How can MSMEs transition to sustainable digitisation effectively?
If you had visited the website of the recent Conference of Parties (COP28) this year in Dubai, you would have seen an interesting button. The low-carbon button allowed viewers of the website toggle between a regular mode and a “low-carbon” version. This is one example of digital sustainability – the recognition that technology itself has a carbon footprint and more needs to be done to reduce it.
What is digital sustainability?
Digital sustainability can mean many things to many people. As such, I am prefacing this piece by being intentionally specific as to what I would be referring to. Digital sustainability can be broadly linked to two terms: first is tech-for-green and the second is green tech. Whilst similar sounding, they actually have very different meanings.
Tech-for-green refers to the usage of technology for green purposes. An example would be the use of artificial intelligence to aid in the design of eco-friendly buildings. Tech-for-green is outcome oriented – the outcome must be environmentally positive. Technology is merely the conduit for carrying out eco-friendly deeds.
Green tech on the other hand refers to technology which is inherently green. In this case, the focus is on the tool and how it should be environmentally positive. By using an inherently green tool, the logic extension is that the outcome would also be good for the environment. An example would be low-carbon websites that Greenie Web – a Singapore ClimateTech – builds. A low-carbon website has a lower carbon footprint vis-à-vis its regular counterpart, thus its impact on the environment would be comparatively lower.
Much has been written about tech-for-green in recent years. From the use of Internet of Things (IoT) sensors to reduce energy consumption in office buildings to mobile applications which encourage recycling. However, green tech – where the focus is on the environmental friendliness of the technology itself – has received far less attention and is the focus on this piece.
The necessity problem
Despite almost being non-existent in the mainstream conversation of sustainability, digital sustainability is a big problem. One estimate for the carbon footprint of Information Technology (IT) showed that it was almost equal to aviation back in 2019. This estimate was made before the Covid-19 pandemic lockdowns that dramatically shrank aviation while accelerating the adoption of laptops and webcams for telemedicine, online classes and hybrid work. As such, it would be conceivable that the carbon footprint of the IT sector had already surpassed that of the entire aviation sector during the pandemic.
However, what is more troubling than the enormous scale of the IT sector’s carbon footprint is the rate at which it is growing. Experts predict the IT sector carbon footprint is expected to triple by 2040. This is due to a confluence of factors such as increased used of IT devices and the massive number of people who will come online for the first time in the next two decades.
Small business, large impact
Whilst large corporations tend to have dedicated sustainability teams, many micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) I have spoken to frequently point out that they would like to take action but are worried about costs and expertise. These are genuine and valid concerns. As such, I have prepared two simple yet impactful ways to reduce your corporate carbon footprint:> Number 1: Digital marketing materials
A number of MSMEs use digital technologies to amplify reach and boost interaction. One frequently used method is the email update, where current or prospective clients are sent emails on the latest product offerings and discounts. Sending out an email is a low-cost method of connecting with a large audience. However, it also comes with a carbon cost. Estimates have shown that an email – with words only – is responsible for 5g of carbon dioxide. That amount increases to 50g when a picture is included in the email.
To reduce your digital carbon footprint without sacrificing marketing efficiency, it would be good practice to check the click-through rates of your emails. A click-through rate is a measurement of how many people actually open the email. Based on that, you could lower the frequency of emails sent to prospects who had not opened any of the digital marketing material in the past six months. This allows your organisation to reduce your impact on the environment without actually impacting customer interaction.
> Number 2: Email subscription centre
An action – which is slightly more advanced – is the creation of a subscription centre where customers can choose exactly the type of material they would like to receive. Many MSMEs unintentionally have a “take-it or leave-it” email subscription mechanism where a customer either subscribes to all updates or unsubscribes completely. By dividing email subscriptions into various categories and presenting this option to customers, the MSME can both allow for more targeted emails – reducing email spam and customer aversion – while reducing unnecessary emails and hence carbon emissions.
Given the ubiquity of technology, all businesses – small and large have a role to play in digital sustainability. In Malaysia, where MSMEs account for 97.2% of total business establishments and provide employment to 7.3 million individuals, there is great collective impact that can be harnessed. As historian Howard Zinn famously said “small acts, when multiplied by millions of people, can transform the world.”
Ian Chew (picture) is the founder of Greenie Web – a climate tech startup that decarbonises computer code. Since its inception in 2009, Greenie Web has evolved from a side project to a full-fledged digitaldecarbonisation start-up that focuses on sustainable digitisation in the B2G and B2B space.
