas took shape through a series of forward-looking discussions involving global telecom operators, industry associations, and international institutions. A defining moment came in February 2000, when senior representatives from European, North American, and Japanese telecommunications companies met at the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in Paris. Convened with the support of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and industry partners, the meeting explored the creation of a global initiative to understand and amplify the sector’s contribution to sustainable development. 

What emerged was a shared vision: to move beyond regional approaches and create a global, industry-led platform that could demonstrate how digital technologies enable efficiency, innovation, and positive impact across the economy. 

The Launch of a Global Initiative 

That vision became reality on 5 June 2001, when GeSI was officially launched on the World Environment Day in Turin, Italy, one of the two symbolic host cities for the global celebrations that year. Supported by UNEP ETNO, and ITU, and guided by its first Chairman, Chris Tuppen, GeSI began life as a voluntary association of ICT companies united by a shared belief in the sector’s role as an enabler of sustainable development. 

First GeSI logo

At the official launch in Turin, GeSI’s founding vision was embodied by the presence and leadership of key figures representing both industry and international institutions. These included Danilo Riva, then Chairman of the Environment Working Group of the European Telecommunications Network Operators’ Association (ETNO) and representing Telecom Italia; Chris Tuppen, then Head of Sustainable Development and Corporate Accountability at British Telecommunications (BT) and GeSI’s first Chairman; and Jacqueline Aloisi de Larderel, then Director of UNEP’s Division of Technology, Industry and Economics (DTIE).  

From left to right: Danilo Riva, Chairman of the Environment WG of ETNO, ETNO; Chris Tuppen, Chairman, GeSI; Mme Jacqueline Aloisi de Larderel, Director UNEP DTlE, at the GeSl Launch – World Environment Day, Turin, June 5, 2001 

Growing into a Trusted Global Platform 

As digital technologies became more deeply embedded in every sector of the economy, GeSI’s role evolved. What began as a dialogue on environmental responsibility grew into a broader mission: to help organisations translate digital innovation into measurable, scalable impact. 

In 2008, under the leadership of Luis Neves, Deutsche Telekom Vice President Corporate Responsibility and 2nd GeSI Chairman,  GeSI reached a significant milestone by becoming an independent legal entity—an international non-profit association (AISBL) registered in Belgium—establishing its headquarters in Brussels at the heart of European policymaking. This step marked GeSI’s transition from an initiative supported by international institutions into a mature, global organisation with a clear mandate and growing influence. 

LUÍS NEVES: Second GeSI Chairman and Current CEO 

“Becoming an independent non-for-profit global industry association was the beginning of a visionary journey. Building on its foundational principles, we wanted GeSI to be the industry leader at the centre of every major economic, environmental, and societal challenge, a positive force of change, harnessing the potential of digital technologies by aligning industry, policy, and global institutions around shared responsibility and long-term value creation.

What we anticipated then is even more true today: as we stand at the threshold of an AI-enabled era, our mission continues to evolve-not just to champion digital transformation, but to ensure that artificial intelligence and emerging technologies are developed and deployed responsibly, equitably and and sustainably.” 

Over the years, GeSI has brought together some of the world’s leading technology companies, telecom operators, and ecosystem partners. Through research, frameworks, and high-level convenings, GeSI has consistently worked to bridge industry, policy, and global institutions, ensuring that digital transformation supports competitiveness, resilience, and shared value. 

Honouring the Past. Engaging the Present. Shaping the Future. 

Twenty-five years on, our founding conviction remains unchanged: digital innovation must serve people, planet, and prosperity—together. But the challenge before us is greater, the pace faster, and the responsibility shared. 

This anniversary is not only a celebration of what has been achieved. It is a call to lead the next chapter—to scale what works, to do better where we must, and to ensure that the future we are building together is purposeful by design. 

As we revisit our story month by month, we invite you to walk with us—from foresight to action, from ambition to impact, and from 25 years of leadership to the decades ahead. 

The journey continues. And the most important work is still to come.