Online event on 23 November 2021: What is new about the climate and environmental impacts of digitalisation and what kind of indicators are being developed?

More and more natural resources and energy will be consumed as the use of digital services and the amount of equipment for this keep growing. However, the ICT sector also has the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from sectors such as transport and industry. Finland's first Climate and Environmental Strategy for the ICT Sector was published in March 2021. Now the Ministry of Transport and Communications invites different stakeholders to hear about and discuss the implementation of the strategy at an online event on 23 November.

The implementation of the Climate and Environmental Strategy for the ICT Sector is followed at forums organised on an annual basis. One of the elements in the strategy where further development is needed arises from the fact that only scattered information is available on the climate and environmental impacts of the ICT sector, both nationally and internationally. Comprehensive and transparent data is needed on the carbon footprint and material consumption of the ICT sector and on how emissions from other sectors can be reduced through digitalisation. In the first forum the focus will be on expanding the knowledge base and developing indicators concerning the climate and environmental impacts of the ICT sector.

Communications Market Specialist Marja Heinonen will present the indicators for monitoring the impacts drafted by the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom. Tuuli Nummelin, Sustainability Manager at DNA, Minna Kröger, Corporate Responsibility Manager at Elisa, and Jarmo Matilainen, Managing Director of the Finnet Association will tell about how the companies measure their environmental impacts. Senior Specialist Janne Pesu from the Finnish Environment Institute will speak about the development of methods to measure the climate impacts of digitalisation. Professor Jukka Manner from the Aalto University will present the project "ICT Climate Action", and Specialist Lotta Toivonen from the Finnish Innovation Fund Sitra will speak about a recent study on the lifecycle impacts of equipment. The event will be opened by Director of Unit Päivi Antikainen from the Ministry of Transport and Communications.

The ICT sector consumes an estimated 4 to10 per cent of global electric power and accounts for 3 to 5 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions.

The forum will be held online on Tuesday 23 November at 10-12. Everyone who has registered will receive a link to the forum. Registration is open until 19 November at: https://link.webropolsurveys.com/Participation/Public/77f23040-4381-4f80-b884-554c6a5cc02c?displayId=Fin2389724

Inquiries:

Tuuli Ojala, Ministerial Adviser, tel. +358 295 342 198, tuuli.ojala(at)gov.fi