The environmental impact of the digital universe and the role of education
Article Sidebar
Main Article Content
Abstract
The environmental impact of the digital universe is one of the critical challenges humanity faces today. This impact manifests primarily through two forms of emissions: embedded emissions, resulting from the processes involved in transporting, processing, and assembling over seventy components, and operational emissions, generated by the active use of digital services, such as sending messages or sharing content. This paper examines the educational potential of an emerging discipline named environmental education of digital resources. Rooted in a philosophy of education articulated in the final section, this discipline is proposed as a central tool for dissemination and knowledge production within the context of cloud computing. The paper concludes with reflections on the limitations of this contribution and suggests a trajectory toward a new paideia, aiming to regenerate thought and redefine our relationship with the digital realm.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 Attribution 4.0 International License.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access)
References
Agamben, G. (2006). Che cos’è un dispositivo. Cronopio.
Andreu, J.F., Delgado, A.V., & Torralba, J.T. (2022). Big Data on a Dead Planet: The Digital Transition’s Neglected Environmental Impacts. The Left in the European Parliament. https://www.left.eu/issues/publications/big-data-on-a-dead-planet-the-digital-transitions-neglected-environmental-impacts/
Appadurai, A. (1996). Modernity at Large: Cultural Dimensions of Globalization. University of Minnesota Press. https://doi.org/10.1177/019791839803200413
Barone, P., Cucuzza, G., & Ferrante, A. (2024). Ecologie della materia. Educazione e materialità nello scenario contemporaneo. Franco Angeli.
Becker, C. (2023). Insolvent: How to Reorient Computing for Just Sustainability. MIT Press. https://doi.org/10.7551/mitpress/14668.001.0001
Berreby (2024). Intelligenza artificiale: l’energia e l’acqua di cui ha bisogno. ENERGIA. https://www.rivistaenergia.it/2024/02/intelligenza-artificiale-lenergia-e-lacqua-di-cui-ha-bisogno/
Bertin, G.M. (1977). Nietzsche: l’inattuale, idea pedagogica. La Nuova Italia.
Biesta, G.J.J. (2014a). Beautiful Risk of Education: (Interventions Education, Philosophy, and Culture). Routledge.
Biesta, G.J.J. (2014b), Pragmatising the curriculum: bringing knowledge back into the curriculum conversation, but via pragmatism. The Curriculum Journal, 25, 29-49. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585176.2013.874954
Biesta, G. J. J. (2022). Riscoprire l’insegnamento (V. Santarcangelo, Trad.). Raffaello Cortina. (Original work published 2017).
Borges, J. L. (1986). Finzioni (F. Lucentini, Trad.). Adelphi. (Original work published 1944).
Castronova, E. (2007). Exodus to the Virtual World: How Online Fun Is Changing Reality. St. Martin’s Press.
Ceruti, M., & Bellusci, F. (2023). Umanizzare la modernità. Un modo nuovo di pensare il futuro. Raffaello Cortina.
Ceruti, M. (2024). Una nuova Paideia nel tempo della complessità. Ytali. https://ytali.com/2024/05/25/una-nuova-paideia-nel-tempo-della-complessita/
Cimatti, F., Maiello, A. (2024) (Eds.). Quasi viventi. Il mondo digitale dalla A alla Z. Codice Edizioni.
Cometa, M. (2023). La svolta ecomediale. La mediazione come forma di vita. Meltemi.
Deleuze, G. (2007). Che cos’è un dispositivo? (A. Moscati, Trad.). Cronopio. (Original work published 1988)
Deleuze, G. (2018). Foucault (F. Domenicali, Trad.). Orthotes. (Original work published 1986).
Edwards, R. (2012). Theory Matters: Representation and Experimentation in Education, Educational Philosophy and Theory, 44(5), 522-534.
Freitag, C., Berners-Lee, M., Widdicks, K., Knowles, B., Blair, G.S., & Friday, A. (2021). The real climate and transformative impact of ICT: A critique of estimates, trends, and regulations, Patterns, 2(9), 100340. https://www.doi.org/10.1016/j.patter.2021.100340
Gallese, V., & Morelli, U. (2024). Che cosa significa essere umani? Corpo, cervello e relazione per vivere nel presente. Raffaello Cortina.
