Green Information And Communication Technology Research Articles

Tackling Digital Degree in Education: Optimal Use of Green Information and Communication Technology (GICT)

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a significant increase in the use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in all areas of the education sector, particularly in developed economies as well as developing countries, regardless of preparedness. This is because, under the new normal, ICT adoption has become ubiquitous and fast-moving, even in the face of impending challenges. In the case of education, in particular, the disruption caused by the pandemic has caused ICT to become an instantaneous apparatus that has sustained the teaching and learning sector during the global lockdown that ravaged the world between 2019 and 2020, with consequences that are still visible today. Once more, the pandemic's outbreak made it clear to world leaders in numerous developing nations that they had no option but to use an ICT tool that was accelerating the growth of their countries' national knowledge bases. Notwithstanding the apparent difficulties integrating ICT into teaching and learning, the COVID-19 pandemic's effects accelerated the spread of ICT, forcing teachers and students in Nigeria and, in fact, around the world, to work online despite their readiness in terms of knowledge, abilities, and resources. In today's globalized world, ICT has become indispensable in filling gaps in the education sector, but it is also important to recognize the role of green information technology. This study examined how ICT instantly filled in the educational gaps during a pandemic-related lockdown, as well as how Green IT impacts our ecology. In order to truly close the digital divide that existed in the education sector in today's carefree world, the research has supplied the essential information and details, as well as recommendations for how to best use ICT tools to secure the ecosystem. Keywords: ICT, Covid -19 Pandemic, Green IT, Digital Divide. Aims Research Journal Reference Format: Malasowe, B.O., Okpor, M.D. & Edim, B.E. (2024): Tackling Digital Degree in Education: Optimal Use of Green Information and Communication Technology (GICT). Advances in Multidisciplinary and Scientific Research Journal Vol. 10. No. 1. Pp 67-76. www.isteams.net/aimsjournal. dx.doi.org/10.22624/AIMS/V10N1P5

Green ICT Methodology for Energy Consumption Calculation in ICT Architecture Components

As the usage of information and communication technology (ICT) solution have been exploded in the last decades, the research community exhibits a deficiency in terms of methodologies for accurately quantifying the energy consumption of individual ICT components. This paper presents a novel methodology aimed at addressing the existing research gap by offering a comprehensive analysis of energy consumption ranges for ICT components, measured in Watt. The methodology being proposed involves the classification of ICT components into distinct classes, namely sensors, gateways, servers-platforms, and databases, while these classes are further subdivided into sub-classes. The calculation of energy consumption places emphasis on particular components within each sub-class, encompassing CPUs, RAM, GPUs, hard drives, network switches, cooling systems, and communication units. Compared with existing green ICT standards where mainly focused on strategy-related recommendations, the methodology utilises manufacturers’ specifications for standard operational procedures in order to compute energy consumption. The objective of the methodology is to extend the current research and provide countable energy consumption attributes of various component types, that are used in the ICT architecture, supporting the decision-making process of architects regarding environmentally sustainable and high-performance device selection. This study concludes with the development of a tree diagram for calculating the energy consumption of an ICT system.

Revisiting the role of ICT and green institutional governance in environmental sustainability and proposing an ecological footprint mitigation pathway using a volatility-driven model

Ecological footprint has grown significantly, and the consequences of the unchecked exploitation of natural resources have begun to unfold with unprecedented severity. Although recent studies have highlighted how Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and green institutional quality could individually mitigate environmental degradation, the literature on their interactive effect has been marginalized. This study investigates the combined impact of ICT and green institutional quality on ecological footprint using nations of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). Additionally, the study introduces the Heteroscedasticity and Autocorrelation Consistent (HAC) model to forecast footprint and propose mitigation pathways that account for volatilities. The analysis in this study has been made using both the Driscoll Kraay Standard Estimator Model and the HAC model.The results indicate that the combined effects of green institutional governance and ICT yield a 0.0748% reduction in footprint. Again, the forecasted results show that if current trends persist, SCO nations will collectively increase their footprint from 1.639 in 2018 to 4.829 (number of earth) in 2040. However, if these countries follow the proposed pathways, they will collectively reduce their footprint to 0.3079 (number of earths) by 2040. These findings underscore the urgency of adopting radical measures targeting ICT and green institutional quality to forestall further environmental degradation.

