What a great start at the GreenTech Forum Brussels !
At the first conference, speakers Louise Aubet, Cyprien de Barros and Louis Golard reviewed the state of the art in terms of the missing global guidelines and frameworks on how to measure the environmental impact of digital technology. While most impact studies focus on greenhouse gas emissions and electricity consumption, what about studies that include together at least energies, resources and water consumptions, gas emissions, end-of-life treatment, etc.? It's complicated, and the figures are unfortunately lacking and/or well hidden... I gladly join them in their quest for a global framework for how to assess the digital lifecycle as a whole.
And then I thank Simon Uyttendaele, Dr Benita Hube and Vincent Ducas for their « pep talk » : they shared with us their enthusiasm for changing operating habits, what's been done and what still needs to be done in and beyond Europe (#DownUnder), because there's always room for improvement in the digital sector ! Fortunately, handbooks/guidelines such as the Handbook of Sustainable design of digital services (#GR491, English translation available) from the Institut du Numérique Responsable, the Guide d'écoconception des Designers Éthiques or the #RGESN from GreenIT.fr, etc. (non-exhaustive list of course !) exist to help us review the way we operate and to question ourselves on how to tackle the different issues towards a sustainable IT.
And if your partners still seem unconvinced of the importance of changing the course, we can remind them that there are European and governmental obligations to follow, that digital sobriety is also a way of simplifying things, of being more accessible, and clearer, and therefore of being more focused on optimization and lowering costs, etc.
Finally, if you're short of other ideas to convince them, and need more concrete examples of how to apply an eco-design approach... Well, that's just the thing, because with Sophie Schuermans (AnySurfer), Pascal DESHAYES (TerraOps), and myself (Spade), we can give you a few examples. Would you like to join us?
When : Wednesday 19 June
From 9:30am to 10:30am (conference room 2): Eco-design & website: Tools, standards, best practices (including accessibility, data privacy, etc.), actors and testimonials. The conference will be moderated by Rémy Marrone, Journalist in Sustainable IT.
(And while Sophie will be speaking, you could meet Ibrahim Tamditi or a colleague of him from AnySurfer at their exhibitor booth !)
#GTFBrussels #SustainableIT #GreenIT #ITforGreen
