Archived Newsroom • Press Release |
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ICT industry backs greenhouse gas emissions methodology
Green standards take centre stage at Rome
event
Geneva, 9 September 2011
– The first
ITU Green Standards Week closed today with a call on international bodies, NGOs, standards
bodies, governments, regulators, industry and academia to collaborate more
closely on the application and development of information and communication
technologies (ICT) standards to help combat climate change. Particular emphasis
was placed on a globalized methodology to assess the environmental impact of
ICTs, reducing e-waste, and the use of submarine cables for climate monitoring
and disaster warning.
ITU has been working with industry and government members aiming to achieve
agreement on an internationally recognized set of methodologies to be approved
by the end of the year. Included is a methodology which ICT companies can use to
measure their own carbon footprint, as well as a way to estimate the
considerable savings in global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and energy that
can be achieved in other sectors through the use of ICTs.
A single global methodology will give credibility to the various claims
currently being made about the benefits of ICTs in addressing climate change and
energy issues.
ITU Secretary General Dr Hamadoun Touré: “By adopting globally agreed standards
– green standards – we will help to create a smarter, greener, planet; a planet
which will be full of opportunity and potential and which will help the next
generation reap tremendous rewards.”
The
increase in e-waste generated by the expanding use of ICT, and the decreasing
life span of equipment, was highlighted by participants as an area of great
concern, as was the export of e-waste to developing countries. Malcolm Johnson,
Director of ITU’s Telecommunication Standardization Bureau (TSB): “Production of
ICT equipment must minimize the use of toxic material, and be designed to have a
longer life span. Standardization is important in achieving this. ITU’s
universal charger is an excellent example of what can be achieved with
international cooperation. E-waste that cannot be avoided must be recycled in an
environmentally sound manner to extract valuable secondary raw materials.” ITU
is working with its membership and others including
United Nations University,
UNEP,
the
Basel Convention,
CEDARE
and
StEP
on this issue.
Two high-level segments gave prominent public and private sector voices the
opportunity to discuss how the ICT industry’s climate change agenda may be
promoted in the run-up to the 2011 United Nations Climate Change Conference, to
be held in Durban, South Africa, at the end of the year. The sessions advised on
how ICT may aid in the implementation of the United Nations Framework Convention
on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Kyoto protocol, how governments may set
relevant and transparent policy objectives regarding ICT standards and the
environment, as well as how governments and the ICT sector may effectively
communicate and cooperate to achieve these goals.
Green Standards Week, jointly organized by ITU and the Italian Ministry for
Economic Development, and hosted by Telecom Italia, took place in Rome 5 to 9
September 2011.
The event was also supported
by Huawei, Research In Motion, Alcatel Lucent, Cisco, VRM Italy and Microsoft.
The goal was to raise awareness on the role of ICTs to promote environmental
sustainability and in particular how standards can help to achieve this.
The body of the talks comprised three workshops: Methodologies for Environmental
Impact Assessment of ICT, jointly organized with the European Commission; and
Moving to a Green Economy through ICT Standards, jointly organized with Telecom
Italia. The third workshop, Submarine Cables for Ocean/Climate Monitoring and
Disaster Warning: Science, Engineering, Business and Law was organized with
WMO and UNESCO and proposed the use of submarine communication cables for
ocean and climate monitoring and disaster warning. For more information, see
ITU’s Technology Watch report. Workshop participants called on ITU, UNESCO and WMO to establish and
coordinate a joint task force composed of world renowned experts from science,
engineering, business and law to intensify study on the use of submarine
networks and to explore engineering and business potential in this realm.
Green Standards Week also awarded
the winner of the first ITU Green ICT Application Challenge, a global
competition organized by ITU and supported by Telefónica and Research In Motion
to identify innovative apps that can help improve energy efficiency and combat
climate change. Designed by Lis Lugo Colls, from Spain, the application “Smart
Recycling” aims to help mobile users locate recycling schemes and refuse bins
within their area, and provide advice to consumers and local authorities on
their effectiveness.
For more information, please contact:
Toby Johnson
Senior Communications Officer,
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Cristina Bueti
Programme Co-ordinator,
+41 22 730 6301
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