Mutuality Digital Radar, the Mutuality Digital Research Center has launched a new report entitled “The role of technology in sustainability: promoting ESG objectives”where it is analyzed how digital tools can become catalysts of change towards more sustainable, equitable and transparent business models.
The document offers an integral vision of the role that technology can play in the three major axes of the ESG criteria: environmental, social and governance. Through a combination of innovative practices and consolidated technologies, the study underlines the potential of digital departments to lead sustainable transformation from the strategic nucleus of organizations.
“Companies that place digitalization at the service of ESG objectives will be better prepared to respond to the regulatory, social and environmental challenges of the present and the future,” says María Galván, deputy director general of Organization and Technology in Mutuality.
Digitization as a transverse sustainability vector
The report highlights how digitalization departments have ceased to be operational units to become transverse axes that promote business sustainability.
- In the environmental plane, Initiatives such as server virtualization, automatic dwelling of inactive equipment or the use of energy efficient software are detailed. Technological circularity is also promoted through material recycling, the reuse of devices and models such as responsible leasing.
The digitalization department is positioned as a strategic engine in the sustainable transformation of organizations
- In the social field, Technology is presented as a tool to promote digital inclusion, guarantee equitable access to technological resources and promote continuous training. Likewise, the focus on the ethical design of artificial intelligence, avoiding biases in key processes such as personnel selection or performance evaluation.
- As for governance, The use of technologies such as blockchain is underlined to guarantee the traceability of ESG data, as well as automated and analytical predictive audit systems that improve regulatory control and allow anticipating risks.
Five technologies at the service of sustainability
The study also alerts on the environmental impact of the technological sector, responsible for between 3% and 4% of global emissions, with forecasts that point up to 14% in 2040 if it does not act. To counteract it, five technological blocks are identified that are demonstrating measurable benefits in sustainability:
- Cloud Computingwith a reduction of up to 84% in data processing emissions.
- Blockchainas a transparency guarantor in responsible supply chains.
- Artificial intelligencewhich can decrease between 5% and 10% of CO₂ emissions.
- Big DataKey for decisions based on efficiency and sustainability.
- IoTcapable of automating consumption and improving the efficiency of resources such as energy or water.
One of the most forceful figures indicates that migrating data centers to the cloud can reduce their carbon footprint by up to 98%, which makes this measure one of the most effective to move towards a more responsible technological model.
Green It and alignment with the SDGs
“The role of technology in sustainability: promoting ESG objectives”also promotes the approach of Green itwith strategies such as the use of renewable energy, the virtualization or development of efficient software as ways to reduce the environmental impact of technological infrastructure.
In addition, the direct contribution of these initiatives to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially the SDG 9 (industry, innovation and infrastructure), SDG 12 (responsible production and consumption), SDG 13 (climate action), SDG 10 (reduction of inequalities) and SDG 5 (gender equality).
