We are striving to lower our carbon footprints, seeking out answers, yet one way is sneaking around right under our noses. Literally. It’s our phones, internets, tablets and all other technological devices that keep us infinitely connected. Millennials will remember the dial up internet and the funny glitchy sound it made, and our outbursts of anger when it wouldn’t tether us to our neopets and MSN messenger. Now, the internet is instantaneous, it’s so woven into our day that we may not notice its omnipresence. The airiness of the Cloud and the magic of syncing across devices, this light virtuality makes the whole situation feel nebulous, so much that we often forget its environmental impact.
The internet relies on extensive physical infrastructure, including data centres and transmission networks for the mass transfer and storage of data, which continues to expand at an accelerating rate. According to BBC, the internet contributes around 3.7% of global greenhouse gas emissions annually, which is similar to the airline industry. 80% of this industry is also still reliant on fossil fuels, we need to lobby, campaign and advocate for this industry to decarbonize and become powered by clean energy.
So, here’s some fun ways we can support this and offset our own internet use, so we can stay connected and continue using it for the greater good!
-Support campaigns that are pressuring big tech to break up with fossil fuels. According to Greenpeace, “to realize the climate commitments they have set, Google, Microsoft, and Amazon must continue to reduce carbon emissions throughout their own operations and publicly distance themselves from customers that are making the climate crisis worse.” Greenpeace is calling on cloud companies to make a public commitment to end problematic contracts with the oil and gas sector—those that explicitly aid in exploration or increased production of fossil fuels. A great success story is Greenpeace’s “Unfriend Coal” Campaign succeeded in getting Facebook to commit to phasing out coal and transitioning to clean energy. In 2018, Facebook committed to powering global operations with 100 percent renewable energy by the end of 2021, which they’re on track to meet - Facebook announced that in 2019 it achieved 86 percent renewable energy for its operations.
-Download and use the search engine Ecosia, which is run entirely on renewable energy and plants trees for our searches. At the time of writing this, over 117 million trees have been planted.
-Stream fewer videos. According to multiple studies, video streaming accounts for over a third of greenhouse gas emissions from internet use. Within this, according to BBC, pornography accounts for a third of video streaming traffic, generating as much carbon dioxide as Belgium in a year. Embrace some sensuality with an erotic book, I’ve only heard positive reviews about this hehe
-Go through your online-based subscriptions and assess what you really need. What is draining time and contributing to a consumer lifestyle? Amazon Prime is a great one to send to the curb with the rest of our recycling and compost waste. I just cancelled my Netflix account and I'm now redirecting these funds towards BIPOC led environmental and social causes.
-This is a fun one that Forage and Sustain taught me. Our old emails take up data space which requires energy causes emissions. This includes unsubscribing from email newsletters we don’t read as well as deleting apps on our phones we don't use, and trashing old photos and documents.
-Remember there’s a wide world outside of the web, let’s jump in and get wet, muddy, earthy, fiery and airy - all that elemental jazzy-ness. When we can detach from tools, we can own them and use them for the greater benefit. When we can’t detach - they own us, and this is the space where we can become manipulated, bought, and conditioned.
