Medical device company Medtronic announced the appointment of Raman Venkatesh as its first Chief Sustainability Officer, with responsibilty for leading the development and execution of the company’s environmental sustainability strategy.

Venkatesh joins Medtronic from Danish sustainability technology company Aquaporin, where he served as Executive Vice President, responsible for global market solutions, including commercial activities. He has also been serving for Tau Ventures, advising the AI-focused VC fund and its portfolio companies in healthcare, energy and mobility. He has also held senior positions including EVP and COO of SAE International, and as CEO of Strategic Business Unit for Eureka Forbes.

Medtronic’s environmental goals include ambitions to achieve operational carbon neutrality by 2030, and net zero emissions by 2045, including Scopes 1, 2, and 3 emissions, as well as 2025 targets to source 50% of energy from renewable and alternative sources, reduce water usage intensity by 15%, and reduce waste intensity by 15%. Last year, the company committed to set near-term science-based emissions reduction targets and long-term net zero targets for validation by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), to be submitted in 2025. The company also set several new goals around circularity and packaging reduction in 2023.

In a LinkedIn post announcing the appointment, Ken Washington, Medtronic SVP and Chief Technology and Innovation Officer said:

“I am excited to see Raman and his team drive Medtronic forward on our sustainability journey. I am confident that together we will shape and unlock new innovative solutions that serve our patients and our planet.”