IGF 2018 WS #92 " ICT and Environment Sustainability"

Global environment is fundamental to achieve sustainable and resilient human Society. Governments which are striving to achieve sustainable economy must give priority to environment protection with reasonable policy and Technology solutions. The environmental impact of internet technologies are of high importance for policy makers at all levels to shape a greener digital future. There are many environmental challenges that we face nowadays, Climate change is one of the most urgent challenges facing humanity and collective action is required to shape a more environmentally sustainable digital future. Climate change is an important area of investigation to guarantee this sustainable growth, taking into account the Internet Footprint. Developing countries hardly contribute to climate change so concrete actions to help them in climate change adaptation. In this respect, the Internet and ICTs can be enabling tools to diminish climate change and enhance adaptation to it. This can be achieved through climate monitoring and data collection. Digitization also provides a golden opportunity to the Water and sanitation sector to solve problems of lack of information coordination that hinders development. Cloud computing and data enhances information on water flow, pressure, temperature and other metrics that lets the utility providers optimize the water supply distribution in addition to monitoring the usage and wastage of water. Meanwhile, cloud computing augments water system maintenance through recognizing when and exactly where a leak occurs within their piping systems in a trial to diminish future breaks and decrease water management costs. In addition, the Internet results in reduction in waste disposal by saving human work and increasing efficiency. The main aim of the workshop is to address the impact of digitization on the global environment and how Big Data availability will better enable decision makers to avoid its drawbacks and enlarge its benefits. In Egypt, the Environment pillar is an essential component of Egypt 2030. Using IT will be deployed to rationalize the use of natural resources and find non-traditional alternatives to ensure their sustainability and focus on the axis of the environment to achieve water security and quality of water resources. Meanwhile, employing IT serves the target of reducing air pollution loads and pollution from untreated waste with serious environmental and health impacts while maximizing the utilization of natural resources through the use of solid waste with a focus on municipal solid waste. In addition, Egypt seeks to use IT to maintain the balance of ecosystems, biodiversity and to achieve good governance. As a result, Egypt's implementation of its international and regional obligations towards the environmental conventions will be accomplished, especially via the development of the necessary mechanisms to ensure compliance with local policies, using IT. Egypt is one of the leading developing countries has been massively investing in building its information technology .It is estimated that there are more than 35 million Internet users in Egypt with more than 4 million fixed broadband lines and 35 million mobile broadband wireless users (Internet Society, June 2017). At the same time, the Egyptian government has exerted efforts to green IT products, applications and services to save the environment and to reduce carbon emissions. Yet, there are other steps need to be taken. Egypt has also developed many National strategies, among which the national strategy for the disaster risk reduction taking into consideration the role of new in developing an early warning system and raising public awareness and to facilitate the coordination between all stakeholders and responders on different levels, national and internationally and locally. Egypt also has developed a National strategy for climate change adaptation and a National strategy for climate change mitigation in accordance with Egypt Vision 2030. • What is the role of Digitization on Global Environmental issues? • What is the Internet & ICTs role for the eco- Sustainable Development Goals? • What is the environmental impact of the current and future technologies? • What are the fundamentals and national policies needed for Green ICT? • How technology can be employed to serve governments controlling risk associated with issues like climate change, Water Sanitation, Disaster risk management-Success Stories? • What ICT solutions can be offered for a sustainable future? • What actions need to be taken by different stakeholders to ensure that we have an environmentally sustainable digital future?