ICTs provide opportunity not only for sustainable development but also for addressing the effects of climate change. They deliver smart applications, transform service delivery and can reduce carbon footprint in the areas of energy, waste, and water management. However, a growing information society increases energy consumption and the emission of greenhouse gases (GHGs). E-waste is increasing in volume and is hazardous for health and the environment.
It is our job to help manage emerging risks, challenges and opportunities that result from the rapid growth of telecommunications/ICT. The broad sweep of our work in this area includes climate change, the move to smart sustainable cities, the management of e-waste and the use of emergency telecommunications in disaster response.
ITU is also committed to combatting climate change from within. ITU is an active member of the UN-wide Greening the Blue community, is continuously stepping up sustainability efforts across its operations and is offsetting its unavoidable emissions since 2015.
ITU’s work focuses on accelerating climate action through digital technologies for monitoring, mitigating and adapting to climate change. Our activities include the following:
- ITU study groups examine and develop recommendations on:
- Remote sensing systems and space applications.
- Addressing e-waste, circular economy and climate change.
- Climate change and ICT waste material across a 4-year period.
- Greenhouse gas emissions trajectories, an ICT standard, developed in collaboration with the Global Enabling Sustainability Initiative (GeSI), GSMA and SBTi, compatible with the UNFCCC Paris Agreement, setting ICT guidelines to reduce GHG emissions by 45 per cent between 2020 and 2030.
- ITU publications exploring digital solutions in tackling climate change: Turning digital technology innovation into climate action and Frontier technologies to protect the environment and tackle climate change.
- ITU is engaged in the wider UN system’s efforts – for example at COP26 in Glasgow (side events), in the Coalition for Digital Environmental Sustainability and in developing a Toolkit on Sustainable Digital Transformation with other UN agencies.