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Digital Cleanup Day

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Digital Cleanup Day
Formation2020
FoundersKevin Guerin
TypeCollective of associations: Institut du numérique responsable, World Cleanup Day France, Let's Do It! World
PurposeRaising awareness of the environmental impact of digital technology through action
HeadquartersRoosikrantsi 3, Tallinn, Estonia
Region
Worldwide (more than 170 countries and territories)
MethodsMobilizing businesses, local authorities, associations, schools, citizens, and individuals to organize Digital Cleanups every March to clean up their data, repair their digital equipment, or collect digital WEEE (Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment)
President
Heidi Solba
Websitewww.digitalcleanupday.org

The Digital Cleanup Day is an annual event to raise global awareness about the environmental impact of the digital industry. This initiative encourages people to take concrete action by cleaning up their digital data and/or giving a second life to their unused computer equipment.[1] It takes place every third Saturday in March.[2]

History

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In 2019, drawing inspiration from the World Cleanup Day, computer scientist Kévin Guerin came up with the idea of a digital version, specifically focused on the Cyberspace and comparable to Black Friday/Cyber Monday – the Cyber World CleanUp Day. Guerin proposed a partnership between World Cleanup Day France, providing communication and mobilization expertise, and the think tank Institute of Sustainable IT (ISIT), providing the technical expertise for a more environmentally responsible digital world.[3][4]

The event was launched in France in 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic provided the opportunity to convey eight easy recipes for a CyberCleanUp, focused on data cleaning, to the World Cleanup Day community, who were accustomed to cleaning up nature and were now confined to their homes. The idea spread from France[5][6][7][8] to other countries, like Italy[9] and Switzerland,[10][11] Poland,[12] Netherlands,[13][14][15] Germany,[16][17][18] Brazil,[19] USA,[20][21][22] UK,[23][24] Israel,[25] Croatia,[26][27] Tunesia,[28] Senegal,[29] Belgium,[30] Philippines[31] and Indonesia.[32] Alone in 2023 Digital Cleanup Day has taken place in 122 countries.[33]

In 2021 the global civic organization Let's Do It! World (LDIW), which is an accredited member of the United Nations Environment Programme,[34] included this project in its annual plans and set the third Saturday of March as the annual date. In 2023 the Cyber World Cleanup Day changed its name to Digital Cleanup Day.[35][36]

Environmental impacts

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Initially, it was thought that the digital age would benefit the environment by reducing paper consumption. However, the carbon footprint of the digital industry has increased as digital consumption grows exponentially.[37]

The French Environment and Energy Management Agency (ADEME) estimated in its study The hidden face of digital published in 2019, that the digital sector was responsible for 4% of total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, a figure that could double by 2025 with the significant increase in digital use.[38][39] According to the Global Energy & CO2 Status Report 2019 by the International Energy Agency the internet and its supporting systems produce 900 million tons of CO2 every year, which is more than the annual emissions of the whole of Germany. The internet might consume 20% of the world's total energy by 2030.[40][41]

"Deleting an email is like turning the water off while you brush your teeth", as Caroline Donnelly from Computer Weekly puts it.[42] However, online videos account for the largest share of global data streams, namely 80%.[43] All data on the Internet, even when it is not being used, must be kept available 24/7 by data centers all over the world and therefore consumes energy and cooling water even when inactive.[42]

The main objective of the Digital Cleanup Day is to limit the environmental impacts caused by the increasing use of digital technologies. It encourages all actors in the area to delete unnecessary computer files, emails, unused applications, old conversation histories on social networks and to give a second life to digital equipment by opting for repair or reuse.[44][45]

National initiatives independent of the global project

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Estonia

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  • Telia Estonia's Digital Cleanup Day since 2019[46][47]

USA

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  • every 2nd Monday in February since 2000 National Clean Out Your Computer Day[48][49]