Hannerz, U. (1998). La complessità culturale: L’organizzazione sociale del significato (S. L. Neirotti, Trad.). Il Mulino. (Original work published 1992).
Ingold, T. (2001). Ecologia della cultura (C. Grasseni & F. Ronzon, Trad.). Meltemi. (Original work published 2001).
International Energy Agency (2023). Data Centers and Data Transmission Networks. https://www.iea.org/energy-system/buildings/data-centers-and-data-transmission-networks
Jullien, F. (2021). La vita vera (G. Valle, Trad.). Laterza. (Original work published 2020).
Latour, B. (2022). Riassemblare il sociale: Actor-Network Theory (D. Caristina, Trad.). Meltemi. (Original work published 2007).
Li, P., Yang, J., Islam, M.A., & Ren, S. (2023). Making AI Less “Thirsty”: Uncovering and Addressing the Secret Water Footprint of AI Models, Cornell University, arXiv:2304.03271. https://arxiv.org/abs/2304.03271
Longo, G.O. (2018). Tra letteratura e scienza. Con Borges dentro il labirinto della memoria. Avvenire. https://www.avvenire.it/agora/pagine/borges-ficciones-funes-memoria-neuroscienze
Luccioni, A.S., Jernite, Y., & Strubell, E. (2023). Power Hungry Processing: Watts driving the cost of AI deployment?, ACM Conference on Fairness, Accountability, and Transparency, arXiv:2311.16863. https://arxiv.org/abs/2311.16863
Lucivero, F. (2020). Big Data, Big Waste? A Reflection on the Environmental Sustainability of Big Data Initiatives, Science and Engineering Ethics, 26, 1009-1030. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11948-019-00171-7
Orsenigo, E., & Valentini, M. (2024). La funzione educativa dei mondi possibili. Lifelong Lifewide Learning, 21(44), 71-81. https://doi.org/10.19241/lll.v21i44.833
Pasqualetti, F. (2024). Ecologia, digitale, spiritualità. Castelvecchi.
Pitron, G. (2022). Inferno digitale: Perché internet, smartphone e social network stanno distruggendo il nostro pianeta (O. Chirizzi, Trad.). Luiss University Press. (Original work published 2021).
Pitron, G., & Jacobsohn, B. (2023). The Dark Cloud: The Hidden Cost of the Digital World. Scribe.
Pouydebat, E. (2021). Quando gli animali e le piante ci ispirano: Come scienza e tecnologia imparano dalla natura. Espress. (Original work published 2019).
Priestley, M., Biesta, G., Robinson S. (2015) Teacher Agency: An Ecological Approach. Bloombury.
Rancière, J. (2007). Il disaccordo: Politica e filosofia (B. Magni, Trad.). Meltemi. (Original work published 1995).
Rancière, J. (2022). La partizione del sensibile: Estetica e politica (F. Caliri, Trad.). Derive Approdi. (Original work published 2000).
Rosa, H. (2015). Accelerazione e alienazione: Per una teoria critica del tempo nella tarda modernità (E. Leonzio, Trad.). Einaudi. (Original work published 2010).
Rosa, H. (2023). Risonanza e vita buona: educazione e capitalismo accelerato. Conversazioni con Nathanaël Wallenhorst (P. C. Rivoltella, Trad.). Scholé. (Original work published 2022).
Rossi, L., Borghini, A. (2024). Oltre il dualismo natura/cultura. Sfide teor-etiche per l’antropocene. Castelvecchi.
Roundy, J. (2023). Assess the Environmental Impact of Data Centers. Tech Target. https://www.techtarget.com/searchdatacenter/feature/Assess-the-environmental-impact-of-data-centers
Sissa, G. (2024). Le emissioni segrete. L’impatto ambientale dell’universo digitale. Il Mulino.
Stiegler, B. (2024). Pensare, curare: Riflessioni sul pensiero nell’epoca della post-verità (R. Corda, Trad.). Meltemi. (Original work published 2024).
UNFCCC (2016). Paris Agreement. https://unfccc.int/process-and-meetings/the-paris-agreement
Wu, T. (2021). La maledizione dei giganti: Un manifesto per la concorrenza e la democrazia (J. Foggi, Trad.). Il Mulino. (Original work published 2018).
Wittgenstein, L. (2009). Tractatus logico-philosophicus (A.G. Conte, Trad.). Einaudi. (Original work published 1921).