At first glance, e-learning or digital learning seems to be a very environmentally friendly solution: no printed books, no travel expenses, no energy costs for physical classrooms. But is e-learning as eco-friendly as it seems? We researched how it can be improved even further.
The Issue with the Footprint
Whenever we can do something digitally, we love to bask in the feeling of acting particularly resource-efficient and sustainable. Our computer activities fly through the ether and invisibly dodge everything in the physical world that might cause us discomfort regarding environmental protection: we produce no waste or emissions, we consume no water, paper, or other materials, and we leave the animal and plant world beautifully undisturbed. Instead, we sit at our digital devices, typing and clicking harmlessly away.
As more sustainability is demanded in the education sector, e-learning eases our conscience with clear ecological advantages. Let's take a look at how digital learning can have a better environmental impact compared to face-to-face learning.
The Benefits of E-Learning for the Environment
1. No Travel to Classes
One of the biggest contributions of e-learning to sustainability is the elimination of travel. Both learners and educators do not have to travel to the venue, resulting in a significant reduction in CO₂ emissions. Particularly those who feel guilty about flying are delighted when they can participate digitally in a distant or international class without having to board an increasingly unpopular airplane.
2. No Physical Teaching Materials
Traditional learning materials like books, workbooks, or writing utensils are mostly unnecessary for e-learning. By providing learning content digitally, not only is paper consumption dramatically reduced: the entire energy and resource consumption incurred by the production, storage, and transportation of physical teaching materials is also saved.
Exams and assessments are also conducted digitally, making the need for printed exam materials obsolete. This saves precious paper on one hand and reduces the effort and CO₂ emissions associated with the distribution and storage of physical exam documents on the other hand.
3. No Energy Consumption for Venues
Seminar and training rooms for in-person events must be heated, lit, and maintained at scheduled times, regardless of how many or how few learners participate in an event. By allowing learning to take place more often digitally at home, the energy consumption for the infrastructure of traditional venues, seminar hotels, and similar places is significantly reduced, as fewer spaces are required overall.
The venues can thus use their facilities more efficiently, and in the long term, the demand for new buildings for educational purposes decreases, which in turn reduces the consumption of building materials and the associated CO₂ emissions - and, by the way, takes up less space from nature.
What Lurks in the Shadows
Although we already find e-learning quite great due to these advantages, it has a few hidden environmental impacts that most people are not consciously aware of:
1. Servers and Data Centers
E-learning relies on a massive digital infrastructure that requires cloud services, streaming platforms, and servers. Server farms and data centers are housed in large buildings that often remain hidden or at least unknown to most people. The numerous devices within must operate around the clock and, above all, be cooled, leaving a significant ecological footprint. According to studies, data centers account for about 1% of global electricity consumption, and this figure continues to rise.
2. Resource-Intensive Hardware Production
To participate in digital learning at all, one inevitably needs a computing device: PC, laptop, tablet, or smartphone. The production of these devices already requires a high energy demand, but even in earlier production stages, such as the extraction and processing of necessary raw materials like copper, gold, tin, lithium, and cobalt, significant environmental damage, human rights issues, and habitat loss often occur.
3. Short Lifespan of Digital Devices
The computing devices required for e-learning often have a limited lifespan, which is further shortened by the constant introduction of new hardware and software technologies. The demand for increasingly powerful devices increases pressure on the necessary raw material sources, and, on the other hand, the mountain of electronic waste (E-Waste) grows, which is often not recycled.
4. Water Consumption
The production of electronic devices requires large amounts of water, particularly in semiconductor manufacturing. This water consumption contributes to environmental problems in regions facing water scarcity and is often overlooked when only considering the energy aspect.
5. Electromagnetic Pollution
The increased use of Wi-Fi networks and mobile technologies to support e-learning leads to a higher electromagnetic radiation, known as “electrosmog.” Although the effects on the environment and human health have not yet been extensively studied, electrosmog is considered a potential factor that could be harmful in the long run.
Oh dear - this all sounds terribly depressing because many of these points seem beyond our reach, making us feel like we can do nothing about them. Or can we?
Good News: E-Learning Can Be Made More Sustainable
E-learning is, of course, only one area of using computing devices, so the above aspects of the hidden ecological footprint apply to every moment a digital device is in use.
Data center operators know very well that they need to improve their environmental balance, and companies like Google and Microsoft have already initiated projects to fully switch their data centers to renewable energy or to establish them increasingly in climate-favorable regions where energy consumption for cooling systems is lower.
However, there are a few things you can directly do as a provider or organizer of online courses to act more environmentally conscious:
1. Raise Awareness of Energy Consumption
Both educational providers and learners should be made aware of the energy consumption of online courses. Inform your participants about the energy consumption caused by the manufacturing and operation of electronic devices.
You could also encourage them to actively pay attention to minimizing energy consumption: They could, for example, use energy-efficient devices that consume less power and utilize the power-saving modes of their devices more consistently, such as putting screens into sleep mode after a short period of inactivity.
2. Promote the Procurement of Sustainable Devices
It doesn't always have to be the very latest high-end device to learn digitally: There are now numerous online shops where you can buy affordable used computing devices that have been sustainably refurbished. That way, you get a device that may be a few generations older and perhaps not as attractive, as it has some signs of wear, but it is fully functional, and as long as it’s not too old, you can access learning platforms and complete digital courses just fine.
Used computing devices not only save production resources but also reduce the amount of electronic waste.
3. Reduce the File Size of Learning Materials
When designing your digital teaching materials, make sure that the files are as small as possible. Image files within documents quickly inflate the file size, and videos are usually very data-intensive. Therefore, edit your image files and videos before uploading them to your learning platform, so they require as little storage as possible.
Especially pay attention to the length or duration of your videos as well as the resolution (Full HD is usually unnecessary). Check before uploading if you can compress them further to reduce the file size. When your participants later load or play these files during the course, it will be much faster and consequently generate significantly less CO₂ emissions.
Moreover, smaller files require less Wi-Fi bandwidth, thus facilitating retrieval or streaming in regions with limited internet infrastructure. This aspect could also be important for some of your online course participants.
On a Personal Note
Resource conservation is a top priority at blink.it: Managing Director Michael Witzke tirelessly advocates that we as a software provider consider sustainability:
The working devices of the team (laptops, tablets, smartphones, and other tools) are used for as long as possible and repaired if necessary.
For the electricity consumption of our office operations, Michael has managed to reduce energy costs by an astonishing 60% through the installation of an intelligent control system.
By working remotely or from home, our employees stay largely away from traffic. We also encourage the use of public transport, and those who live nearby prefer to cycle to the office.
Each of us welcomes and supports these efforts and is happy to contribute to resource conservation in our everyday work.
Everything Begins with Mindfulness
Overall, digital learning is more sustainable than in-person events, primarily due to the reduction of travel and the lower demand for physical teaching materials. However, the digital infrastructure of e-learning brings its own environmental burdens that are often underestimated - particularly the energy consumption of data centers and the environmental consequences of device production.
For e-learning to become even more sustainable, course providers and participants must use digital resources more consciously. The use of renewable energies, energy-efficient technologies, and sustainable devices helps all parties involved maximize the positive effects of digital learning and minimize the ecological footprint.
As always, when it comes to the topic of "sustainability," it can only be said: We all need to do our part, anytime and in every aspect of our daily lives. This also includes digital learning, which has been a part of it for several years now. So: Let’s take care of it!
We hope that this article has provided you with some useful information and practical tips, and we wish you continued enjoyment with your e-learnings!
