It’s a scary statistic that digital technology is responsible for around 4% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions globally, more than the entire aviation industry. Worryingly, the scale of the issue looks set to continue during 2025 and with the rise of artificial intelligence, digital technology emissions are estimated to increase significantly. Much of this is caused by the energy demands used to store data, and because this is largely invisible, it can be easy to ignore.
However, the good news is that a lot can be done to reduce data storage with some simple and easily actionable steps.
digital technology is responsible for around 4% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions globally, more than the entire aviation industry
A regular Digital Clean-up can reduce the emissions used in storing large amounts of data, reducing energy and avoiding unnecessary storage costs.
How we helped our client
In a recent client project, we were able to help reduce the carbon emissions of a project SharePoint site by 88%.
Here’s how…
Our starting point:
The SharePoint site hosted content for a project which had been running for over 5 years, therefore there was a lot of content to review, streamline and reduce.
The team had limited knowledge on the digital emissions impact that the site had. Through sharing our ‘Digital Clean-up’ Toolkit, we were able to help them to understand how to implement the changes needed, inspire action as well as measure the impact.
We supported the team with a thorough review of site content over a period of a couple of months, reducing the documents storage from 580.4 GB to 65.8 GB.
The result?
A streamlined and focused SharePoint site that better serves the needs of the project team, alongside a reduction in carbon emissions of an incredible 88%.
“We’ve significantly reduced our digital carbon footprint…not only does this effort contribute positively to our climate goals, but it also streamlines our digital landscape, enabling us to work more efficiently.” Executive Director
If you’d like to learn more about how you can reduce your digital emissions, download our free Digital Clean-up Toolkit below or get in touch to discuss how we could work together.
Did you know that we offer engaging and interactive Carbon Literacy training accredited by the Carbon Literacy Project? Sign up for our upcoming courses here and gain tools, resources and practical strategies you can use to reduce your company’s carbon footprint.
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Author details
Emily Cusick
Communications Manager & DEI Lead
