Connected and Sustainable Buildings
Connected Urban Development Perspective
As populations of cities overtake those of rural areas for the first time in history, sustainability and technology are emerging as two sides of the same coin: both are innovations for cities seeking to improve their environmental effectiveness in the context of connected societies, global competitiveness, economic development, climate change, and demographic shifts. Because the form and function of built environments are responsible for 75 percent of global energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions, most attention in sustainable urban design and development has been directed to three sectors: buildings, transportation, and energy. Today, it is becoming evident that a fourth, equally important element must be addressed: urban ICT.
When it comes to urban sustainability, ICT is part of the problem (based on its contribution to overall energy consumption), but an even bigger element of the solution. A recent study, for example, found that ICT is a significant contributor to energy efficiency: for every extra kilowatt-hour of electricity demanded by ICT, the U.S. economy increases its overall energy savings by a factor of 10.
Urban ICT contributes to the sustainable development of buildings and cities in three ways: directly, indirectly, and systemically:
Direct effects
Are caused by urban ICT infrastructures. Mature cities already estimate that the direct ICT contribution to their environmental footprint is as large as 15 percent.
Indirect effects
result from usage of ICT applications—for instance, the virtualization and collaboration of design, construction, and operations services, as well as visualization and analysis of the sustainability performance of built environments. This has a positive impact on the environment.
Systemic effects
Link the network impact of ICT to society at large, with implications for urban design, development, and policy tools. While these long-term effects will have the most significant impact on sustainability, they are not well understood.