12 May 2003

ICT & Sustainability

By Professor Peter James, co-director of SustainIT

The EU's eEurope 2005 Action Plan initiative aims to dramatically increase the use of broadband and other ICT technologies - and the services such as e-government - which use them. This goal is of course mirrored in the national policies of the UK and most other member states.

However, even if these targets can be achieved and can create economic benefit, will they necessarily be good for society as a whole, or the natural environment? This is the big question to be debated by speakers from BT, Microsoft, the World Wildlife Fund and other organisations at a London conference on May 22. The event forms part of DG Enterprise consultation on the eEurope programme and the conference organisers, SustainIT, are keen that the views of the e-government community forms part of the discussion. They can therefore waive the normal conference fees for those with something tangible to contribute.

One big issue being discussed at the event is the relationship between ICT and social inclusion. Some fear that the Internet and other ICT developments are creating a new 'digital divide' But SustainIT's annual eWellBeing awards (which are sponsored by, amongst others, the Local Government Association, BT and Vodafone) show that more positive outcomes can also occur. The awards have an e-government category, which was won by the London Borough of Newham for its 'e-service charter' and the actions which are implementing it, such as free Internet and e-mail access within 10 minutes walk of everyone's home. Another local authority winner was Braintree Council, whose InfoLink project provides co-ordinated information on local health care and social services for remote access by professionals and the general public. A third winner, NetMums - which provides information and support for young mothers - also demonstrates the way in which the Internet can create connections between individuals who might otherwise be excluded.

Another big theme at the conference will be the scope for greater co-operation between the ICT sector and other social partners to support sustainable development. A current example of this is BT's Everybody Online initiative which is creating partnerships at national and local level between BT, NGOs and others to increase access to, and use of, the Internet in disadvantaged communities.

A third theme is the ability of ICT to create environmental improvement by, for example, substituting electronic communication for transport. A major EU study of the sustainability of teleworking which is being carried out by SustainIT has found, for example, that many of the 30 organisations it studied were not only reducing the net travel of their staff but also reducing their requirements for office space. This has the environmental (and economic) benefit of reducing the overall need for new construction.

The same study has also found that most teleworkers believe that it has had very positive effects on their quality of life an work-life balance. A significant minority also say that it has allowed them to spend more time in local community activities. On the other hand, a majority also find that they are working longer hours, leading some critics to argue that telework - and by extension ICT in general - simply allows us to make the best of an impossible situation.

The answer, of course, is that ICT has great potential for both good and evil. Sensible discussions - such as the one which is anticipated at next week's London conference - focus on how the former can be encouraged, and the latter prevented.

Professor Peter James is co-director of SustainIT, a not-for-profit research centre on sustainable ICT. He is also the facilitator of the London conference. See www.sustainit.org for more details of the conference and the centre's research.