What is the role of green ICT innovation in lowering carbon emissions in China? A provincial-level analysis

Green information and communication technology (ICT) is key to attaining carbon neutrality and a low-carbon economy. Applying panel data of 30 provinces in China, this study explores the internal mechanism and heterogeneous effect of green ICT innovation at lowering carbon emissions (CE) in China. The results disclose the following. Green ICT innovation significantly reduces the nation's provincial carbon emission, and the results remain valid after endogenous treatment and robustness test. Furthermore, green ICT innovation and CE do not exhibit a U-shape relationship, indicating the absence of a rebound effect. Green ICT innovation has an energy-saving effect and a productivity effect, demonstrating that energy intensity and green total factor productivity play an intermediary role. A better ICT development foundation strengthens green ICT innovation's carbon reduction effect. Besides, the CE reduction effect has three-dimensional heterogeneity depending on different economic development levels, type of green ICT innovation, and different carbon emissions regions. Finally, based on these results, the paper offers policy implications.

Do Green Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and Smart Urbanization Reduce Environmental Pollution in China?

Due to rapid urbanization and industrialization, China faces numerous environmental challenges, including air and water pollution, resource depletion, and climate change. Adopting green ICT and smart urbanization is a critical strategy to address these challenges. At the heart of this study lies the question: Do green ICT adoption and smart urbanization contribute positively to environmental pollution reduction? Therefore, this study intends to scrutinize the influence of green ICT and smart urbanization on environmental pollution in China, focusing on the period from 1996 to 2021. The most up-to-date method of structural modeling, partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM), was used to estimate the quantitative connection between green ICT, smart urbanization, and environmental pollution. The findings of the structural model show that only the path coefficient between smart urbanization and environmental pollution is significant and negative. Renewable energy consumption directly and negatively influences environmental pollution, whereas smart urbanization directly and positively affects renewable energy consumption and green ICT. Consequently, renewable energy consumption and green ICT negatively influence environmental pollution. Based on the findings, the study proposes targeted public policy recommendations aimed at fostering the development of green ICT and smart urbanization initiatives in China.

Investigating the role of economic integration and financial development: Rebound effect and green ICT in BRICS

The increasing trend of information and communication technology (ICT) forced researchers and policymakers to check the direct and indirect effects of information and communication technology on environmental quality. This study explores the relationship between information and Communication Technology and ecological quality by including the ICT and the interaction term of ICT with financial development indicators. The study uses the data for the BRICS (Brazile, Russia, India, China, and South Africa) economies from 1996 to 2020. This study is a pioneering effort to identify the independent and overlapping effects of information and communication technology (ICT) and financial development indicators on environmental quality. Further, the study uniquely tried to explore the shape of a modified environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) based on ICT by introducing the squared term of ICT in the model. Driscoll Kraay's standard error analysis confirmed a positive significant relationship between ICT and environmental quality. Our findings, among other things, show that in Brazil, China, and South Africa, the finance, environment, and the effects of ICT interact, whereas, in India and Russia, there is no such evidence. To increase the benefits of ICT to the environment, policymakers in Brazil, China, and South Africa should take additional steps to improve their financial sectors. The ICT-based environmental Kuznets curve validated the inverted U shape EKC hypothesis. The study findings suggested that green innovation and technology should be introduced in information and communication technology to mitigate the harmful effect of human activities on the environment.

