Digital technology and the environment

Sustainability at the speed of open innovation

Big data offers an unprecedented opportunity for scientific progress that can address our most pressing environmental concerns and improve our living conditions, according to a recent report (1)

Applying digital technologies to environmental data can make it easier to manage environmental conditions and extend involvement in that management more broadly. This, in turn, helps inform better environmental policies and regulations—even change the way environmental decisions are made. 

Data from the environment is also ushering in new business models, such as those based on “sharing economy” or “circular economy” principles, which reconceptualize and alter the need for and use of physical resources and assets. It’s also spurring innovations that would otherwise not be feasible. For example, smart thermostats and meters can lead to smarter pricing structures, while conserving energy and natural resources. 

Data and transparency may reduce need for detailed regulation

Environmental data and insights drawn from analysis of it have the potential to transform traditional regulatory approaches by mobilizing nongovernmental drivers for change. The private sector, civil society, and machine-aided control and correction systems can help drive needed change without the need for government intervention. These complementary drivers could greatly reduce the load for regulators and regulations. 

If transparent and trusted, data and digital technologies promise to dramatically improve environmental accountability. If what is happening is knowable and transparently seen, this should allow regulation to be refocused away from process controls and toward measurable environmental conditions. If conditions are positive, this could lead to new flexibilities with respect to process management. On the other hand, if measurable conditions suggest problems clearly seen by relevant actors, then identifying and correcting the problem can happen at speeds impossible through conventional intervention models. 

Massive privacy and ethics challenges in getting the most out of the data

To understand relationships between human activity and the environment, core environmental data needs to be combined with other factors. Health, economic activity, demographics, and other data types can amplify the environmental data’s usefulness. Accordingly, tapping into the potential of big data poses a massive integration challenge. 

Data about the physical environments in which we meet, work and conduct our daily activities—especially when combined with health data—raises serious privacy and security concerns. We need a better understanding of how to set the boundaries for data collection, whether there are certain types or sources of data that should be off limits. And where the boundaries are for the use of such data towards citizens, communities and enterprises.  (You may want to attend the Green Tech and Trust track on the upcoming virtual IWDK21 Tech festival, where AI Ethics advisor Kim Escherich and I address these challenges)

If we are to link environmental impact more closely to our economic and social activity, we’ll need to make sure that the data collected is securely retrieved, stored and processed. We’ll also need to be alert to the potential for data manipulation, fabrication, and misuse—and take steps to prevent it.  Therefore – data governance is key.

Recommended actions for governments and enterprises:

1.    Initially, focus on concrete initiatives that can generate measurable results and show value. Demonstrate the value of data for the environment to obtain more buy-in, create momentum, then scale the initiative. 

2.    Reinvigorate environmental protection efforts with data. Make environmental data and its governance the central pillars of future efforts by government agencies to support environmental sustainability—becoming more data-driven, fact-based, and empirical rather than anecdotal. Transparency and authenticity will compel action. 

3.    Third, create new ways to encourage open innovation and collaboration. Include different approaches for the public, private, academic, and not-for-profit sectors to work together to accelerate innovation. 

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Share your views, comments, concerns – and if you like to know more about how technology, ope n innovation and sustainability thinking can help improve our lifes, feel free to contact me. 

(1)   ‘ Digital technology and the environment’  IBM Institute for Business Value, Enviromental Law Institute and IBM Center for the Business of Government. The report explores how governments, agencies, companies and citizens can collaborate to find sustainable solutions to complex environmental problems. You can download the full report here.