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In this present, bustling world of tedious tasks and a stressful lifestyle, technology has been making our lives easier and more enjoyable. From home chores (washing clothes, and cleaning floors) to industrial processes, the influence of technology has played a paramount role. However, the impact it has been creating on our mother nature is worsening and becoming non-negligible. From harming wildlife to contributing to global warming, technology is often the primary cause of these devastating disasters. Nevertheless, the plates are shifting, the new technological advancements are opening innumerable new doors to make themselves harmless. Today we are going to dive deeper into the new era of technology – sustainable technology.
Sustainable technology:
First of all, the word “Sustainability” refers to something that is able to survive for a prolonged period as it does not have any harmful effects, in this context the usage of natural resources and energy without harming the environment. Similarly the term “Sustainable technology” describes the branch of technology which is developed with consideration of the well-being of the environment. For example renewable energy extracting devices such as solar panels and windmills are the foremost examples of sustainable technology.
Why Sustainability:
At present, a substantial amount of pressing global affairs are directly or indirectly connected with carbon footprints. Ranging from global warming and energy crisis to water scarcity and food insecurity, carbon footprint plays a vital role in inducing these. So it is a crucial step to reduce carbon footprint to net zero to solve the most pressing problems of mankind. For that sustainability is considered as the prominent pillar by many experts, as it eliminates the harmful effects on the environment as well as other living beings including us while focusing on the development of our species.
Types of sustainable technology:
Similar to the way technology is a broad concept, sustainable technology is too. However sustainable technology is always mistaken as only renewable energy such as solar panels and wind turbines. It actually extends from sustainable transport systems to efficient waste management systems, providing a wide range of green solutions for existing global issues. Though a significant part of those are intertwined with renewable energy, few unique categories have been invented. Those encompasses green building – buildings with efficient water, waste, and resource management system, carbon capture technologies – capturing the emitted carbon dioxide to avoid the aggravation greenhouse effect, CO2 level reducing technologies – technologies containing zooplanktons or algae to perform photosynthesis in an efficient and faster way than trees to increase the rate of reduction in CO2 levels in the atmosphere, artificial intelligence – sustainable data analysis, sustainable data centers, smart city, etc.
Current state of sustainable technologies:
The tech giants of the world like Apple, Samsung and Google are now turning their attention towards sustainability. They have already started to ponder on the question how to reach the consumer market with a monumental goal as to address sustainability in it. Contrarily Google has already begun to convert their data centres into a sustainable one by implementing liquid cooling systems, efficient computer hardware and clean energy sources. On the same page automobile companies are taking the lead too. New, born-electric cars, hydrogen powered vehicles, better fuel management systems, more efficient engine systems and motors, cutting edge technology of solid-state batteries, new invention of eFuels, carbon free production unit including carbon emission less raw materials, etc have been commenced into the market, on achieving the stupendous goal to shift to a sustainable society by 2050. Many technological breakthroughs in the realm of 3D-printing, like reducing filament wastage, usage of diversified materials to be printed instead of plastic, etc are being invented to promote sustainability even in this sector. Furthermore many nations are not planning to develop certain policies and goals such as giving subsidies for installing solar panels in homes, tax reduction for individuals when they own a e-vehicle, etc to attract citizens towards a sustainable lifestyle. Likewise India and many other European countries have implemented certain policies stating a prominent amount of energy sources will be shifted to greener and cleaner ones.
Practicality of Sustainable Technology:
Although sustainable technology seems like a quantum leap in the tech industry, a huge alarming question has arised on the practicality of it. Usage of sustainable technologies in everyday life is a win-win situation. However not in all aspects, especially in the cost of implementing it. Developing a sustainable technology requires a lot of research and time, ultimately increasing the cost of production. Adding on, implementing sustainable technology in comparatively poorer countries such as South Sudan and Burundi is practically impossible . Furthermore, if currently used machinery and systems are being fully replaced with sustainable ones, a humongous amount of e-waste would be created brutally destroying one of the prime goals of sustainability. Likewise, renewable energy purely depends on storing energy on batteries, which degrades quickly and cannot be recycled very efficiently and those processes are expensive. Moreover the adequate infrastructure required, such as many electric/hydrogen fuel stations, a significant amount of energy sources to be renewable, etc to fully shift into a sustainable economy is far away from the present one, proving this is not an instantaneous makeover.
Consumers’ Thought:
The present society is warmly welcoming new inventions integrated with sustainability, recognising the rising concerns on our globe. However the lack of accessibility and awareness of sustainable technology, people are neglecting this. Moreover some perceive it is a waste of time and money, some others think a little contribution from a household will make no difference to the globe, and continue to use the traditional technologies. Nevertheless the young generations, educated part of the society and environmentalists have already begun to shift to sustainable technological ecosystems, increasing motivation to tech giants to continue to spend time, money and effort in making these wonderful creations.
Conclusion:
Sustainable technology has become the future. It has opened a new unique door to allow both us and other living beings to co-exist without harming each other. However it should not be rushed as a significant part of those is still under research and development. Moreover it should not be neglected over-considering its disadvantages. So let’s all join our hands and accomplish our duty to support the development of a sustainable, eco-friendly environment to allow our future generations to breathe and live in a GREEN and CLEAN Earth!
By: S. Paarthivkumar
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