The Carbon Footprint of Digital Content: Measuring and Mitigating Climate Impacts

Abstract

Digital content—including websites, videos, and podcasts—has become a ubiquitous and fundamental part of our modern lives. But this new and accelerating wave of digitization is also increasing the energy demands on an already overextended planet. The bits and bytes are nothing more than energy, and energy has a carbon cost. Corporations, academics, nonprofits, and individuals are all content creators, and we need balance user-centric content with planetary impacts. This study presents easy-to-use metrics to assess and mitigate the carbon footprint of our digital content. Attendees will be able to: 1. Understand the carbon impact of digital content. 2. Calculate the carbon footprint of our organizations’ content. 3. Implement techniques for mitigating climate impacts.

Presenters

Alisa Bonsignore
Founder, Strategist & Author, Clarifying Complex Ideas, LLC, Arizona, United States

Details

Presentation Type

Innovation Showcase

Theme

Human Impacts and Responsibility

KEYWORDS

Digital Content, Carbon Footprint, Sustainable Content, UX, AI, Metrics