Written by the Caribbean Telecommunications Union
Digital transformation, the integration of digital technology into all areas of a business or government, is often championed with a powerful, compelling justification: that it will deliver environmental sustainability. Although some digital solutions may have some green potential, this article argues that the environmental justification for digital transformation, as currently pursued, is not sound on its own because it dangerously ignores the sheer environmental footprint of the digital infrastructure itself.
While Caribbean countries must continue to digitally transform their societies, they must also be more environmentally responsible. Clear national and regional policies, along with strategies that encourage the deeper and more comprehensive integration of environmental sustainability principles and practices across all sectors, are critical. However, countries must also remain accountable by monitoring and tracking their performance against important environmental indicators and implementing the requisite remediation, as appropriate, in order to foster more environmentally aware and responsive societies.
Digital transformation is often touted as a driver of efficiency, innovation, and environmental sustainability. Across the Caribbean region, governments and institutions increasingly promote digitalisation as a means to “go green” — suggesting that moving services online, embracing cloud technologies, and enabling remote work will reduce carbon footprints, save energy, and minimise resource waste.
While digital transformation can indeed contribute to sustainability goals, the environmental justification for it is not always as sound as it appears. In fact, if left unexamined, digital transformation may create new environmental pressures even as it addresses old ones. To ensure that the region’s digital evolution is both sustainable and equitable, Caribbean policymakers must move beyond rhetoric and entrench genuine environmental responsibility into their digital strategies.
The Environmental Justification: An Oversimplified Narrative
At first glance, the environmental case for digital transformation appears strong: reduced paper use, fewer commutes, and streamlined operations all suggest lower carbon emissions. However, this narrative often ignores the hidden environmental costs of the digital economy.
First, the energy consumption of the data infrastructure cannot be overlooked. Data centres — the backbone of digital transformation — are massive energy consumers. A small data centre, such as a server closet, can use between 10 kW and 50 kW, or roughly 1,200 kWh to 36,000 kWh per month, whilst a medium-sized data centre typically consumes between 500 kW and 2 MW, or approximately 720,000 kWh to 8,760,000 kWh annually. Further, artificial intelligence (AI), cloud computing, and streaming services require considerably more electricity to power and cool servers, which not only can increase a data centre’s overall consumption but also a country’s carbon footprint.
Although it can be argued that, to a considerable degree, Caribbean countries are accessing data centres outside the region, and so the energy and environmental impact outlined is not in the region, but rather the country where the data centre exists, that posture is myopic and irresponsible. While most of the popular data centre providers do not have facilities in the region, by using them—wherever they are located—we are contributing to the problem. Hence, although the Caribbean region might not be among the largest clients or the most intensive users of those overseas data centres, it is nonetheless incumbent on us, as individual countries and collectively as a region, to do our part to lower our contribution to carbon emissions and to improve the overall health of the planet.
Second, digitalisation has accelerated device turnover. Smartphones, laptops, routers, and network equipment have relatively short lifespans, which contribute to growing volumes of electronic (e-)waste. Virtually all Caribbean countries have limited e-waste recycling infrastructure to repurpose discarded digital equipment and ensure safe processing and disposal, which also requires energy. As a result, countries tend to depend on imports and lack the capacity to manage e-waste disposal sustainably.
Third, it must be acknowledged that the global supply chains that feed digital transformation rely heavily on resource extraction — from rare earth minerals to metals — which is often linked to environmental degradation and social exploitation. Although the Caribbean region is not a source of the rare metals and minerals used in digital devices, as owners and users of those devices, it can be argued that we are complicit in the exploitation that is occurring. As a result, it may be difficult to justify our continued digital transformation efforts and that going digital will lead to a greener planet.
Finally, though paradoxical, efficiency gains can drive increased consumption. This phenomenon became very evident during the COVID-19 pandemic, when, for example, it was no longer permissible to travel to meetings. Online meetings and events not only became the norm, but they were also more plentiful. However, that convenience can result in an overuse of streaming and data-heavy services, and ultimately digital overconsumption.
