How Green is Your Internet?

Synopsis: This animation illustrates the alarming fact that using the internet uses more energy than you might think. For each second of a video you watch online, a fifth of a gram of carbon dioxide is released into the atmosphere. There are 44 million computer servers on Earth, and together they contribute 2% of our planet’s carbon emissions. How can the wired world tackle its carbon footprint? Facebook’s custom-built data centre relies on wind and solar as well as coal, whereas Google have created Google Energy, a company that invests in renewable start-ups like wind farms. But with internet use set to soar in the next few years, will any progress in green technology be undermined by our consumption of digital media? (2 min)
Language: English
Country: Great Britain
Year of release: 2011
Year of production: 2011
Subjects: Environmental science; Information technology
Keywords: greenhouse gases; Internet; computer use; carbon emissions; green technology

URI: http://www.patrickclair.com/2011/06/how-green-is-your-internet-from-dan.html
Price: free
Delivery: Streamed

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British Universities Film & Video Council