What is the environmentally conscious design (ECD) and eco-design of digital services

As an IT / digital consulting company, we have witnessed the expansion of the digital sector and are aware of its growing environmental impact. By 2040, it could account for up to 7% of greenhouse gas emissions, according to ARCEP, France's Regulatory Authority for Electronic Communications, Postal Affairs, and Press Distribution.

Faced with that crisis, it is essential to rethink our practices. One of the answers lies in the environmentally conscious design of digital products and services. Discover the fundamental principles of this approach and the specific features of the eco-conception of digital services.

What does ECD stand for? What are the indicators and regulations governing this practice? How can ECD be applied to a digital project? What are factual examples of eco-designed projects or services?    

What is environmentally conscious design (ECD)?

ECD is a multilateral approach that extends to all stages in the life cycle of a product or service, (this approach tends to minimise conception problems and risks associated with it). The aim is to reduce negative environmental impacts while improving positive ones.

It's important to note that eco-conception includes all potential environmental impacts, not only air pollution or water consumption; it takes into account everything that can have an impact on nature or society.

In a project of this scale, all the stakeholders need to be involved! From suppliers to users, through associated products, as a way to find the right opportunities for improvement and to reduce environmental impact.

ECD is a sharp and long-term approach that promotes innovation in the marketplace. The goal is not only balancing product or service quality, but also responding to customer requirements and, as always, reducing environmental impact.

ECD : “ IEC 62430:2019 : The main purpose of this document is to set requirements and give guidance on how an organisation can integrate environmentally conscious design (ECD) into their design and development.”

“Leyla Acaroglu: “Every product or service that we use and appreciate is part of a much wider life cycle."

The French Agency for Ecological Transition (ADEME) supports organisations in implementing this approach and offers technical and financial tools for launching and labelling the product or service.

Traditional eco-design focuses on the responsible design of physical products; the eco-design of digital services is much wider because it incorporates sustainable development, hosting, and use of digital solutions.    

CLOSE-UP LOOK ON THE ECO-DESIGN OF DIGITAL SERVICES

According to a report made by the ARCEP, digital pollution will represent between 3 and 4% of GHGs by 2023. This ecological footprint is continuously evolving because of the exponential growth of our digital consumption (data creation and use of digital objects), combined with a low eco-responsibility / recycling culture.

The main idea in the design of digital services resides in a 3-dimensional balance: cost, workability, and client satisfaction. In order to make that design sustainable, it is essential to take into account these 3 points:

• Planet: environmental aspect

• Society and People: the human aspect associated with accessibility and ethics.

• Prosperity: a long-term vision of a sustainable service.

It is crucial to integrate eco-design as the main strategy of the company. Which implies changing a tactical approach into a more strategic one. In order to do so, organisations can use referential documents known as the General Ecodesign Guidelines for Digital Services (GESN) - le Référentiel Général d'Écoconception des Services Numériques (RGESN)    

General Ecodesign Guidelines for Digital Services (GEGDS-RGESN)

In 2021, the GEGDS-RGESN established a collaborative consortium with The French Agency for Ecological Transition, The Responsible Digital Institute (RDI - INR) and, The Interministerial Digital Department (IDD - DINUM), the handbook regroups more than 500 good practice guidelines divided into 8 key steps regarding the conception of digital services:

• Strategic

• Technical specifications

• Architecture

• UX/UI

• Content

• Front-end

• Back-end

• Hosting

Actually, to simplify and prioritise the important points, the RGESN has selected 78 good practice guidelines divided into 8 themes. They have been conceived to guide companies in their eco-design and digital approach, with an emphasis on environmental, human, and financial aspects.

The eco-design approach is voluntary and gradual, it takes time. It is possible to measure the readiness of an eco-conceptual project with the help of NumEcoDiag (Chrome extension), a tool that acts as an evaluation system for the 78 criteria established by the RGESN.

This new guideline is an enhancement for other references, such as the General Framework for Improving Accessibility (GFIA - RGAA) and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR - RGPD). These standards provide a comprehensive framework for the responsible and sustainable design of digital services.    

IN PRACTICE, HOW DO YOU GET STARTED WITH THE ECO DESIGN OF DIGITAL SERVICES?

It is crucial to base your approach on the fundamental principles of product ecodesign and to consider the entire life cycle of the service. The process can be structured into five distinct phases:

1. Communicating with stakeholders: The eco-design of a digital project requires the commitment of all stakeholders. It is essential that everyone share the same vision with an active and consistent commitment.

2. Initiating the project: This stage involves defining the standards and norms that need to be taken into account, such as the GESN, GFIA (general framework for improving accessibility), GDPR.

3. Conducting an audit: This involves measuring the project's maturity in terms of eco-design and identifying the areas requiring improvement.

4. Progressive deployment of the standards: A prioritisation of good practices is established, and changes are gradually implemented as part of the project.

5. Gaining autonomy: The aim is to incorporate the practices, so that eco-design becomes a recurring and integrated practice in the organisation/company.   It will depend on the specific priorities and choices, because we can find a variety of practices and tools to implement them. For example, the INR website offers a beta version of a toolbox containing over 280 tools, available here.    

EXAMPLES OF ECO-DESIGN WEBSITES

Ocean Fifty - This website has been designed in an eco-responsible manner, with optimised elements:

• Optimised design: use of locally installed typography, choice of a responsible web host, optimisation of HTML and CSS codes, absence of GAFA plugins, etc.
• Simplified structure with one page per needed piece of information.
• Accessible, lightweight graphics: minimal use of images, illustrations, motion animations for interactive elements, etc.

Commown - The Commown cooperative is offering an eco-designed website to promote sober and committed electronics. Here are some of the features:

• Use of eco-responsible servers.
• Promoting open source software to encourage the functionality of the economy (a system that prioritises the use rather than the sale of a product)
• Non-use of GAFA plugins.
• Website accessibility.
• Reducing the number of pages and requests to minimise the environmental footprint.

Sources & references

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_pzgfhz6i8 https://www.eco-conception.fr/ https://youmatter.world/en/homepage/ https://label-nr.fr/en/home/ https://ecoresponsable.numerique.gouv.fr/publications/referentiel-general-ecoconception/ https://www.specinov.fr/bao/referentiel-rgesn-gr491