Phone Use »
Keeping your phone and the planet healthier
- Connect to Wi-Fi: Save energy & battery. Using a phone over mobile network takes at least 2x as much energy as it does over Wi-Fi
- Update later: Switch off or set up 'wait for Wi-Fi' on cloud backups, auto updates, and downloads
- Save Energy: Help your phone battery & the earth by using power-saver settings and shortening the time before your screen sleeps
- Avoid Searching for Signal: Turn off Wi-Fi, GPS, and Bluetooth if you're not using it to drastically save battery. This can be very effective on campus!
- Keep it cool: Don't leave your phone in the sun or hot temperatures. Overheating can drain and damage your battery
- Charging Habits: You don't always need to use & charge from 0 to 100, but Google Support recommends doing so occasionally. On iPhones, go to Settings & turn on Optimized Battery Charging.
- Review and Reflect: Check your battery usage information in your phone settings to see where your phone battery (and energy!) is getting spent
Adjust your streams so Mother Nature's streams are safer
- Switch to Wi-Fi: Watching a video over a mobile network uses more energy than streaming over Wi-Fi.
- Don't Autoplay: Watch one video at at a time so videos don't autoplay without your attention. Try to avoid leaving a stream running if you're not watching.
- Optimize your Background Noise: If you know you won't really be watching a video closely or it's just for background noise, lower the video resolution to use less data. This can often be adjusted case-by-case or in settings
- Think about Quality: Use the resolution that makes sense for the device you're watching on. The highest resolutions only improve video on bigger or higher-res devices
All video data combined (that’s streaming video, video uploads, and downloads) is responsible for 80% of all data sent over the internet
Less junk for your inbox and the earth!
- Just Unsubscribe: Email subscriptions add up to a lot of C02 emissions! If you're not interested, unsubscribe or check options for fewer or curated emails.
- Delete instead of Archive: Storing old emails in datacenters takes energy too -- if it's not important, delete instead of filing away
- Know how to Avoid them: Don't sign up for emails you know you won't read. When you make a new account with a store or service, check your notification settings immediately
- Send links instead of files: Attaching a photo or document to an email is more energy-intensive than providing a link to it
The carbon footprint of our gadgets, the internet and the systems supporting them in 2020 was similar to the global airline industry, and expected to double by 2025
Make small changes and stay conscious of your footprint
- Nudge Industry to Change: Most emissions are caused by coporations, not consumers! Write to companies you use to ask them to take environmental action and keep improving their practices.
- Use Bookmarks: Bookmark your most-used websites instead of searching them up every time. Every Google search has a carbon cost, and having direct links saves you time too!
- Unplug when you're done: Get a power strip you can turn on and off or unplug electronics when not in use at home or in the office. It will save you energy and keep your batteries healthier.
- Do your Research: Trends like Bitcoin, Blockchain and NFTs were a huge hit, but cause tons of carbon emissions when we already have more eco-friendly solutions for the problems they solve. Even non-material trends have impact.
- Try Ecosia: Ecosia is a search engine that is a certified B corp, powered by 100% renewable energy, and funds effective tree-planting initiatives. Really want to use Google? Try the Treeclicks Chrome extension.
- Care for & Recycle your Electronics: There's a lot of rare and expensive materials in your devices! Make the effort to properly recycle electronics if they break or get outdated