Designing the Future: How Engineering Can Deliver Good Net Zero

We face a defining moment for engineering. The mid-century climate target requires immediate and coordinated action. Global emissions must decline steeply to keep warming below 1.5 °C. Achieving net zero through weak offsets or delayed plans will fail. The path known as good net zero focuses on measurable emission cuts grounded in science and verifiable engineering outcomes. 

What Good Net Zero Requires 

Good net zero requires most emissions reductions to come from direct actions such as redesigning products, rethinking processes, and decarbonizing supply chains. According to the International Energy Agency’s Net Zero by 2050 roadmap, about 95% of global CO₂ reductions through 2050 come from direct mitigation measures such as efficiency improvements, electrification, renewables, and carbon capture, while offsets and carbon removals account for a small residual share. Offsets have a limited role and cannot replace the engineering work required to change how we produce energy, materials, and goods. 

Good net zero depends on full life-cycle thinking. Each design must consider embodied carbon, operational emissions, maintenance, and end-of-life recovery. Standards such as ISO 14040 for life-cycle assessment and the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) provide methods for credible measurement. Transparency, traceable data, and clear accountability are essential to ensure progress is real and verifiable. 

Engineering Must Drive the Change

Engineers translate ambition into outcome. Engineering choices determine whether a system emits or sustains. To deliver, we must embed sustainable metrics into every stage of design, development, operations and maintenance.  

Heidelberg Materials’ carbon-capture project in Norway demonstrates progress in this space, showing that large-scale engineering can support climate goals, and it is time that we link engineering with accountability. Engineering teams, energy leaders, and sustainability functions must work in unison so that strategy turns into execution and goals become measurable results. 

Leadership Must Shift Focus

Leadership must evolve from checking boxes to enabling transformation. Many organizations devote heavy investment to reporting frameworks. That investment should shift toward innovation, experimentation, and engineering solutions. Reports should mirror results rather than dictate them. 

Leaders must think regionally and systemically. Each region has a role to play, Hyderabad, Chennai, Houston, London. Decarbonization must expand through resilient ecosystems of suppliers, communities, and infrastructure. 

Leaders must back pilots, empower teams, and finance high-impact R&D. They must enforce metrics that matter: emissions avoided, resource circularity, and carbon removal permanence. 

Engineering Progress in Action

The transformation of cities will define how effectively we reach global climate goals. A compelling example is Masdar City in the United Arab Emirates. As outlined in the World Future Energy Summit report From Vision to Reality: Masdar City’s Journey to Net Zero, Masdar City is designed to become the world’s first net zero city by 2040. It brings together renewable power generation, electric mobility, efficient water systems, and circular construction materials to build a city that operates within planetary boundaries. The initiative demonstrates what is possible when engineering, design, and policy align around measurable outcomes. Through passive design, district cooling, and rooftop solar networks, Masdar City shows how innovation can turn sustainability from aspiration into infrastructure. 

In industrial services, engineering and construction firms have begun offering net zero as a service, integrating design, operation, monitoring, and emissions disclosure throughout a project’s life cycle. This shifts sustainability from obligation to core value. 

In material science, researchers at an Indian Institute of Technology replaced much of traditional cement with industrial waste, cutting carbon by up to 80 %. This shows that deep reductions are achievable. 

A Clear Path Forward  

Achieving good net zero calls for a clear and practical approach that transforms ambition into measurable results. Engineers can drive this shift by embedding climate accountability into every stage of design, construction, and operation. 

1. Align goals with the latest IPCC science and national decarbonization strategies to maintain integrity and consistency. 
   
2. Assess the entire value chain, from sourcing materials to end of life, to uncover the highest impact opportunities. 
3. Prioritize engineering innovation through material substitution, circular product design, process electrification, renewable integration, and carbon capture. 
4. Expand pilot projects into large-scale operations supported by accurate data and verified performance. 
5. Apply transparent measurement systems that record emissions avoided, materials reused, and the permanence of carbon removal. 
6. Share findings and collaboration outcomes across sectors to accelerate learning and build resilience. 

The steps ahead are clear and within reach. Engineering today is about designing a sustainable future under real climate constraints. Good net zero requires discipline, ambition, collaboration, and honesty. It values direct action and precise design. 

When we commit to measurable outcomes and science-based methods, we move from promise to performance. The success of this century depends on engineering’s ability to deliver. We must build with clarity, keeping in mind the world that will inherit what we create.

Cyient is already advancing this journey through responsible engineering and measurable sustainability action. Learn more about our commitment here.

About the Author

Katie Cook,
President, Corporate Functions,
North America

As President of Corporate Functions, North America, Katie Cook champions sustainability as a core driver of business transformation. With more than 30 years of leadership in technology and engineering services, she has advanced Cyient’s growth by embedding sustainable practices into operations, innovation, and customer-focused strategies. Based in Meridian, Idaho, Katie blends technical expertise with collaborative leadership to deliver scalable solutions that accelerate digital transformation while ensuring long-term environmental, social, and business impact.