Galaxy for the Planet is the sustainability platform for Samsung’s Mobile eXperience(MX) business, guiding its long-term approach to advancing environmental sustainability. Since its launch, the initiative has driven steady progress across multiple focus areas, evolving alongside advances in technology, materials and operational capabilities.

“The progress we have made through Galaxy for the Planet reflects years of consistent effort across our teams and partners,” said TM Roh, CEO, President and Head of the Device eXperience(DX) Division at Samsung Electronics. “Sustainability is central to how we operate and innovate. It informs how we design products, manage resources and create value beyond our devices. As we work toward our 2030 goals, we are expanding our commitments beyond products and operations to address broader environmental impact as we work toward our 2030 goals.”

Progress on Galaxy for the Planet

Samsung has achieved all four of its 2025 sustainability goals for the Galaxy for the Planet initiative, which was designed to reduce the environmental impact of the company’s mobile products and operations.

A core focus has been expanding the use of recycled and responsibly sourced materials across Galaxy products.^[1] Today, Samsung has applied 10 types of recycled materials^[2] in both exterior and interior components, supported by ongoing research, testing and verification.

One area of progress is enhancing circularity through innovation in materials. Samsung has incorporated recycled plastics recovered from ocean-bound, discarded fishing nets, and continues its efforts in closed-loop systems such as its Circular Battery Supply Chain, which enables the recovery and reuse of materials from previously used Galaxy device batteries.

Samsung also eliminated single-use plastics from its mobile packaging, transitioning to paper-based and recycled alternatives.^[3] At the same time, continued research and development in low standby power technology has reduced standby power consumption in Galaxy mobile phone chargers to near-zero levels, an innovation now applied across multiple charger wattages.^[4]

Across manufacturing operations, Samsung has also advanced landfill waste reduction by implementing Zero Waste to Landfill (ZWTL) practices globally. All ten qualifying mobile manufacturing sites^[5] have achieved the Platinum designation for ZWTL under the UL Solutions standard, reflecting landfill diversion rates of 100 percent. Such waste management practices are adapted to regional regulations and infrastructure, as well.

These achievements reflect Samsung’s progress under Galaxy for the Planet and provide momentum to expand the initiative further. With its initial targets met on schedule, Samsung is expanding its environmental commitments with new goals through 2030.

Deepening Our Commitments to the Environment

For its next phase, Galaxy for the Planet will expand beyond product-level initiatives to address the broader environmental and ecological impact of Samsung’s global operations. The new 2030 goals will focus on three key areas: circularity, water stewardship and biodiversity.

• Advancing Circularity

Samsung will continue to advance circularity across its mobile products, with the aim of incorporating at least one recycled material in every module of every mobile product. This underscores the company’s commitment to more responsible and efficient materials sourcing across the Galaxy ecosystem.^[6]

• Strengthening Water Stewardship

Samsung is deepening its approach to water stewardship across its mobile operations,^[7] with the goal of returning 110 percent of the water consumed. This includes pursuing the highest level of Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS) certification for responsible water management practices.^[8]

• Conserving Ecosystems

Understanding that its operations can have an impact on surrounding ecosystems, Samsung has set a goal to conserve ecosystems equivalent to the footprint of its global mobile operations^[9].  This goal focuses on protecting and restoring natural environments in ways that strengthen biodiversity and ecological resilience around Samsung’s global footprint.

As Samsung continues its sustainability journey, Galaxy for the Planet reflects Samsung’s belief that environmental responsibility is integral to how the company innovates, operates and creates long-term value, reinforcing its commitment to sustainability as a core part of its business.

The video capturing the journey of Galaxy for the Planet is available at the following link.

For more information about Galaxy for the Planet, visit here. Additional details on Samsung’s sustainability metrics, verification processes and progress are available in the Samsung Electronics Sustainability website

For more information about the Galaxy S26 series, please visit: Samsung.com

[1]All recycled materials used in Galaxy products have undergone third-party verification figure based on ISO 14021. These include pre- and post- consumer recycled materials

[2]Includes plastics, glass, aluminum, cobalt, lithium, steel, copper, gold, rare earth elements and tantalum. Recycled material use varies by product. For more information, visit: https://www.samsung.com/global/sustainability

[3]In select markets, limited use of plastic wrapping or sealing labels remains due to local conditions. Some legacy packaging materials produced prior to the transition may still be in distribution. For more information, visit: https://www.samsung.com/global/sustainability

[4]Less than 0.005W standby power technology is based on newly released 15W, 25W and 45W Galaxy mobile phone chargers. Figures and product information are based on internal test and findings

[5]Brazil (SEDA-P(C), SEDA-P(M)), Egypt (SEEG-P), India (SIEL-P(N)), Indonesia (SEIN-P), Korea (Suwon, Gumi), Türkiye (SETK-P), and Vietnam (SEV, SEVT)

[6]“Module” refers to key functional components within a mobile product (such as the battery, display, camera or structural components). The goal applies to Samsung Galaxy phones, tablets, PCs and watches, excluding certain accessories and new or emerging form factors.

[7] Brazil (SEDA-C, SEDA-M), Egypt (SEEG), India (SIEL-N), Indonesia (SEIN), Korea (Suwon, Gumi), Türkiye (SETK), Vietnam (SEV, SEVT)

[8]‘Highest level’ is defined as achieving the top certification level(‘Platinum’) of the Alliance for Water Stewardship (AWS).

