I was fortunate to attend Connected America last week, an event designed to “bring together communications service providers at national, state, and local levels alongside the public sector, enterprise verticals, and suppliers.” It was an intriguing show, with notable speakers, lively panel discussions, and booths showcasing innovative products and services. I moderated an illuminating panel on sustainable connectivity with guests from T-Mobile, Breezeline, and Micro.AI.
As “sustainable connectivity” is not yet as well-known as would be liked, we first offered a definition. Sustainable connectivity refers to the use of technology and infrastructure to facilitate economic, social, and environmental development to minimize negative impacts on the planet and promote long-term sustainability. This can include investments in renewable energy, digital infrastructure, and transportation systems that prioritize energy efficiency, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and improve access to goods, services, and information. Sustainable connectivity aims to create a more interconnected world that supports economic growth and social progress while protecting the planet’s natural resources and biodiversity.
More simply, sustainable connectivity is about balancing our connectivity needs while reducing energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions.
The Telecommunications Industry Leads the Way and Helps Others
Various methods and tools are being used to meet these goals. In the telecommunications field, the growth of 5G has resulted in far more significant amounts of data traffic being used. There are now over eight billion mobile subscribers globally, with over one billion on 5G networks, and 5G subscriptions are expected to reach five billion in 2028. This traffic growth has not yielded an equivalent rise in energy usage thanks to technological solutions that the equipment manufacturers and operators have installed. For example, some virtual RANs (vRAN) have features that shut down entire cell sites at times of the day when traffic is low – think the middle of the night. New antenna technologies, such as massive MIMO (mMIMO), are far more spectrally efficient, sending more data while using less power.
Ivan Sierra from Micro.AI pointed out that another way to reduce the amount of data sent, and hence energy used, is to decide which data to process at the edge intelligently. With the global edge computing market expected to grow from $11 billion in 2022 to over $140 billion in 2030 (CAGR of 37.9%), using AI and ML to decide which data can be processed at the edge will result in significant energy savings.
Telecommunications companies are also making other changes to reduce their carbon footprint. For example, some implement energy-efficient practices such as optimizing cooling and lighting systems, while some cell sites are now powered by renewable energy. During our discussion, Patrick Higgins noted that Breezeline is shifting from internal combustion vehicles to electric ones.
Other industries are being helped by advances in telecommunications as well. For example, private networks assist farmers in using less water for crops and spraying pesticides only where needed. Smart cities use 5G-based video analytics to monitor traffic and adjust signal lights as required, reducing the time cars are on the road and thus reducing vehicle emissions.
Rules and Regulations and How They Play a Part
Rules and regulations play a crucial role in ensuring sustainable connectivity, covering topics such as environmental protection, social responsibility, and economic viability. For example, rules and regulations can set standards for energy efficiency and carbon emissions in the construction and operation of communication infrastructure. They can also establish guidelines for responsible e-waste management, the use of renewable energy sources, and the protection of biodiversity in the deployment of connectivity infrastructure. Rules and regulations can promote the development of equitable and inclusive connectivity services. They can require service providers to ensure universal access to connectivity, prioritize the needs of underserved communities, and protect user privacy and data security. Alex Rosenthal, our panelist from T-Mobile, commented on how these rules have helped prompt companies to cut their greenhouse gas emissions or be carbon-neutral by a specific date. T-Mobile has embraced science-based targets to address Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions to reach their Corporate Net-Zero target. Earlier at the conference, Chris Sambar, President of AT&T, said that his company planned to be carbon-neutral by 2035.
Measuring the Success of Sustainability Initiatives
Many companies use ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) scoring that involves evaluating a company’s performance on various metrics related to these three categories. ESG scores are typically determined by a combination of qualitative and quantitative analysis, which various entities, such as rating agencies, data providers, or financial institutions, can perform.
Common factors that are considered when scoring a company’s ESG performance include:
- Environmental: This includes factors such as a company’s carbon footprint, water usage, waste management, and renewable energy usage.
- Social: This includes factors such as employee relations, human rights policies, diversity and inclusion practices, community involvement, and product safety.
- Governance: This includes factors such as a company’s board structure, executive compensation, risk management practices, and transparency in financial reporting.
Once these factors are evaluated, the scores are usually expressed as a numerical value, a letter grade, or a percentile rank, which investors can use to compare the ESG performance of different companies. Two of our panelists reported that they knew of companies that received lower ratings year-over-year due to those businesses not tying executive compensation to ESG scores.
Conclusion
The United Nations in 2015 adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It “provides a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future.” It encompasses 17 Sustainable Development Goals, including such diverse topics as ending poverty and hunger, gender equality, reducing global inequalities, and of particular interest to our topic, “Ensuring sustainable consumption and production patterns.” Two of our panelists now have the word “Sustainability” in their job titles – something we noted not to be seen even a decade ago and proof of industry’s desire to improve their carbon footprint and make the world cleaner and greener.
