Increased use of information and communication technology (ICT) such as video conferencing and smart building management could cut global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 16.5% by 2020, amounting to $1.9 trillion in gross energy and fuel savings. SMARTer2020, a new study unveiled shows that concerted action by policy-makers to encourage the use of ICT can save 9.1 Gigatonnes carbon dioxide equivalent (GtCO2e) of harmful greenhouse gases from being emitted.
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The study was conducted by The Boston Consulting Group (BCG), a management consulting firm, on behalf of the Global e-Sustainability Initiative (GeSI), an ICT industry partnership for sustainability. It concludes that the potential for information technology to reduce global carbon emissions has been under-estimated until now, and that the abatement potential of ICT is seven times the size of the ICT sector’s own carbon footprint. The findings are being released today in a report titled "SMARTer2020".
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SMARTer2020 follows up the SMART2020 study, which first evaluated ICT’s potential to enable a low-carbon economy in 2008. The updated in-depth research in SMARTer2020 now concludes that up to 16.5% of global GHG emissions can be slashed by implementing ICT solutions throughout the economy – over 16% more savings than was calculated in the earlier study four years ago.
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 “It is critical that the world captures every last bit of energy efficiency, if we are to reduce greenhouse gas emissions enough to keep below dangerous rises in temperature. I am pleased that this important new study shows how information and communication technology can play an essential role in saving energy. Now we need more and effective government policies that reward such action and penalize delayed responses,” said, Luis Neves, GeSI Chairman.
