An Agent Based approach for sustainable ICT services toward environmental sustainability: The use of Agent Based Models to explain the ICT-driven (societal) behavioural changes and their effects on environmental sustainability

Abstract

ICTs have a direct impact on the environment, consuming energy, materials and producing e-waste. But ICTs are the major enabling technology for mitigation of environmental impacts across all economic sectors. ICT applications and services can help limit energy use and material consumption. In other words ICTs can contribute in achieving more sustainable lifestyles, consumption and production. The full exploitation of ICTs environmental potential benefits needs taking into account the social dimension of ICT as a service, where there is a shift of role from user to co-producer. After a short overview related to the assessment of ICTs service effects on the environment, we will focus on the role that users, consumers or citizens can play in spreading and adopting beneficial behavior. The enabling factor of this active participative role is the collective situational awareness about environmental effects of actions that can counter possible rebound effects and make a green behavior easier. Agent Based Model simulation is the proposed approach to study such individual and collective behavioral changes in using ICT services.