Realising Sustainable Digital Transformation in the Caribbean
The Caribbean region has a unique opportunity to design a sustainable digital future: one that balances economic growth and its continued digital evolution with environmental stewardship. Policymakers can achieve this by integrating sustainability directly into digital policy, infrastructure, and innovation frameworks, as outlined in the following strategies:
- Implementing green digital policies. Green ICT policies andnational digital sustainability strategies should be integrated into environmental, social, and economic considerations rather than treating them as separate agendas. Such a posture would be a seismic shift from the status quo and would signal an enhanced approach to digital infrastructure deployment and the broader digital transformation effort.
Green digital infrastructure policies in particular ought to promote renewable energy integration into data centres and ICT infrastructure, and could include incentives to drive the use of solar, wind or alternative forms of energy by local data hosting providers. Additionally, energy-efficient design policies and standards could be adopted that include mandatory energy audits for major ICT installations.
- Emphasise a circular economy and e-waste management. In the first instance, a national e-waste collection and recycling network should be established, which feeds into regional e-waste collection and recycling networks to pool expertise, benefit from economies of scale and achieve greater impact. Further, consistent with the practice globally of fostering circular economies across a broad range of sectors, Caribbean countries should support the development of repair and refurbishment ecosystems, particularly for mobile and computing devices, as part of local entrepreneurship initiatives.
- Establish green telecommunication ICT standards. Caribbean countries ought to adopt green ICTstandards and prioritise equipment certified for low energy use and recyclability. The successful implementation of these standards would require multistakeholder participation from, among others, the national standards bureau, ICT and electricity regulators, academia and the private sector. When finally adopted and in effect, the impact should be felt across the country: from public sector procurement to the importation of digital equipment, in order to realise a greener country.
- Encourage data localisation and cloud sustainability. Cognisant of the growing emphasis on digital sovereignty across the region, hosting digital services regionally using shared cloud platforms powered by renewable energy should be promoted when feasible. Further, individual Caribbean countries or the region as a whole ought to consider partnering with global cloud providers to align Caribbean data infrastructure with international carbon neutrality commitments, such as achieving a net-zero emissions target.
- Incorporate education and entrepreneurship. In addition to the effort made to increase the public’s awareness and understanding of digital sustainability, digital sustainability literacy should also be integrated into the school curricula. This topic could be part of a larger digital literacy programme that covers sustainability, along with understanding and critically evaluating the environmental and social challenges being faced locally and internationally and how to contribute to solutions.
Further, entrepreneurs can be encouraged to support the green digital posture of the country through the products they bring to market. For example, green tech entrepreneurship programmes can be established that incentivise startups and local innovators to develop clean, energy- or resource-efficient solutions, or solutions that address environmental sustainability challenges in society.
- Ensure measurement and accountability. Most Caribbean countries have not been actively tracking their carbon footprint, greenhouse gas emissions, or other important environment-related metrics. However, if countries are serious about being more environmentally responsible, goals, targets and systems to measure and track performance—to foster accountability and data-informed decisions—must be established. Important environmental indicators within the context of digital transformation or a digital economy include, but are not limited to, carbon footprint, energy consumption, energy intensity, e-waste generation and recovery rates, and water and air pollutants.
Additionally, regular audits should be conducted to again emphasise the importance of being environmentally responsible. For example, audits of the environmental footprint of national digital transformation projects should be conducted, which in turn should feed into the national or country-level metrics that are being tracked.
Finally, it must be highlighted that for all of the recommended strategies, though discussed within the context of individual countries, there is scope to magnify the impact regionally—via groupings such as the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) or the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS). However, to benefit from synergies that might be evident or the impact of better economies of scale, policy harmonisation or alignment to facilitate collaboration is vital and must be fostered.
Building a Caribbean Model of Sustainable Digital Transformation
In summary, digital transformation in the Caribbean region must be framed not just as an economic necessity but as an opportunity to redefine sustainability in a small-island/developing country and resource-constrained context. Neither can we continue to justify our passive posture on environmental responsibility as a problem caused by others “over there”. More importantly, we cannot rely on the flawed assumption that “digital equals green(er),” as there are several environmental costs in going digital.
Instead, regional leaders can pioneer a more nuanced model: one that harnesses technology for inclusive growth and the digital transformation of our countries, whilst also seeking to mitigate the environmental impact and fostering collective responsibility and accountability. A truly sustainable digital future for the Caribbean region will require policy coherence, regional cooperation, and a shared vision that technology should serve both the people and the planet.
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