Information communication technology (ICT), better known as Information Technology (IT) is all around us. While the internet is the vehicle that transports ICT, ICT is really what we as users interact with. It includes everything from telecommunications, computer processing, data sharing, and all types of virtual information sharing or storage. The expansive networks and channels of communication that ICT has ushered in, have revolutionized how businesses and the world share information with one another.1
What does ICT have to do with climate change?
How will ICT decrease CO2 emissions? Quoting United Nations General Assembly President Srgjan Kerim, “ICT will be instrumental in helping to develop new, climate-friendly technologies that can help economies grow sustainably and reduce emissions in the years ahead.”4 While ICT may have many different ways of addressing the climate change issue, most of the largest impacts can be categorized into one of the following groups:
Infrastructure innovation:
ICT will most likely have the most immediate and significant impact in this sector. Infrastructure in this discussion includes buildings, utilities, the electric or energy efficient technology standards that can save 1.7 Gigatons of CO2 emissions in 2020.5 Additionally, ICT is a vital element in creating the smart grid that can potentially save 2 Gigatons of CO2 in 2020.6 On the larger scale, implementing ICT successfully will allow current and future technologies to integrate and harness climate mitigating technology.7
Material displacement and behavior change:
Material displacement or dematerialization coincides directly with behavior change. As virtualization of the workplace and home become a more prevalent, our reliance on physical activities and objects diminshes.8 Imagine an immaterial economy where everyone worked from home, used cloud computing, and online buying. There would be less need for transportation services, hardware and software manufacturing, and ultimately result in streamlining the goods that are actually produced.9 ICT will effectively reduce the dependence individuals have on transportation services through the use of virtual meetings, telecommuting, and online services as a technological replacement for physically being on-site.10
Once the dematerialization of our world becomes more prevalent, this newfound access to information and convenience will spur behavioral changes. Along these lines, ICT will create unprecedented information availability that is expected to promote both changes in how homeowners use energy and also how commerce, such as purchasing goods, will be done. These new information channels seem abstract, but already the instances of e-commerce, energy tracking applications, and webinars are a few of the examples commonly found in the workplace.11;12
Energy efficiency of ICT industry and future energy solutions:
The ICT industry alone is growing at an alarming rate as both companies and countries alike are ramping up their access, availability, and need for information. However, this growth in ICT also creates a large projected footprint that could damage the credibility of ICT as part of the climate change solution. The good news is that by creating energy efficiency data centers, electronics, and solutions that increase the energy efficiency of ICT, the industry can reduce its footprint.13 While this may seem like a small piece of the pie, smart motor systems alone are projected to save 1Gt of CO2 emissions in 2020. Additionally, smart logistics that improve transportation and information storage can net 1.5 Gt of CO2 emissions.14 Most importantly, once the ICT industry has in essence “cleared” its name, it can be more widely accepted and acknowledged as a real climate change solution across many different industry sectors.
Challenges to ICT
In the case of almost all new technologies, integration and industry uptake are largely dependent on market drivers for implementation. ICT represents a host of energy and climate change solutions that ultimately depend on economics and policy for widespread implementation. Additionally, people and politicians will have to strike a delicate balance between implementing ICT quickly and implementing it efficiently. This draws perfectly from the example of LED vs. CFL lighting and how technology is limited to taking small steps to hedge against new innovation.15 With most technologies there is hesitation to implement a technology that could tomorrow be obsolete; the way to overcome this is to make ICT as important as a computer. While computer efficiency doubles every two years, people still purchase computers everyday knowing tomorrow they will be outdated. The goal is to make ICT attractive enough for consumers to take action now.
However, the industry itself also suffers from public relations disasters. ICT initially became popular for cost effectiveness and convenience, but it now has much greater utility to the world. The problem is that the ICT sector has focused on clearing its own carbon footprint problems instead of offering solutions to other industries for doing the same. Speaking to this misconception, many industries consider ICT as a productivity enhancer, not an energy efficiency tool. In order for ICT to be respected as a true game changer to the climate change solution, the ICT industry must educate politicians and industries across the board on the potential of this technology.
Where ICT stands now looking forward: Already there are a multitude of technologies that are increasing energy efficiency, promoting behavior change, and mitigating climate change. Teleworking programs, smart meters, cloud computing, data storage efficiency increases, and mandated energy efficiency building standards are a few of the most widely accepted ICT solutions.16 However, the need for policy action, standardization, and most importantly industry endorsement will be vital to the widespread integration of this technology in the future. The ICT Industry itself plays an important mediatory role in shifting our way of life to a world of low carbon emissions and sustainability.
