topic:
Future-Ready: How Digitalization & AI Drive Resilience in a Changing World
In an era of accelerating climate change, economic uncertainty, and regulatory shifts, resilience is no longer optional—it’s the foundation of future success. The key to thriving in this transformation? Digitalization and AI.
In this keynote, Rainer Karcher, Chief Sustainability Officer of SustainableIT.org, will explore how technology empowers businesses and societies to navigate disruptions, enhance operational resilience, and align with Europe’s sustainability and regulatory landscape. From AI-driven energy optimization to data-driven decision-making, digital solutions are unlocking new pathways to future-proof organizations against evolving challenges.
About the speaker
Rainer is the founder and managing director of Heartprint GmbH. As the “Robin Hood” of sustainability, he wants to use his many years of experience in large corporations to help medium-sized companies successfully master the transformation to digitalization and sustainability in a solution-oriented manner and on an equal footing.
He is also Chief Sustainability Officer of SustainableIT.org, a global non-governmental organization with currently more than 100 member companies that has set itself the goal of defining standards for sustainable IT and making them available as open source.
Rainer was Chief Sustainability and Human Rights Officer at Allianz Technology from October 2022 to June 2024. He ensured that sustainability, human rights and digital inclusion were integrated into all IT services and products and helped Allianz to achieve its ambitious goals for a sustainable future.
He has nearly 27 years of experience in the IT industry with various companies, including IBM, TeleCash/FirstData, Arvato Systems/ Bertelsmann and Siemens AG, acquiring expertise in various areas such as support, infrastructure, data centers and service operations.
Rainer developed his passion for sustainability when he started learning how to garden and how to reduce waste – mainly because of his three children.
With an increasing awareness of the climate crisis, the loss of biodiversity and unanswered questions on social issues, it became more and more important for him to contribute to a better world, which led him to change his career path.
Before joining Allianz Technology, Rainer was Global Director IT Sustainability at Siemens AG, where he initiated and implemented the first company-wide IT sustainability strategy and led a team of dedicated IT sustainability experts.
For him, sustainability is not just about environmental protection, but rather about following the UN agenda of sustainable development goals with a comprehensive view of all ESG aspects.
At heart a climate activist, Rainer calls himself a climate activist in a suit, and the name says it all!