[9] Brazil (SEDA-P(C), SEDA-P(M)), Egypt (SEEG-P), India (SIEL-P(N)), Indonesia (SEIN-P), Korea (Suwon, Gumi), Türkiye (SETK-P), and Vietnam (SEV, SEVT)

Building on these efforts Samsung is now supporting coral reef restoration through technological innovation. Samsung Newsroom U.K. highlights how this initiative is part of the company’s broader commitment to the world’s oceans.

Supporting Marine Ecosystems Through Global Collaboration

Introduced at Galaxy Unpacked in January 2025, Coral in Focus is an initiative launched last year that supports local communities, including Fiji, Indonesia and the United States, to restore coastal ecosystems.

Samsung has partnered with Seatrees, a nonprofit organisation dedicated to restoring marine ecosystems, to explore, new, innovative solutions for coral reef restoration. The company has introduced Ocean Mode¹ on the Galaxy S24 Ultra, an exclusive camera feature that enables vivid image capture even underwater. These images provide accurate visual data for marine researchers who create 3D photogrammetry models to continuously monitor and analyse coral reefs. Local partner organisations then use these findings to guide their on-site coral restoration efforts.

Ocean Mode: How Galaxy Camera Innovation Is Helping Marine Researchers

Partners and local field teams use Ocean Mode to reduce the excessive blue tones common in underwater photography, allowing for a more accurate representation of coral colours. The feature also helps minimise motion blur through optimised shutter speed and multi-frame image processing. Additionally, the interval shooting function enables thousands of high-resolution coral images to be captured in a single session — improving both efficiency and image clarity.

With these coral restoration initiatives, photos taken with Ocean Mode have been used to produce 17 3D models of coral reefs to analyse the health and growth of reefs. In total, 11,046 coral fragments were planted to restore 10,705 square meters of coral reef habitat — roughly the size of 25 basketball courts.

Since unveiling its “Galaxy for the Planet” environmental vision in 2021, through recycling plastic from discarded fishing nets into its smartphones to providing cutting-edge camera technology, Samsung has continually increased its efforts to support marine researchers. Read more on the vision here.

¹ Ocean Mode was exclusively developed for this project and is only available to participating partners.

“We believe that everyone has a role to play in providing innovative solutions that protect the planet for generations to come. Samsung understands our efforts need to match our scale, our influence and the magnitude of the entire Galaxy ecosystem around the world,” said TM Roh, President and Head of Mobile Communications Business, Samsung Electronics. “Galaxy for the Planet is an important step in our journey toward creating a more sustainable world, and we will do so with the openness, transparency and collaboration that drives everything we do.”

Delivering better environmental impact by 2025

Samsung believes the integration of sustainable practices across each stage of production is crucial to minimising environmental impact and building a better future for communities around the world and the next generation of innovators. Samsung will work to achieve its initial goals by 2025, and it will aim to evolve its commitments to address new challenges beyond 2025.  

• Incorporate recycled material in all new mobile products by 2025
• To foster a more circular economy, Samsung is investing in new and innovative eco-conscious materials for its products. With the goal of using recycled material across all new mobile products by 2025, Samsung will use various recycled materials within its products, taking their strength, aesthetics and durability into consideration.

• Eliminate all plastics in mobile packaging by 2025
• Samsung is working towards the full elimination of single use plastics from product packaging by 2025 – reducing, removing and replacing unnecessary resources and materials traditionally used in device packaging and incorporating eco-conscious solutions.

• Reduce standby power consumption[1] of all smartphone chargers[2] to below 0.005W by 2025
• Samsung is prioritising energy-saving technology that increases energy efficiency and reduces power consumption. Samsung has successfully reduced the standby power consumption across all smartphone chargers2 to 0.02W, which is among the most energy efficient in the mobile industry. To build on this progress, Samsung will work to achieve zero power standby consumption of smartphone chargers, targeting reduction to below 0.005W by 2025.

• Achieve zero waste to landfill by 2025
• Samsung is minimising waste generated at its mobile worksites, with the commitment to divert all waste from landfill by 2025. Samsung will also work to reduce e-waste on a global scale by optimising the product lifecycle, improving product design processes, and through initiatives like Galaxy Upcycling, Certified Refurbished, and Trade-In programs.

Continuing Samsung’s spirit of openness

Samsung will continue to discover new ways to address the climate crisis and expand its role in accelerating progress to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. The company is dedicated to reporting progress transparently and working with industry peers and partners throughout its sustainability journey.

“Samsung is committed to creating solutions that enable a better future for our people and our planet. However, we know we cannot do this alone, and the collective fight for the planet is not a competition,” said Stephanie Choi, SVP & Head of Marketing of the Mobile Communications Business at Samsung Electronics. “We strive for collaboration in everything we do, and our strategic partnerships across sectors, industries and markets enable us to scale positive impact around the world – helping us achieve a more sustainable future.”

Samsung’s products are thoughtfully designed to minimise the impact on the environment during their entire lifecycle – including power-efficient semiconductor chips, sustainable packaging, energy-saving technology and the ability to upcycle old devices. To view Samsung’s sustainability progress, check out the 2021 Sustainability Report.

[1] Standby power consumption is the power used after a smartphone is fully charged or disconnected, but the charger remains plugged-in.

[2] Based on 15W, 25W and 45W Galaxy smartphone chargers