A new green, environmentally friendly website solution & direction

TL;DR: Why we now build environmentally friendly websites for businesses.

How this road to Damascus moment happened?

Whilst over the Christmas period and everybody was winding down for the end-of-year festivities, I was laid up in bed with pneumonia. It gave me time to reflect, and implement the Japanese philosophy of kaizen 改善 – which is all about continuous improvement.

QED web design needed to make a difference with our websites, websites that are less damaging to the environment, but not to sacrifice speed or functionality.

Making our Environmentally friendly website.

Our hosting is already one of the best around, on our behalf our hosting company has planted 54 trees to offset our website’s carbon footprints. But that’s not enough. Reducing the carbon created per page view was a good place to start.

Over January, the QED website was redesigned, better code implemented, and eventually, the amount of carbon per page view was reduced from 0.24g to 0.09g. This puts our site into the top 9% of least polluting websites.

That’s great I hear you say, but what about your clients?

Improving business websites

Recently we took over the management & hosting of Morgan-Huntley Associates’ website. It performed poorly by any metric.

Just by implementing one change, QED reduced the page view carbon by 95%. Then came the transformation, the Google Lighthouse scores were increased significantly – performance is up by 57.7%, which in turn will help with SEO and page ranking as well as a better user experience (UX).

To read more about this case study: See our client Morgan-Huntley Associates in our portfolio.

It’s not a sales gimmick

I read recently on one website design agency’s sustainability page:

“Working and creating websites in a sustainable way, whilst simultaneously reducing your carbon footprint. More than just a marketing quirk…we really mean it.”

The problem is, that it is a gimmick – Their website currently produces 0.48g per user per page view, it’s graded as C, and is 50% dirtier than other websites globally. Hardly the shining example of a environmentally friendly website they claim to make.

There are several tools out there that can measure a website’s carbon footprint. QED web design is transparent in our efforts, and we regularly post on social media any progress we’ve made.

How does QED do it?

Green Hosting:

QED partners with eco-friendly web hosting providers that utilise renewable energy sources like wind and solar power. But also our hosting company offset some additional carbon by planting trees. Choosing green hosting can significantly reduce your website’s footprint. (Source: The Shift Project)

Did you know the internet contributes around 2% of global carbon emissions?

Lightweight Website Development:

We optimise websites for speed and efficiency, leading to reduced server load and energy consumption. A study by Google found that optimising websites for faster loading times can reduce energy use by up to 87%. (Source: Google Sustainability)

Sustainable Design Elements:

We minimise resource-heavy graphics and plugins, favouring clean, code-efficient designs that load faster and require less energy.

Carbon Footprint Reporting:

We provide clients with a report & link to their website’s carbon footprint, empowering them to make informed decisions and offset their impact.

Client Education:

We educate clients on the environmental impact of websites and share resources for adopting sustainable practices.

Like-minded partners

Often when you change direction it can feel like you are shouting into the void. However, in Design Declares we feel like we’ve found some kindred spirits.

Their manifesto says:

“We know all we need to make this a reality. The information, the guidance, the inspiration and solutions are there. What design needs now is action – meaningful steps that can begin to connect what we know to what we do. This is the most important brief of our lives.”

The ‘Eight Acts of Emergency’ from the Design Declares website are:

1. SOUND THE ALARM
Acknowledge and raise awareness of the climate and ecological crisis – including its roots in systems of oppression – in our organisations and our practice.
2. START THE JOURNEY
Invest in educating ourselves and our teams on methods of sustainable and regenerative design, and show leadership by making measurable change to our practice. The Design Declares Toolkit is a great place to start.
3. BRING CLIENTS WITH US
Meaningfully consider environmental and social impacts as part of every pitch, proposal and production process. Not every design output will be carbon-neutral or fully climate-friendly, but every project is an opportunity to make real progress.
4. MEASURE WHAT WE MAKE
Measure the environmental and social impact of our work and design projects, and hold ourselves to account for what we find out.
5. REDEFINE ‘GOOD’
Encourage, recognise and reward sustainable and regenerative design excellence in our industry through media and awards.
6. EDUCATE, ACCELERATE
Build and foster intra- and cross-discipline knowledge networks to share tools, resources and best practice to accelerate progress in our industry.
7. DESIGN FOR JUSTICE
Create with and for the people who are disproportionately affected both by climate change and by the transition to a lower-carbon world.
8. AMPLIFY VOICES FOR CHANGE
Enable systemic change by working alongside policymakers, campaigners, ecologists, scientists, activists and others to strengthen local and national movements for change.

Why do we need to change?

Because, quite frankly, the way that the internet & IT impacts the planet is scary. Here are just a few of the statistics, if you ever needed convincing that we need to change to more environmentally friendly website solutions, then this is it:

Negative Impacts:

Data Centers & Infrastructure:

– Account for 3.7% of global greenhouse gas emissions, similar to the aviation industry. (Source: The Shift Project, 2019)

– Energy-intensive due to 24/7 operation and cooling needs. (Source: Nimbus Hosting, 2023)

– Projected to reach 14% of global emissions by 2040 if unchecked. (Source: Boston Consulting Group)

E-waste & Material Use:

– Rapid technology turnover generates millions of tons of electronic waste annually. (Source: Earth.Org)

– Mining rare earth elements for devices has ethical and environmental concerns. (Source: National Geographic, 2023)

Energy Consumption:

– Streaming video makes up 80% of global data flows, contributing significantly to emissions. (Source: Earth.Org)

– Watching a 30-minute video can generate 1.6kg of carbon emissions. (Source: Earth.Org)

– Individual user choices, like video quality and streaming time, contribute to the impact.

Positive Impacts:

Reduced Paper Use:

– Digital communication and documents can save trees and resources. (Source: Green Alliance, 2023)

– Increased Efficiency:

– Telecollaboration and smart grids can optimise resource use and reduce travel emissions. (Source: The World Bank, 2021)

Environmental Monitoring & Innovation:

– IT can help track environmental changes, manage resources sustainably, and develop green technologies. (Source: UN Environment Programme, 2022)

Additional Notes:

The environmental impact of IT is complex and evolving. Both negative and positive aspects need to be considered for a balanced understanding. Individual choices and technological advancements can influence the overall impact. However, we should expect candidates for elected office to be leading the way

Further Resources:

The Shift Project: https://theshiftproject.org/en/home/
Green Alliance: https://green-alliance.org.uk/
The World Bank: https://www.worldbank.org/en/home
UN Environment Programme: https://www.unep.org/