How Technological Innovations are Powering Sustainability?
Today’s youth know the realities of global warming and are working hard to protect the environment. But, there is still a significant challenge when it comes to an understanding and implementing sustainable technology ideas. Every day we are faced with problems of pollution, deforestation, depletion of natural resources, poor water and air quality, ozone layer depletion, e-waste generation, and more.
If we do not take care of our planet, then very soon, there will be nothing left for our future generations. So, one-way businesses and people have come to tackle this is by using sustainable technology.
What do we understand by the term Sustainable Technology?
Technology and sustainability have come under one umbrella to describe the innovation that fosters social and economic development. The main goal of technology for sustainable development is to reduce the risks to the environment by creating sustainable technology products.
Sustainable technology is defined through:
- Substitution – Where technology fosters a shift to sustainable materials and technologies from non-biodegradable materials and replaces non-renewable resources with renewable ones.
- Prevention – Using Sustainable technology prevents contamination, deterioration, and other negative impacts of its use.
- Efficiency – Utilizing technology efficiently
What are the best Examples of Sustainable Technology?
Sustainable technology has merged its way for public use and innovation. So, let’s take a look at some sustainable technology examples:
- Public and electrical transport
- LED light technology
- Solar power
- Self-sufficient LEED buildings and construction
- Carbon capturing with storage technologies
Why is Sustainable Technology good for your business?
Sustainable environmental technology has the potential to transform businesses and public systems to work. Sustainable technology aims to minimize negative environmental and social impacts, which are good for businesses’ reputations.
Every business owner wants to make a difference in the world while remaining compliant with the standards agreed upon. By implementing sustainable innovations, businesses can stay competitive and help the environment.
So, let’s take a deeper look into how sustainable technology can be implemented in a business:
1) Reducing the risk and improving project outcomes
One of the main advantages of sustainable technology is to help your business reduce risks. When you utilize biodegradable materials, you are indirectly protecting the ecosystem and the business from the negative effects of climate change.
More than 48% of businesses today utilize sustainability to improve production. Also, long-term investors are looking for businesses with good ESG scores to invest in. By using environmentally friendly technology, businesses are now becoming more desirable for investment.
2) Improving your business’s bottom line
By using sustainable materials and technologies in your business, you can use your resources effectively. This goes the extra mile in boosting your bottom line. This goes a long way in reducing costs and increasing profit boosters to help your business stay in the competition.
3) Attracting and retaining talent
The battle of retaining top employees is a constant rage in the business world. The key is to acquire the best talent that helps implement environmentally friendly technology for your businesses. 3 out of 4 millennials prefer working in businesses with high environmental standards. So, employee loyalty also becomes a major factor when your business commits to sustainability.
How do companies leverage technology to improve Sustainability Efforts?
Now that we know the benefits of adding sustainability to your business, let’s take a look at a few examples of leaders leveraging technology to improve their sustainability efforts:
1) Digitization of operations
People who are the frontrunners in this area are creating more sustainable operations and processes. For example, implementing new manufacturing techniques that leverage alternative inputs to reduce waste. Digitization of operations helps improve business resilience and can even lay the pathway to some processes becoming industry standards.
One of the best examples is Schneider Electric. The brand has transformed itself from installers of industrial electrical equipment to global leaders in efficiency services that generate revenue by reducing its customer’s CO2 emissions. The greater the social and environmental impact of the brand with its emissions reduction and energy savings plans, the more financial rewards its customers get.
2) Digital products and services
New businesses are creating distribution channels that are breaking economic constraints that expand, reach, scale, and access beneficial societal impacts at affordable costs. Apps that help digitize and facilitate access to essential goods and services are a great example. One major city transportation authority has designed three customer-centric sustainability solutions that reimagine how parcels are delivered while reducing emissions or transforming customer experiences and delivering sustainable growth and profits.
3) Cloud, Blockchain, IoT
Advanced tech tools such as connected IoT sensors, cloud-based data platforms, and blockchain-enabled tracking systems – help unlock new opportunities for measuring and tracking environmental and social impacts across the value chain system. Businesses are improving management and investment decisions to improve their performance against ESG goals. For example, the value of transparent solutions using blockchain technology guarantee sustainable tech companies the integrity and the safety of products, direct supply sources to producers to retailers to consumers.
4) Advanced Analytics and AI:
Technologies that generate data and insights related to environmental and social impacts of processes, products, and services. Digital platforms that integrate capabilities share information and create accountability, build sustainable businesses that people want. These frontrunners leverage their capabilities to develop and tune their offerings, keep customers engaged, and improve performances over time.
One of the best examples of this is Brazil’s Nubank. The businesses used solutions to accelerate financial inclusions for their country’s 55 million unbanking customers. With the latest digital model, Nubank now uses unique data sources and AI to build financial pictures for potential customers and provides them with access to credit without any fees and at 50% lower interest rates than other banks.
5) Data Sharing Ecosystems:
Data sharing provides new models to collaborate within or across sectors to develop novel solutions to deal with environmental and social problems. Businesses can now easily pool resources, complete capability gaps, gain access to new markets, and expand their reach. For example, software platforms integrating insurance underwriters or telecommunication providers deliver microinsurance with phone subscriptions to the underserved population.
Start Leveraging Sustainable Technologies
More and more companies are using digital or technological innovations to create sustainable solutions to break their economic constraints that, include unlocking new solutions. But their success depends on leveraging sustainable technologies and data directly from the start.
But before making major time commitments, energy management, and utilizing company resources, business owners need to start looking forward and plan their strategic views of advanced technology to accelerate their journey of sustainable advantage.
FAQ
1. How is technology improving sustainability?
Technology helps improve sustainability by using environment-friendly resources, reducing energy consumption, using the latest renewable energies, the utility of LED lights, reducing waste with efficient designing, manufacturing, and associated subsystems, and promoting sustainability.
2. How does innovation affect sustainability?
Sustainability helps drive innovation by introducing design constraints that reduce the usage or wastage of resources like carbon, water, and energy – used in the production and manufacturing process.
3. What role does technology play in creating a sustainable environment?
Technology plays a significant role in achieving SDG targets that help improve the efficiency and effectiveness of more sustainable development options. The creation of these new technologies fosters the research process and stimulates the latest innovation requirements.