Unpacking the dynamics of information and communication technology, control of corruption and sustainability in green development in developing economies: New evidence

This study examines the role of control of corruption, green energy, trade, innovation, natural resources, and information and communication technology (ICT) in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in developing economies from 2000 to 2018. We use Driscoll-Kraay panel-corrected estimators to identify the direct and indirect environmental impacts of corruption through interaction effects. We find that controlling corruption in developing countries has a negative impact on the environment or increases CO2 emissions. Similarly, the interaction effect between corruption control and natural resources increases CO2 emissions. Conversely, corruption control and green energy indirectly reduce environmental quality. We found evidence that green energy and innovation can help reduce carbon emissions. Furthermore, the interaction between corruption control, innovation, and ICT increases environmental quality in the long run. These results also support the Environmental Kuznets Curve hypothesis for the sample period. Bootstrap quantile regression was used as a robustness check. The results also show that the control of corruption, the depletion of natural resources and the use of non-renewable energy all contributed to the increase in CO2 emissions. Green energy, innovation, and ICT are the drivers of environmental sustainability growth in developing countries. The findings suggest that developing countries should increase their investment in green energy generation, and promote green innovation in high energy-intensive sectors, in order to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Economy-energy-environment nexus: The role of information and communication technology towards green development in Malaysia

Global warming and climate change are caused by anthropogenic greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from rising energy consumption due to population and economic growth. Over the past decade, information and communication technology (ICT) usage has increased which may increase energy utilization and GHG emissions. Conversely, ICT's clean technologies can minimize pollution. Therefore, this study investigated the dynamic influences of ICT, economic growth, population, and energy use on GHG emissions in Malaysia by employing the autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) approach using data from 1990 to 2021. The results of the ARDL bounds test indicated the existence of a long-run link between the variables. The results revealed that a 1% increase in the number of Internet users could increase GHG emissions by 0.013% in the short run but cut GHG emissions by 0.077% in the long run. Additionally, economic growth, population, and energy usage have a positive association with GHG emissions. The robustness of the ARDL outcomes has been checked by using the Fully Modified Ordinary Least Squares (FMOLS), Dynamic Ordinary Least Squares (DOLS), and Canonical Cointegration Regression (CCR) methods. This article offers additional policy proposals for emission reduction and sustainable development by promoting renewable energy use and financing green ICT.

Modelling natural gas, renewables-sourced electricity, and ICT trade on economic growth and environment: evidence from top natural gas producers in Africa.

Addressing extensive global goals including growing energy-sourced electricity and advancing sustainable development plans strongly depends on natural gas as a transition fuel to renewable forms of energy. Therefore, by using pooled, random, and fixed-effects models, the current study investigates the effects of electricity sourced from natural gas (ENG), renewable energy (RE), and trade in information and communication technologies (ICTs) on economic growth and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions in Africa's top three natural gas producers, Algeria, Egypt, and Nigeria, from 1990 to 2020. The findings indicate that CO2, ENG, ICT trade, and urbanization (UP) are all strongly and positively correlated to economic progress, with the exception of RE, which has an insignificant influence. For the environment, data indicate that RE and GDP degrade the environment while ENG and ICT trade boost it. The causality results that ENG and RE cause both economic growth and CO2 emissions. Based on these empirical results, it is recommended that policymakers should step up their efforts to usage natural gas as a transition fuel to renewable energy sources and acknowledge the advantages of the significant contribution that green ICT trade can make to economic advancement and a clean environment.

The role of GICT and environmental regulation in affecting ecological footprint.

Research studies have recently diverted attention towards the determinant of ecological footprints, but related issues have not provided consistent results. Based on the IPAT model (environmental impact (I) is decomposed into three elements: population (P), affluence (A, economic growth), and technology level (T)), this paper empirically explores the validity of the green information and communication technology (GICT)-induced environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) hypothesis. The research applies a quantile regression (QR) that tests over 95 countries' panel data for the period 2000-2017 by using six types of ecological footprint (EF) as environmental degradation indicators and environmental regulations (ERs) as interaction variables. We confirm the vital role that GICT plays in lessening cropland, forest area, and grazing land, while increasing its impact on built-up land. Additionally, the findings partially support the existence of an inverted U-shaped GICT-induced environmental EKC hypothesis for a decreasing impact on cropland, forest area, and grazing land via consideration of non-market-based ER as the interaction term. GICT does not notably reduce carbon-absorption land usage; however, improvements of GICT and non-market-based ER in those nations have been accompanied by lower environmental degradation.