Canada

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  • every 3rd Monday of October since 2010 National Clean Out Your Virtual Desktop Day[50][51]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "When Is Your Digital Cleanup Day?". CMSWire.com. Retrieved 2023-03-23.
  2. ^ "Digital Cleanup Day – International day of digital cleanup – Data – Reuse – Recycling". www.CyberWorldCleanUpDay.fr. Retrieved 2024-03-04.
  3. ^ "Interview Kévin Guérin – Cyber World CleanUp Day" (in French). 2020-09-04. Retrieved 2024-03-04.
  4. ^ "Pollution numérique : l'heure du grand nettoyage de printemps !". France Inter (in French). 2021-03-14. Retrieved 2023-03-17.
  5. ^ "Emission de gaz à effet de serre : grand nettoyage numérique de printemps dans le Gard". France 3 Occitanie (in French). 15 March 2021. Retrieved 2023-03-17.
  6. ^ "Nettoyage de printemps des données numériques à Saint-Alban". ladepeche.fr (in French). Retrieved 2023-03-17.
  7. ^ "Agde : "Digital Cleanup Day" le 18 mars à la MAG – Hérault Tribune". www.herault-tribune.com (in French). Retrieved 2023-03-27.[permanent dead link‍]
  8. ^ "À Quimper, le Centre des abeilles soucieux de l'empreinte environnementale du numérique". Le Telegramme (in French). 2022-03-07. Retrieved 2023-03-27.
  9. ^ "Anche un'email inquina: proviamo a ridurre l'impatto ecologico dei nostri rifiuti digitali". la Repubblica (in Italian). 2023-03-18. Retrieved 2023-03-27.
  10. ^ "Serge Dal Busco: "En matière de durabilité numérique, l'Etat doit montrer l'exemple"". Le Temps. 18 March 2022.
  11. ^ "Journée genevoise "D-Tox, je nettoie mes données" le 17 mars". www.geneve.ch (in French). Retrieved 2023-03-26.
  12. ^ "Planet Heroes – The first eco crowdfunding platform". planetheroes.pl. Retrieved 2023-03-26.
  13. ^ "Digitaal ontspullen goed voor milieu maar blijft druppel op gloeiende plaat | Commentaar". Leidsch Dagblad (in Flemish). 18 March 2023. Retrieved 2023-03-26.
  14. ^ "Dataverbruik belangrijk aandeel in CO2-uitstoot bedrijven – Vroege Vogels – BNNVARA". Vroege Vogels (in Dutch). Retrieved 2023-03-26.
  15. ^ "Digital Cleanup Day: 4 redenen waarom jouw bedrijf een digitale schoonmaak nodig heeft". de Ondernemer (in Dutch). Retrieved 2023-11-05.
  16. ^ "Digital Cleanup Day: Überflüssige Mails, Daten und Apps – Onlineportal von IT Management". www.it-daily.net (in German). 2023-03-17. Retrieved 2023-03-26.
  17. ^ e.V, Bitkom (17 March 2023). "Digital Cleanup Day: 73 Prozent löschen überflüssige Mails, Daten und Apps für mehr Klimaschutz | Presseinformation | Bitkom e.V." www.bitkom.org (in German). Retrieved 2023-03-27.
  18. ^ GmbH, vivanty Media (2023-03-17). "Digital Cleanup Day: Bitkom gibt 5 Tipps zum digitalen Aufräumen". INFOSAT – Alles aus der digitalen Welt (in German). Retrieved 2023-03-27.
  19. ^ Redação (2023-03-17). "Even an email pollutes: let's try to reduce the ecological impact of our digital waste". A.A.N (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 2023-03-27. Retrieved 2023-03-27.
  20. ^ Dame, Marketing Communications: Web | University of Notre (18 March 2023). "Digital Cleanup Day | Office of Sustainability | University of Notre Dame". Office of Sustainability. Retrieved 2023-03-27.
  21. ^ Rhodes, Phil. "March 18 is Digital Cleanup Day – apparently". www.redsharknews.com. Retrieved 2023-03-27.
  22. ^ Sandle, Dr Tim (2023-03-15). "Cleaning up digital data for the environment and business efficiency". Digital Journal. Retrieved 2023-03-27.
  23. ^ "Digital Cleanup Day: Our plans". www.nexerdigital.com. 18 March 2022. Retrieved 2023-03-27.
  24. ^ Mill, The Skill (2022-03-15). "Digital Cleanup Day – 19 March 2022". theskillmill. Retrieved 2023-03-27.
