Sustainable technology describes technology created or applied in consideration of environmental, social and economic factors..​

 

The goal of sustainable technology is twofold: to produce new technologies using sustainable processes and materials, and to use technologies to address environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues. Sustainable technologies may range from physical technologies like solar panels, to ESG reporting and ESG performance management software.

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When developing technology sustainably, organizations may consider factors such as resources used to develop the technology, the provider of those materials and potential negative output throughout the technology’s life cycle, such as emissions or e-waste. In this sense, sustainable technology describes a mindset or philosophy when it comes to creating and implementing technologies.

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When deploying a sustainable product or technology, companies often set out to make progress toward ESG-related objectives. For example, organizations may create technologies that reduce fossil-fuel consumption like electric vehicles or remove waste through decarbonization initiatives.

Companies can also use sustainable technologies to reduce their carbon footprint. For instance, they can leverage artificial intelligence (AI) to run diagnostics and determine what areas of their business produce the most waste. With those insights, they can then use carbon accounting to identify opportunities to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions or advocate for adopting renewable energy sources.

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