Self-employment and Sustainable Development-Using the ICT Solutions for Greening Economic Activity

Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) are continuously and rapidly evolving, and these developments can have diverse consequences. ICT solutions are ubiquitous across all sectors of the economy. From a scholarly perspective, it is intriguing to observe the areas of economic activity where ICT solutions are deployed and how these solutions can contribute to the gradual transition of the economy towards sustainability. This article reports on original research aimed at individuals seeking green self-employment opportunities through the utilization of ICT. The study considers the perspective of this specific group of people and the issue of sustainable development as it discusses ICT solutions. Thus, the article identifies two interrelated, equal, and complementary objectives. The first objective is to determine the main areas where individuals seeking green self-employment use ICT solutions. The second objective is to investigate whether ICT solutions can foster the creation of green self-employment opportunities. To achieve these objectives, the study conducts a qualitative analysis of documents that describe economic activities. These documents served as the basis for applying for funding to start a business between 2019 and 2022. Specifically 603 application forms were analyzed. The study identifies key barriers to the implementation of ICT solutions in creating self-employment opportunities and highlights future implications and areas of development for ICT solutions that focus on green self-employment.

The role of ICT, R&D spending and renewable energy consumption on environmental quality: Testing the LCC hypothesis for G7 countries

Intense anthropogenic air, water, and soil pollution motivates researchers and this study to analyze the determinants of pollution and propose solutions to ensure environmental sustainability. By using the load capacity factor to examine the factors that determine environmental quality and by proposing the load capability curve (LCC) hypothesis, this study adds to the existing environmental literature. The load capacity factor allows for comprehensive environmental quality monitoring of environmental quality by comparing ecological footprint and biocapacity. This study evaluates the load capacity factor in relation to information and communication technology (ICT), research and development (R&D), renewable energy consumption, and income. In doing so, the study applies the cross-sectionally augmented autoregressive distributed lag estimator and the Durbin-Haussman cointegration test from 1986 to 2017 for the G7 countries. The empirical results show that renewable energy, R&D spending, and ICT positively affect environmental quality. Moreover, since there is a U-shaped relationship between environmental quality and income, this study confirms the LCC hypothesis, implying that income initially deteriorates ecological conditions but helps improve environmental quality after crossing a certain threshold. The bottom turning point is around US$ 46660–47909, where G7 countries such as Canada, Germany, Japan, and the United States have reached income levels that improve load capacity factor. Based on the overall results, G7 governments should promote economic development, disseminate renewable energy, direct R&D spending to areas of greatest benefit, and support the deployment of green ICT infrastructure as part of their environmental policies.

Multiple effects of ICT investment on carbon emissions: evidence from China.

Little research has been conducted on the multiple possible future environmental effects of different types of information and communication technology (ICT) investment. This paper innovatively calculates the ICT productive capital stock (PCS) in China from 2007 to 2018 and explores the multiple effects of ICT PCS on carbon emissions. The results show that (1) ICT PCS is conducive to carbon emission reduction; furthermore, ICT software PCS has a significant carbon emission reduction effect, while ICT hardware PCS has the opposite outcome. (2) The spatial effect demonstrates that ICT and its hardware and software PCS can significantly reduce carbon emissions in surrounding areas. (3) The ICT PCS indirectly affects carbon emissions through the digital economy and energy efficiency, but the role of the influence mechanism varies according to the type of ICT PCS. (4) There is a nonlinear relationship between all ICT PCS and carbon emissions due to differences in green productivity and ICT PCS levels. Finally, this study provides valuable references for optimizing ICT investment and promoting low-carbon development.

