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Do self-identified tree huggers hesitate before replying-all to an email? According to an infographic published by Kualo (an internet hosting service powered by renewables), those concerned about the environmental impact of the internet should take steps like opting to use a smartphone over a laptop for quick searches, unsubscribing from email blasts, and limiting use of the reply-all feature on email. These energy-reducing internet habits seem far from mainstream—most people tend to talk about their internet use as relatively carbon-neutral, an ethical non-factor. Until I read Ingrid Burrington’s The Environmental Toll of a Netflix Binge, I too thought of my use of digital technology in relatively unproblematic terms.
Why is the public generally oblivious or apathetic to the environmental impact of digital technologies? One could speculate that our conception of technology as immaterial and ephemeral masks technology’s role in material processes like climate change. We cannot see the fiberoptic cables or the massive data centers that make the global internet possible, and so therefore they fail to capture our attention.
While raising consumer consciousness is certainly one part of the solution, we should be wary of narratives that foist the burden of sustainability on consumers and individuals rather than powerful institutions. Sure—we can stop replying all to emails just like we started bringing reusable bags to the grocery store, but we should be clear that the responsibility to build sustainable digital infrastructure lies with corporations and governments. Hugely profitable companies like Faceboook, Google, HBO, and Amazon need to continue the push for a transition to renewables. Even if such companies are only in it for the PR, it’s a net good.
Posted from Digital Studies by Hannah L.