ICT and Sustainability

          Sustainability" became one of the buzzwords of the 1990s. The definition of the word has been extended to include all sorts of things that various interest groups find valuable. But at the heart of the concept is the principle that the way society conducts its affairs should be in the best interests of the environment as a whole, and that the world we leave to our children should be at least as healthy and as fair as the one we inherited.

It is in our work, and in the way we work, that the human impact on the environment is often at its greatest and most destructive of non-renewable resources, species and habitats. Re-evaluating the way we work, the places where we work and how we get there, are an important a part of seeking to work more sustainably. This goes alongside other activities focusing on waste reduction, recycling and finding more environmentally-friendly components for products.

This briefing paper explores:

environmental benefits of "moving bits rather than atoms"

the the variety of online activity that could have the effect of reducing traffic

      The new types of industries that the planning system should favor

New ways of working and reduced energy consumption

Revitalizing local services for sustainable communities

Reducing