What are the roles of green technology innovation and ICT employment in lowering carbon intensity in China? A city-level analysis of the spatial effects

China is attempting to establish a feasible pattern for boosting economic structural transition, transforming energy structure, improving energy efficiency, and assuming responsibilities in the international community synchronously. This paper aims to investigate the nexus between green technology innovation (GTI), Information and Communication Technology (ICT) employment, and low carbon development. Drawing on the spatial Durbin model and panel data at the city level, I explored the impacts of GTI and ICT in lowering carbon intensity while considering spatial dependence from 2003 to 2017 in China. My empirical findings indicated that GTI and ICT not only play important roles in lowering local carbon intensity but also imposing positive and negative spatial spillover effects from the local cities to their neighboring cities. My examination of the transmission mechanism illustrates this concept except for the direct carbon mitigation impact. As a general-purpose technology, ICT also exerts an indirect effect in lowering carbon intensity via GTI. Heterogeneity tests reveal that both GTI and ICT have greater impacts on Eastern than Middle-Western regions to lower carbon intensity. Thus, policymakers should enhance the multi-dimensional region collaboration, the diffusion strength of informatization, and the absorptive capacity of technological innovation. The empirical evidence of this study also inspires confidence in accelerating industrial transition and optimizing energy structure toward carbon neutrality by boosting the expansion of ICT-related human capital.

Development of cloud selection supporting model for green information and communication technology services

Purpose The purpose of the study is to develop a cloud supporting model for green computing. In today's contemporary world, information technology (IT) plays a significant role. Because of the rapid growth of the IT business and the high level of greenhouse gas emissions, salient data centers are increasingly considering green IT techniques to reduce their environmental impacts. Both developing and underdeveloped countries are widely adopting green infrastructure and services over the cloud because of its cost-effectiveness, scalability and guaranteed high uptime. Several studies have investigated the fact that cloud computing provides beyond green information and communication technology (ICT) services and solutions. Therefore, anything offered over clouds also needs to be green to reduce the adverse influence on the environment. Design/methodology/approach This paper examines the rationale for the use of green ICT in higher education and finds crucial success variables for the implementation of green ICT on the basis of an analysis of chosen educational organizations and interviews with key academic experts from the Universities of Ethiopia, in general, and BuleHora University, in particular. Findings Finally, this paper described the design and development of a green cloud selection supporting model for green ICTs in higher educational institutions that helps cloud service customers choose the most green cloud-based ICT products as well as services. Originality/value This study may be a significant source of new information for green ICT design and implementation in higher education institutions to preserve the environment and its impact on human life.

Research on the structural features and influence mechanism of the green ICT transnational cooperation network

Green information and communication technology (ICT) innovations are key to achieving global climate goals. Cross-border technological cooperation has become a strategic choice for countries to achieve technological breakthroughs. Based on 49,731 patents, this study uses social network analysis method (SNA) and quadratic assignment procedure (QAP) to discuss the structural features and influence mechanisms of the worldwide green ICT cooperation network from 2000 to 2019. The results indicate the following: (1) The scale of the global green ICT cooperation network is still small, but the links among countries are getting closer and closer; (2) The USA is the “heart” of the network, and it has a sharp core–periphery structure; India, China, Germany, and the UK play sub-center roles in Asia and Europe, respectively; (3) Green ICT’s cooperative innovation mode is dominated by core countries; (4) Technological proximity, social proximity, ICT development level, climate change, and technological innovation capability are the key driving elements for the growth of the green ICT patent cooperation network; however, the role of institutional distance becomes insignificant over time; and (5) The influence mechanism of the network has the characteristics of heterogeneity in different climate change environments and ICT development levels. Countries should participate in green ICT cooperation with a more open attitude and promote the green transformation of the traditional ICT industry.

Green ICT 혁신에 있어 핵심 ICT 파악 방법: 특허 기반 접근법

Purpose This study suggests a patent-based approach to identify core information and communication technologies(ICTs) in green ICT innovation. Methods First, patent co-classification analysis is applied to the collected green ICT patents for constructing co-classification matrix. Second, patent-based cross-impact analysis is used to the collected green ICT patents for composing cross-impact matrix. Finally, the analytical network process is employed to the constructed matrices for determining the priority values of ICTs, considering direct and indirect relationship among technologies. Results High speed computing, other related technique, and digital communication technique are identified to be core ICTs in green ICT innovation. Conclusion The suggested approach can be utilized for both technology planning and policy making for green ICT innovation.

