Digital sustainability

Digital sustainability

András Ács Pedersen and Jesper Balslev
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Table of Contents

Digital sustainability

  • 0. Introduction
    • Chapter overview
  • Part one: Why digital sustainability?
  • 1. Setting the stage: Fundamental concepts of sustainability and digital development
    • Why is sustainability urgently important right now?
    • Fundamental sustainability concepts
    • Environmental aspects of sustainability: Energy and materials
    • Organizations shape our sustainable future
    • Societal - and individual - aspects of sustainability
    • A more sustainable digital future
    • Bringing it together: Key insights from this chapter
  • 2. Critical thinking and systems theory
    • In this chapter
    • Systems theory
    • System interactions: Video streaming as an example
    • What exactly is a system?
    • Emergent systems
    • Designed systems
    • Digital twins
    • Systems thinking and critical thinking
    • Ask questions and think critically
    • Digital systems vs. ecosystems: Differences, similarities and synergies
    • E-commerce as an example of a system model
    • Network theory can complement systems theory
    • Systems were traditionally compared to machines
    • Bringing it together: Key insights from this chapter
  • 3. The impact of information technology on environment and society
    • How Earth’s orbit became polluted so fast
    • The physical side of information technology
    • Hardware: A sustainable lifecycle?
    • Network and cloud: Challenges and opportunities
    • Software: Key sustainability aspects
    • How can we make information technology more sustainable?
    • Bringing it together: Key insights from this chapter
  • Part two: How to work with digital sustainability?
  • 4. Digital design with sustainability
    • Design that does good – in the long term
    • Approaches for sustainable design
    • User experience (UX) design
    • User interfaces and interaction design 
    • Nudging: Guiding sustainable user behavior
    • Bringing it together: Key insights from this chapter
  • 5. Sustainability as a guiding principle in software development
    • Software development life cycle (SDLC)
    • Energy efficiency of software
    • Ecolabeling of software
    • Sustainable system development
    • Bringing it together: Key insights from this chapter
  • 6. (Not quite) sustainable hardware and IT operations
    • (Not quite) sustainable electronics products
    • Building less unsustainable computers
    • Fairphone, a more fair smartphone
    • On the road to sustainable information technology
    • Thought experiment - real, sustainable computers
    • Lo-fi computing, low carbon computing, collapse informatics
    • More sustainable IT operations
    • 9 recommendations for companies’ green IT transition
    • SustainableIT: standards for environmental, social and corporate sustainability
    • Bringing it together: Key insights from this chapter
  • 7. Wellness, well-being and digitalization
    • What is the problem with digitalization?
    • The flip side of digitalization: Examples of unhappiness in a technological world
    • Other policy focal points for social sustainability
    • CSRD: Requirements for documentation of sustainability efforts
    • Sustainability in practice
    • Digital well-being
    • AI and well-being: Companions, content and care
    • The potential for innovative, socially sustainable IT
    • Socially sustainable UX in practice
    • Actions from nongovernmental organizations (NGOs)
    • Bringing it together: Key insights from this chapter
  • Part three: Sustainability in digitalized organisations
  • 8. Digital degrowth
    • Eroom’s law
    • Low carbon and sustainable computing
    • Computing within Limits
    • Permacomputing
    • A solar-powered website
    • Convivial computing
    • Junkyard computing
    • Open source and digital sovereignty
    • Degrowth and the AI boom
    • Bringing it together: Key insights from this chapter
  • 9. Governing sustainability in digital projects
    • Why governance matters in digital sustainability
    • From profits to purpose
    • By IT and of IT
    • The power of storytelling
    • Sustainable digital entrepreneurship
    • Sustainability by IT: Cases from the European twin transition
    • Leadership in sustainable digital projects
    • Barriers and pitfalls
    • Future prospects for the digital and green transition
    • Bringing it together: Key insights from this chapter
  • 10. Closing thoughts: Towards a greener, healthier and brighter digital future
  • Appendix: Best practices for sustainable IT and digitalization
    • A. Overarching design principles for sustainable digital solutions
    • B. Sustainability principles for the use of hardware
    • C. Sustainability principles for network and cloud
    • D. Sustainability principles for software
  • Bibliography
  • Thank you!
Digital sustainability/Overview

Digital sustainability

Course overview

Uncover how digital development contributes to sustainability. Gain insight into IT’s environmental, social, and economic impact, and make more informed, responsible choices.

17 chapters
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The Book

Digital sustainability17 chapters

Begin ›
  1. 0. Introduction

  2. Part one: Why digital sustainability?

  3. 1. Setting the stage: Fundamental concepts of sustainability and digital development

  4. 2. Critical thinking and systems theory

  5. 3. The impact of information technology on environment and society

  6. Part two: How to work with digital sustainability?

  7. 4. Digital design with sustainability

  8. 5. Sustainability as a guiding principle in software development

  9. 6. (Not quite) sustainable hardware and IT operations

  10. 7. Wellness, well-being and digitalization

  11. Part three: Sustainability in digitalized organisations

  12. 8. Digital degrowth

  13. 9. Governing sustainability in digital projects

  14. 10. Closing thoughts: Towards a greener, healthier and brighter digital future

  15. Appendix: Best practices for sustainable IT and digitalization

  16. Bibliography

  17. Thank you!