How can we use the Internet to help solve environmental problems?

Question

I have mentioned sharing CPU time with research groups. Also, although it is still a new idea, things like ordering groceries over the Internet can help a great deal in many ways. First the delivery person can drive only one vehicle and plan the most efficient route to deliver thus cutting down on all the vehicle usage that would have occurred if each person had driven to the store. Also if a store only warehoused groceries it would not have to waste a tremendous amount of resources making the place "nice" for shoppers. This also would help lower costs of goods as the overhead would be reduced.

This is just one way. What other ways can you think of that the Internet would be useful to help us with our environmental problems?

Answer 1

The Internet can be used to raise awareness, especially among the younger generation. While they may be spending less time on reading newspapers, they spend more time on the internet. They are also the future consumers and unfortunately are targeted by advertisers from a very early age. They also grow up with the idea that bigger is better, or more is better. Thus they want bigger cars, without realizing the environmental costs; they want processed food without realizing the various environmental hazards that can come from the enormous amounts of packaging needed; they believe in science and progress blindly sometimes without realizing that patenting a seed by a multimilliondollar corporation is not only going to harm the traditional farmers the world over, but will also lead to less variety and ultimately to crop monoculture (as is already happening with Monsanto's promotion of Soybeans)....

Many of us are not even aware of these issues... and awareness is the first step to finding a solution. As we are finding in some schools where children are helping to grow organic vegetables, their diets are changing away from junk foods. Similarly, if many of us get to know about the various small ways we may contribute to solving environmental problems, we can do something to change our habits. Most importantly, if we get to know of the bigger issues concerning the environment (example of Monsanto given above or USA's refusal to be a part of the Kyoto Protocol) then collectively we can take a stand to influence the higher level policy decisions.
The internet could step in at this stage too, in helping with grassroots level organization, with informational newsletters, signature campaigns, etc.

Answer 2

Any economy is based on information and energy. All economic activity, deep down, is based on energy usage and information transfer.

As we have developed more and more technology, especially information technology, we are able to use energy more efficiently and get more economic value per joule. Energy equates to resources, so any way to reduce energy inputs in economic activity help the environment overall.

"Also, although it is still a new idea, things like ordering groceries over the Internet can help a great deal in many ways. "

Webvan was tried and failed. I think you fail to see an obvious point, which is that ecological efficiency and economic efficiency are often aligned. It's actually more efficient, overall, for the person to go to the store, since their labor in picking the
Now why is that? Because you are neglecting the *information* side of the equation as well as the labor of shopping itself.

Now here's a thought. Can we get extremely well-stocked, low-price convenience stores? What if instead of delivering to the home, it was delivered to the closest convenience store?

I dont know the answer, but I do know that the right environmental answer will just happen to be the most economical one. No other way.

A whole other angle:
There is a company that is getting into load-sharing to stop blackouts and brownouts in the Northeast US. Using the internet, they can order specific buildings in NYC to raise their thermostat or dim light, recapture the saves energy ... for the utilities, it's like saving them a 'peaker' power plant in the summer.

Information technology has great promise for saving energy, for sure.

Answer 3

easy. just look for a person in the computer has a big name in a big company that involves solving environmental problems.

Answer 4

Knowledge!
According to the Greek philosophy there is only one sin: absence of knowledge! Thus, the only solution is to expand knowledge!

Answer 5

or maybe you can stay off the internet and save the electricity