Achieving pro-poor growth and environmental sustainability agenda through information technologies: as right as rain.

The pro-poor growth and environmental sustainability are the twin agendas widely discussed in environmental science literature. The technology-embodied growth helps to attain both agendas through knowledge sharing and technology transfer, which trickle down to the poor income group and improve their living standards. Hence, the role of information and communication technologies (ICTs) is deemed crucial in boosting economic growth and is under deep consideration to establish its role in reducing poverty and environmental pollution. The current study examines the long-run relationship between ICTs, poverty reduction, and ecological degradation in Pakistan using time series data from 1975-2018. The short- and long-run parameter estimates were obtained through the Autoregressive Distributed Lag (ARDL) model for robust inferences. The results substantiate the inverted U-shaped Environmental Kuznets Curve relationship between income and emissions with a turning point at US$1000 in the short-run and US$800 in the long-run. The results confirmed the decisive intervention of ICTs factors in the poverty reduction, i.e., computer communications and mobile-telephone-broadband subscriptions support to reduce poverty incidence with the mediation of inbound FDI in a country. As far as income inequality is concerned, it shows that computer services support minimizing income inequality via a channel of high-technology exports in a country. The technology embodied emissions verified in the long-run, where mobile-telephone-broadband subscriptions increase carbon emissions. Finally, mobile-telephone-broadband subscriptions and inbound FDI both are significant contributors to amplify the country's economic growth. The results conclude that poverty reduction and environmental sustainability agenda are achieved by developing green ICT infrastructure in a country.

Going green: strategic evaluation of green ICT adoption in the textile industry by using bipolar fuzzy MULTIMOORA method

The widespread use of information and communication technologies in all fields has a direct impact on the way the world is viewed. In today’s competitive international business environment, companies are increasingly investing in the search for new ideas and approaches in production. The use of information and communication technologies (ICT) is increasingly gaining in importance, especially in the situation of a dynamic market and increasingly demanding consumers. Today’s business of contemporary organizations is not conceivable without the support of modern ICT systems. Therefore ICT has a great influence on modern society because the ways in which information and data are exchanged are higher than ever. Green information and communication technologies as one area that is new and in development tend to establish a balance between these technologies and the environment. Adoption of green information and communication technologies is not an easy task and is often related to certain limitations. Therefore, the aim of the paper is a strategic evaluation of green ICT and their implementation in the textile industry by using newly-developed bipolar fuzzy MULTIMOORA method. Effectiveness and efficacy of the proposed approach is demonstrated in the conducted illustrative case study.

ISOMORPHIC DRIVERS OF INSTITUTIONAL PRESSURE AND IMPORTANCE OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEM IMPLEMENTATION TOWARDS THE ADOPTION PROPENSITY OF GREEN ICT

The rapid development of the Internet has amplified the use of information and communication technology (ICT). This has raised concerns regarding environmental sustainability in the ICT industry in relation to carbon emission, high electrical energy consumption, and vulnerable e-waste management practices. Therefore, this study investigates the relationship between the isomorphic drivers of institutional pressure such as coercive, normative, and mimetic pressures, and the importance of implementing the Environmental Management System (EMS) towards the adoption propensity of green ICT in Malaysia. 127 ICT-based organizations under the Multimedia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) in Malaysia are utilized to gather data using a survey based on a 5 and 7-point Likert scale questionnaire. A proportionate stratified random probability sampling procedure is used for this purpose. The results from this exploratory study prove that both normative pressure and the importance of EMS implementation have a positive and significant relationship with the adoption propensity of Green ICT. This finding will be beneficial in assisting policy makers, academicians, and future researchers in determining the significant factors in the adoption propensity of Green ICT along with the materialization of Malaysia’s National Green Technology Policy. Keywords : Green ICT, Normative Pressure, Coercive Pressure, Mimetic Pressure, EMS. JEL Classifications : M150; M160 DOI: https://doi.org/10.32479/ijeep.10618