  25. ^ Cohen, Doron Ben (2022-03-19). "How to celebrate Digital Cleanup Day, March 19th 2022 | Atera's Blog". Atera – RMM software | PSA & Remote Access for IT Pros. Retrieved 2023-03-27.
  26. ^ "Association Calls on Croatians to Join Digital Cleanup Day". www.total-croatia-news.com. 19 March 2022. Retrieved 2024-03-02.
  27. ^ "DIGITAL CLEANUP DAY". yerun.eu. 28 April 2022.
  28. ^ Belhassen, Samir (2022-03-19). "ESET : Un nettoyage de printemps pas comme les autres... Le Cyber World Clean Up Day nous y invite | iT-News" (in French). Retrieved 2023-03-27.
  29. ^ admin4life (2022-03-19). "On relève le défi du Cyber World CleanUp Day 2022!". IT4LIFE (in French). Retrieved 2023-03-27.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  30. ^ Geraldine (2022-03-23). "Cyber World Cleanup Day : FormaForm s'engage et agit sur la pollution numérique". FormaForm (in French). Retrieved 2023-03-27.
  31. ^ Team, The Good News Pilipinas (2022-10-25). "6 Ways To Do Digital CleanUp". Good News Pilipinas. Retrieved 2023-03-27.
  32. ^ "Digital Clean Day 2022 : Clean Your Cloud And Take Out Your Digital Trash! | CHANGEMAKR.ASIA". changemakr.asia. 2022-04-10. Retrieved 2023-03-27.
  33. ^ "Digital Cleanup Day : Bilan de la 4ème édition" (in French). 2023-04-26. Retrieved 2024-03-04.
  34. ^ Bluebob (2020-09-16). "Cyber World CleanUp Day : le grand ménage des données digitales ! -". FilGoodNews (in French). Retrieved 2023-03-17.
  35. ^ nrj.fr. "Cyber World CleanUp Day 2022: nettoyons ensemble nos données numériques !".
  36. ^ "PARIS : Votre entreprise souffre-t-elle d'un excès de données ? » La lettre économique et politique de PACA" (in French). Retrieved 2023-03-17.
  37. ^ "L'impact du numérique sur l'environnement... – Paris Côte d'Azur". pariscotedazur.fr. Retrieved 2023-03-17.
  38. ^ "Une journée pour nettoyer ses données numériques". Le Monde.fr (in French). 2020-09-19. Retrieved 2023-03-22.
  39. ^ Douville, Thibault (2020). "L'émergence des cyber-risques". Archives de Philosophie du Droit (in French). 62 (1) (2020/1, Tome 62 ed.): 289–298. doi:10.3917/apd.621.0304. S2CID 238147043.
  40. ^ IEA (2019), Global Energy & CO2 Status Report 2019, IEA, Paris https://www.iea.org/reports/global-energy-co2-status-report-2019, Licence: CC BY 4.0
  41. ^ e.V, Brandenburg 21 (23 February 2023). "Brandenburg 21 e.V. – Jetzt planen: Am 18. März ist Digital Cleanup Day". www.nachhaltig-in-brandenburg.de (in German). Retrieved 2023-03-27.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  42. ^ a b "Digital Cleanup Day: It's time to take out the digital trash – Ahead in the Clouds". www.computerweekly.com. Retrieved 2023-03-18.
  43. ^ Efoui-Hess, Maxime. "Climate Crisis: The Unsustainable Use of Online Video" (PDF). p. 4. Retrieved 2024-03-05.
  44. ^ "Le Cyber World CleanUp Day: une journée des bonnes pratiques numériques". www.linfodurable.fr (in French). 14 March 2021. Retrieved 2023-03-17.
  45. ^ "Diminuer notre empreinte numérique". www.larochelle.fr. Retrieved 2023-03-17.
  46. ^ "TalTech signed up for the nationwide Digital Cleanup Day | TalTech". taltech.ee. 2020-07-05. Retrieved 2023-03-26.
  47. ^ "Dozens of terabytes of digital waste deleted during Telia Digital Cleanup Day 2024". www.baltictimes.com. 2024-02-02. Retrieved 2024-03-05.
  48. ^ Carper, Theresa (2020-02-11). "National Clean Out Your Computer Day – February 8". National Today. Retrieved 2023-03-26.
  49. ^ "Clean Out Your Computer Day – Fun Holiday". www.timeanddate.com. Retrieved 2023-03-26.
  50. ^ "National Clean Out Your Virtual Desktop Day – Fun Holiday". www.timeanddate.com. Retrieved 2024-03-04.
  51. ^ Pittman, Cody (2020-10-17). "National Clean Your Virtual Desktop Day". National Today. Retrieved 2024-03-04.
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