¹û¶³´«Ã½

This month, ¹û¶³´«Ã½ is celebrating Green WeekLink opens in a new window (6 – 12 March 2023), and ·É±ð’r±ð asking people to do Small Acts that together will make a big difference. 

In the digital world, like the environment, there is a huge amount of trash. Unnecessary emails, files, apps, and duplicates of photos and videos are all digital waste.  

This digital waste creates digital pollution that continues to consume energy even when we have forgotten it. Digital trash sits in the backups on servers and continues to consume electricity. 

By deleting unnecessary files, apps, photos, and videos, we are not just saving a huge amount of CO2, but we are also extending the life of our devices and forging new digital habits that will help us all to feel more efficient and satisfied.  

Clean out your inbox 

About 4g of CO2 is consumed by a regular email, and about 50g of CO2 by an email with larger attachments (according to researchers at Lancaster University). 

Sort out what you no longer need eg. out-of-office replies and old email threads, empty the trash folder and unsubscribe from newsletters you don’t read. Start with old emails and emails with large attachments. You’ll quickly find that you have a lot more space in your inbox. 

Clean up your cloud 

Consider what you really need in the cloud, that’s documents saved in Teams and on SharePoint. 

Start with the largest and oldest files and slowly work your way up. There is an incredible amount of data in cloud storage, which costs you nothing but causes a lot of unnecessary CO2 emissions. 

De-clutter your data, eg., delete old versions of documents and duplicates you don’t need anymore. 

Clean up your laptop or PC 

Maybe you have five archive versions of a document somewhere, a recycle bin is full to the brim, and your download folder is a walk down memory lane of files you haven’t needed for years.  

Delete old versions of documents, and duplicates you don’t need, clear out your download folder and pictures etc. 

Empty your recycle bin.  

Clean your browser by deleting the cache and history. 

Run software and system updates by regularly shutting down and restarting your device.  

Create a folder and document structure you and your team can truly work with.

What about your phone?

Just like your PC or laptop, you can de-clutter your phone by deleting any images, videos, music, apps, old versions of documents and duplicates you don’t need anymore. 

Clean your browser by deleting cache and history and regularly closing all tabs. 

Think about your notifications. Mute any that challenge your focus, and consider setting quiet time. 

Run software and system updates regularly. 

Get involved with Green Week 

Green Week is an annual partnership between the ¹û¶³´«Ã½, Coventry University, our Student Unions, and you! It’s a time when we celebrate the environment, promote what we do, educate on how we can all be more sustainable in our day-to-day lives, and take action.  

Check out the full list of events on the Green Week webpageLink opens in a new window.