The price of digitization
Browse the web, use an app, stream a movie, video chat. All of this seems self-evident to many of us - but increasing connectivity has drastic consequences for the environment.
With the Covid-19 pandemic, working from home has become more important in many companies. The volume of traffic has in some cases been significantly reduced, and offices are not being used, which saves on heating and electricity. But is working from home and the associated massive use of the Internet really beneficial for the environment? In order to answer that, you need to know what ecological impact digital technology has – and how to reduce it. Unfortunately, however, such estimates are extremely complicated, especially when you want to examine such a complex and networked system.
The Internet has been open to the public for around 30 years. It is now an often indispensable tool for around 4.6 billion users. Success has led to rapid advancement of the World Wide Web. E-mails, instant messengers, search engines, social networks, cloud storage, streaming services: more and more areas of everyday life are moving online.
The structure of the Internet has also changed over time, growing and becoming more complex to meet increased demand. However, the associated technology consumes significant amounts of energy and resources - a fact that many users often forget.
We live in a time when the first effects of climate change can be felt…
