The following post is a personal opinion by Max Schulze, Chairman of the SDIA.

I have spent my life building digital products and tech startups, actively advancing digitalization. I believe it's a positive development that software is taking over the world. Now that the climate crisis is ever-present and every industry starts taking measures, I wonder what the digital economy will do. And no, I don't mean developing software to fight the crisis — but focusing on software's own CO₂ footprint.

The digital economy is growing, and the amount of data we create, process, and consume is increasing at an unimaginable scale. Startups are transforming data, processes, and entire industries into digital platforms, creating new value — a new economy. This is an impressive development. At first glance, economic growth appears to happen without consuming natural resources. But is this really the case?

What about the infrastructure that drives the digital economy? What about the data centers, the billions of servers, the equipment that must be manufactured and powered to keep this new economy running? How large is the footprint of all this?

No one knows. And it seems no one is asking the question. It takes the enjoyment out of YouTube or Instagram when you realize the amount of storage and computing power needed to run these services or when watching a Netflix movie in 4K — which has consumed 100 GB of traffic. Today, major technology companies are building some of the largest data center facilities in the world. A new data center goes online somewhere in the world every week.

What power plants were to the industrial revolution, data centers are to the digital economy — they are the engines of growth. The first generation of large industrial power plants — coal-fired — contributed to the climate crisis we find ourselves in today. Can we afford to repeat the same incremental development with the power plants of the digital economy — the data centers?

For energy and most industries, we have a clear picture of the environmental impact — but what about the digital services we use every day? We know the emissions of every flight we take, but what about every photo we upload or every email we send?

If we knew our digital footprint, we might not watch less Netflix or use fewer digital services — just as our behavior hasn't changed despite knowing the environmental impact of flying. But we can become aware of our impact and take steps to reduce it through more sustainable infrastructure — for instance, by choosing an "eco-friendly" digital service provider, much like we choose sustainable soap, biodegradable garbage bags, carbon offsets for flights, or electric cars.

It is time we understand the CO₂ footprint and environmental impact of the digital economy so we can ensure it has a positive impact on our economic development and our environment.

I am glad that we decided a year ago to establish the Sustainable Digital Infrastructure Alliance to pursue this goal. And I am pleased that some of our friends and partners have joined us to support the cause.

We will define the CO₂ footprint of the digital economy. And then, we will pave the way towards zero emissions. It is an exciting journey, and in these challenging times, I can think of no better way to contribute to the fight against the climate crisis.