How technology helps secure our environment

Posted on 18th March 2020

hand holding a plant

Written by Brad Smith, Technology expert at TurnOnVPN

Technology has experienced rapid development since a few decades ago and has disrupted typical procedures and frameworks put in place across several industries. In light of this fact, it is very beneficial for humans to take advantage of this opportunity to work out a way technology could be used to improve our environment. The shift in technological development towards enhancing our planet would do us a lot of good which includes the inhibition of climate change, and a better home for future generations to live in.

Unlike the previous generations, young people today are becoming increasingly conscious of the depreciating state of the earth due to industrialization, and are making efforts to save the environment. In fact, prominent brands that focus more on young customers are making donations and reducing the number of resources used to create their products to conform to the save-the-environment demands of the youthful population.

Quite a lot of people use technological devices to perform daily tasks and understand to an extent the limitless potentials of technology. However, how is technology being used to save the environment?

1. Reduction of Paper Waste

Maplewave, a Canadian firm, is looking to significantly lessen the amount of paper used by organizations. The company has gone international in its bid to influence nations across continents to share in their vision. The production of paper greatly harms a lot of our environmental resources. Studies have shown that to produce a single A4 paper, about 5 liters of water is consumed; a vast amount of resources that could be used to satisfy clean water scarcity in poor regions of the world.

It has been estimated that about half of the waste generated by businesses is made of paper. Maplewave seeks to eliminate this by persuading firms to adopt the use of digital contracts. Apart from the environmental benefits, the acceptance of digital contracts would lessen contracts costs to 15-40%.

2. Use of Electric Vehicles to Reduce Emission

More governments are starting to embrace the use of electric vehicles through the Electric Vehicles Initiative. The initiative has been agreed to by countries like the US, UK, Germany, and Canada. The benefits posed by the use of electric vehicles include increased air quality, better use of energy, and independence from the usage of fossil fuel.

The current valuation of the electric vehicles market is over $100 billion and is expected to reach $550 billion by the year 2025. The United Kingdom has already begun its zero-carbon initiative in a bid to reduce the use of fossil fuels to the barest minimum by the year 2040.

3. Protection of Endangered Wildlife

Technology is also helping to save our wildlife through the use of GPS, SIM-based collars, and drones. The extinction of a particular species could have consequences on the way we live, particularly in the mass increase of another species of animals. It could also create a ripple effect like the relocation of animals to human-populated communities.

GPS is used to monitor wildlife helps humans to predict animal behavior and migration patterns. Large drones are being used to take samples from large animals for the purpose of research. Technology in the health sector has also gone further to help animals by providing cures to diseases that plagued different species.

4. Introduction of Tech into Agriculture

The traditional form of agriculture has been reduced in recent times majorly because of available land being used for homes and businesses. Technology has introduced new forms of agriculture to us like robotic farming and genetic food. Precision agriculture helps to improve crop yield by relaying data to farmers through the use of satellite images and sensors. High-rise buildings are being used as greenhouses, making the idea of vertical farms possible. Robotic farming also reduces human effort pertaining to the matter of planting and observing pants while hastening these processes. Any sensors installed in farms are likely internet-enabled or connected at least to the internal network. These smart sensors are hence part of the Internet of Things. This is noteworthy because primitive sensors hooked online are usually susceptible to hacking through Man-in-the-Middle attacks. Farm owners looking to set up their own should be aware of the risks associated with internet-based sensor networks.

Technology is now being viewed as one of the most important methods of saving the environment. The focus on environmental waste and the preservation of earth’s resources has led to actions like the reduction of paper use, the monitoring of animals to preserve wildlife, and increased production of electric vehicles


Brad Smith is a technology expert at TurnOnVPN, a non-profit promoting a safe, secure, and censor-free internet. He writes about his dream for a free internet and unravels the horror behind big techs.

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