Key Figures
Digital technology has long been an essential tool for most of us, both at work and in our personal lives. But while digital technology is beneficial in many ways, it also has a negative impact on our environment — an impact that continues to grow rather than stabilize.
The numbers are clear : the digital sector currently accounts for between 3% and 4% of global greenhouse gas emissions. In France, ADEME revised this figure upward at the end of 2024 : the digital carbon footprint now accounts for 4.4% of the national carbon footprint, up from the 2.5% estimated four years earlier. This increase is partly due to improved measurement methods, but also to a real growth in usage, driven in particular by the rise of generative artificial intelligence and the data centers that power it.
As we can see, reducing your digital impact only requires simple, free, and quick-to-implement actions. A small gesture can significantly reduce our digital pollution, each at our own level.
To go further, here are some tips to reduce your digital footprint, whether working remotely or in the office :
- Bookmark the sites you visit most often to avoid repeated searches
- Avoid emails and prefer instant messaging for short exchanges
- Unplug or turn off your devices when you are no longer using them
- Limit the resolution of your streaming videos when high definition is not necessary
- Extend the lifespan of your devices rather than replacing them systematically: the manufacturing phase accounts for the majority of a device's carbon footprint
Our commitment at Symalean
Symalean is a QHSE software publisher, which means digital technology is at the heart of our business. On our scale, we want to reduce our digital impact by pursuing our Green IT approach — a consistency that seems essential to us: we help our clients structure their environmental approach via our Environment module, so it is only logical to apply the same standards to our own operations.
