TY - CHAP
T1 - Sustainable Development Goals, Circularity and the Data Centre Industry: a Review of Real-world Challenges in a Rapidly Expanding Sector
AU - Ptach, Dominika Izabela
AU - Izabela, Dominika
AU - Andrews, Deborah
AU - Philbin, Simon
PY - 2023/10/13
Y1 - 2023/10/13
N2 - The last three decades have seen rapid growth in the Data Centre Industry (DCI), which has significantly affected the world we live in today. With the supposedly positive impact of digital technologies, nobody questioned the sustainability of the industry for many years. Only recently, research has started to identify the trade-offs of information and communication technology, particularly for data centres. The increasing environmental concerns sparked discussions about sustainability in many industries, governments and communities, including the DCI. Although the relationship between business and the goal of pursuing sustainability remains complicated and has not been fully explored through research, various studies have emphasised the need to move beyond business as usual. Therefore, businesses within the DCI need to contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and offset the significant impacts of this sector on the environment, including resource depletion, critical raw materials’ extraction and unethical labour practices. This chapter presents an overview of this unique sector in the context of the impacts across three pillars of sustainability and summaries circular economy-inspired initiatives. Furthermore, it reviews opportunities for the sector to contribute to the SDGs and presents research gaps in present awareness and approaches to tackling the SDGs.
AB - The last three decades have seen rapid growth in the Data Centre Industry (DCI), which has significantly affected the world we live in today. With the supposedly positive impact of digital technologies, nobody questioned the sustainability of the industry for many years. Only recently, research has started to identify the trade-offs of information and communication technology, particularly for data centres. The increasing environmental concerns sparked discussions about sustainability in many industries, governments and communities, including the DCI. Although the relationship between business and the goal of pursuing sustainability remains complicated and has not been fully explored through research, various studies have emphasised the need to move beyond business as usual. Therefore, businesses within the DCI need to contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and offset the significant impacts of this sector on the environment, including resource depletion, critical raw materials’ extraction and unethical labour practices. This chapter presents an overview of this unique sector in the context of the impacts across three pillars of sustainability and summaries circular economy-inspired initiatives. Furthermore, it reviews opportunities for the sector to contribute to the SDGs and presents research gaps in present awareness and approaches to tackling the SDGs.
U2 - 10.1039/9781837671984-00252
DO - 10.1039/9781837671984-00252
M3 - Chapter
T3 - Issues in Environmental Science and Technology
SP - 252
EP - 285
BT - Issues in Environmental Science and Technology
A2 - Ghosh, Sadhan Kumar
A2 - Eduljee, Gev
PB - Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC)
ER -