The advancement in technology has given humanity an excellent opportunity to live a better life. However, these technologies also came with a cost. These technologies have impacted our environment negatively, mostly by increasing carbon emissions and greenhouse effects.
But now people have realized that we need to change our practices in order to save our planet, and that’s why sustainable technology solutions are becoming the need of the hour. In this article, we will take a look at why sustainable technology solutions are important, their examples, and the future they hold.
Why Sustainable Technology Solutions Are Important?
The world today is prone to too many adverse environmental effects that are causing risks such as ozone depletion, deforestation, destruction of natural habitat, climate change, and the list goes on. These risks are solely induced by humans in the race to invent technologies.
The oil, maritime, fuel, medical, and almost every field leave its waste products that compromise the natural makeup of our ecosystem and compromise the air we breathe in and the water we drink. If proper actions are not taken timely, CO2 emissions can increase to 4807 million metric tons by 2050 in America alone. That’s why we need to focus on the Importance of sustainable technology.
Understanding The Sustainable Technology
Sustainable technology is a very broad term that applies to all fields. In general, this term means the innovation that considers natural resources in technology to boost economic and social development while reducing the environmental effect.
This can be achieved by developing sustainable technology products to ensure the progress of the human race while maintaning the balance of the ecocyctem. The steps required to start any sustainable technology project are as follows.
Substitute: No matter which field you belong to, if you have to incorporate sustainability in your product, the most important element is substituting non-biodegradable materials for biodegradable ones and non-renewable resources for renewable sources of energy.
Efficient: The next step to ensure a sustainable solution is efficiency. Make sure the product is efficient in using energy and resources so that its carbon footprint can be reduced. Also, while developing a sustainable product, make sure its life span is long so that there is no need to replace or dump the product, this will reduce the waste of your product.
Prevent: Sustainable technology must be developed in a way that prevents any type of negative environmental impact such as contamination, or deterioration associated with its production and use.
Keeping these basics in mind let’s further explore the sustainable technology goals.
Sustainable Technology Goals
The goal of sustainable technologies is dual as it accounts for but only the use of sustainable materials and processes, but also uses these technologies to tackle the environmental, social, and governance ESG) problems.
The sustainability of technology is a lifelong goal so organizations consider factors such as sustainable resources to develop the technology and make sure the potential negative effects of the material are reduced throughout the technology’s life span.
Emission and e-waste reduction is one of the biggest goals these days. To achieve this organizations can use physical technologies such as solar panels and ESG reporting and performance software. The use of green technology in ICT has also increased with the introduction of cloud computing, energy-efficient gadgets that are produced from recycled materials.
Another objective that companies take toward ESG can be explained through the example of electrical vehicles that have the ultimate goal of a better environment, society, and governance through decarbonization.
Organizations all over the world are now working toward initiatives for industrial-level sustainability. Moreover, companies like Honeywell have sustainable technology solutions to transform the aerospace industry. sustainable technology solutions KBR is also making efficient solutions to help industries their stability goals by using their carbon capturing and storage technology.
Furthermore, Integrating Artificial intelligence into their technologies can help organizations to better detect the areas where they are producing the most waste. This will help the carbon account to better understand and implement the solutions.
Sustainable Technology Examples
Now the world has understood why it is important to go green, there are many areas that are contributing the sustainable tech. The most common examples of sustainable technologies are as follows.
- LED Light: LED lights use semiconductors. LEDs are not renewable but they are sustainable and better than traditional bulbs. LEDs use 7- 80% less energy than conventional bulbs that’s why they can contribute to suitability. Also, they are low-maintenance and long lifespans which reduces the need for frequent production, replacement, and waste. However, solar lights become a new game, and with more improvement and accessible can replace LEDs one day.
- Electric Vehicles: EVs are one of the most important sustainable energy projects when it comes to the reduction of fossil fuels. However, if they are getting charged by the electric grid they ultimately burden the environment. That’s where the next example of sustainability comes into play.
- Solar Panels: solar energy existed before us and will continue to exist for thousands of years. It is a renewable source of energy that has given us the path to a green future. Using solar panels is a real example of ESG.
