Sustainable digital transformation
This article gives a view to sustainable digital transformation, and presents an actionable principles for the later one.
Digitalisation can serve as a catalyst for sustainability transformation, helping societies navigate toward net-zero futures characterised by greater efficiency and regenerative, climate-positive objectives. As Tieke (2024) states, this includes addressing climate change, reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and promoting circular economy models.
While digitalisation offers great potential for building a more sustainable future, we must admit that it is not a neutral tool. In many cases, it has facilitated the extraction, consumption, and waste of resources, often hiding environmental costs behind polished digital interfaces. Technologies such as 5G, IoT, electric vehicles, robotics, and AI have straight impact to energy demand, material consumption, and ecological strain.
The environmental costs of digitalisation
More users, more devices
The global internet user base has more than doubled since 2010, reaching 5.35 billion in 2024 (Statista, 2024) leading to growing numbers of end-user devices. These devices, made from finite raw materials, generate an estimated 50 million tons of e-waste annually, 80% of which is not recycled (UNEP, 2024). Much of it ends up in landfills, releasing toxins and accelerating resource depletion through mining. Short device lifecycles—driven by limited repairability, planned obsolescence, and software updates that outpace hardware—further intensify the problem.
Beyond materials, digital infrastructure places pressure on water and supply chains. Semiconductor manufacturing and data center cooling consume significant water resources, while mineral extraction impacts ecosystems and communities globally.
More data and AI traffic, more energy use
More data traffic, particularly from streaming, gaming, and AI applications, requires energy-intensive data centers. Digital technologies, including AI, contribute around 2% of global energy-related emissions (IEA, 2023).
According to IEA projections, if current trends continue, electricity demand from data centers could more than double by 2030, driven largely by AI adoption and high-definition streaming (IEA, 2024). Without significant improvements in efficiency, renewable energy use, and data center management, this surge could pose substantial challenges to achieving climate targets and staying within planetary boundaries.
More efficiency, more everything
Even with gains from efficient data centers, lighter software, better impact measurement, and stronger public-sector commitment, total consumption often rises. This is the Jevons Paradox: efficiency reduces cost, which encourages more use, ultimately cancelling many of the environmental benefits.
Rebound effects show up in user expectations as well. As technology improves, demand grows for higher resolution, more personalization, faster performance, continuous connectivity, and increasingly complex AI capabilities—all of which require more computation, storage, and energy.
Principles for Sustainable Digitalisation
To truly reduce the environmental impact of digitalisation and foster sustainable progress, we must embed sustainability into every layer of how we think, design, and deliver digital outcomes. With these principles, you can navigate towards a sustainable digitalisation.
1. Emphasise social responsibility and equity
Digitalisation must leave no one behind. Prioritise accessibility, representation, and equitable access to technology. Design with and for diverse communities.
2. Make environmental impact visible and actionable
Every digital product affects the planet. Consider the full environmental footprint — including energy use, emissions, materials, and impact on ecosystems. Use frameworks like circular design to reduce waste and pollution, and make your choices transparent and accountable.
3. Design for simplicity, efficiency, and behavior change
Create user experiences that are intuitive and resource-efficient. Reduce noise, unnecessary features, and screen time. Nudge users toward sustainable behaviors while avoiding dark patterns and manipulation.
4. Develop sustainable infrastructure
Embrace green coding practices and efficient architecture. Choose hosting partners powered by renewable energy, with transparent reporting on energy and emissions. Prioritise sufficiency, repairability, and circularity in devices and infrastructure.
5. Build ethical and efficient AI solutions
Treat data and AI systems like physical products: measure their footprint, address bias, and consider energy use from training to deployment. Design AI and data systems that minimise resource use, reduce bias, and remain transparent and accountable.
6. Engineering – don’t forget the end
Digital services don’t end when users leave. Help people clean up their data, unsubscribe from unused tools, offboard easily and minimise digital clutter. Build graceful, responsible exits into your design process.
To take these principles towards action, I recommend to check out these online resources and networks.
I also happen to be one of the co-founders of the Sustinaires Collective, so don’t hesitate to contact me if you have questions in relation to that one.
The Sustainable UX Network offers a podcast, trainings and methods from strategic to service, concept and UX/UI design + a slack-community.
Green Software Foundation builds standards and offers materials, tools, hackathons and a free certificate related to green ICT and coding.
Sustinaires is Finland-based association for thinkers, professionals, and leaders united by a vision of sustainable digitalisation.
To conclude. Digitalisation is a part of the solution — but only if we make it so. Without conscious direction, it risks deepening the very crises it could help solve.