They not only reduce the bills but also make the environment healthier by decreasing the carbon footprint of energy usage. Using solar panels to power electrical vehicles for both public and personal transport can reduce many types of environmental pollution.
- Carbon Capture and Storage: CCS can be an excellent contributor toward sustainability by reducing the greenhouse effect. In this process, the carbon gas is captured from the industrial plants where they are produced such as steel or cement. This is then transferred through pipelines to deep storage facilities permanently. These storages can be depleted oil or gas reservoirs or saline aquifers.
- Cloud Computing: The ICT industry has also become a contributor to carbon emissions and e-waste. Therefore, sustainable solutions are also required in this field. One of the steps that has made green computing possible is cloud computing. As we know the data storage of companies can be huge and require enormously large hard drive setups that add to the emissions.
Cloud computing is a virtual way of saving all the data without having a negative effect. Companies such as Microsoft and Google are also taking drastic measures to reduce the emissions they produce and go carbon-free in coming years.
- Energy-Efficient Hardware: E-gadgets such as mobile phones and computers also have an adverse effect on the ecosystem. Therefore, the concept of green computing is gaining popularity. It accounts for making phones, and computers more efficient hardware that can work for a long time, use less energy, and have minimal emissions.
It also comprises the use of recycled and biodegradable materials for manufacturing these products as the production also has its fair share of environmental pollution. Some examples are set by Apple and now Samsung by making their phone more sustainable.
These are a few examples of sustainable solutions. Obviously, they are not completely accessible and still have some challenges but if done right these solutions can change the world.
How Sustainable Technology is Good For the Future of Your Bussiness
With awareness about sustainability, the technologies that advertise a green environment are becoming more popular and hence can be useful for the future of your business. These technologies are really transforming how the business and public structures work and can have a great impact on the reputation of your business.
If your business is ready to make a difference and remain compliant with environmental and social standards, there can be a potential increase in the reputation of your business.
It is the major advantage of having sustainable products and technologies. As you use biodegradable and renewable materials and processes, your business is decreasing the carbon footprint of the environment.
This can be a standpoint as today 48% of businesses that use sustainable technology have improved production and innovation. Also, investors are likely to be attracted to a business that is more efficient, environmentally friendly, and has great ESG scores.
If you use sustainable development strategies, you are more likely to use resources effectively. In this way, the expenditure on production can be decreased and more profit can be generated over time. This helps your business remain competitive.
Lastly, it has been identified that three out of four millennials want to work with organizations that comply with ESG, so this is your chance to retain better employees.
As the best employee makes the business grow, having their loyalty and commitment can work a long way. It means if you go green, you are also creating better sustainable technology solution jobs.
Challenges Of Sustainable Technologies
Sustainable technology is not a dream but it’s a path that ultimately leads to a destination. Like any other path, it does have its hurdles. One of the most typical problems that come in the way of successful sustainable technology initiatives is its cost. For example, solar panels are very common, but still, it is costly, and not everyone can have them.
Similarly, other sustainable tech such as more efficient hardware, e-gadgets, automatic buildings, and cloud computing at a massive level needs a large amount of money.
Accessibility is another barrier that is directly assisted with the cost. Also, there is a need to accelerate the research in this field so that we can take action against climate change while we have a chance. Therefore, governments, researchers, organizations, and industries need to invest more resources in sustainable solutions to turn our cities smart.
Final Analysis
Sustainable technology solutions are not limited to using solar energy for carbon capturing. It has become more than that. With the right strategy and research, we can use sustainable solutions across every field and make sure our actions for progress do not affect our environment. These solutions can turn ordinary cities into smart cities, reduce the health effects associated with the use of electronic gadgets, reduce waste, and ultimately decrease the process of climate change.
While most organizations and people are committed to green earth, there are still many challenges that need to be overcome, such as cost, accessibility, and improved efficiency of sustainable technology. However, small steps can make a huge difference, that’s why we need to keep going for the future of our generations and planet.
