Slides used by Jean-Marc Jancovici à Vivatech's conference

1. jancovici.com
Our global IT system, an
energy saver, or a climate
destroyer ?
Jean-Marc Jancovici
jmj@manicore.com
jean-marc.jancovici@carbone4.com
jean-marc.jancovici@theshiftproject.org
VivaTech
May 16 2019

2. www.jancovici.com
2°C, a piece of cake?
Temperature increase in 2100 arising from cumulated emissions since 1870. IPCC, 2015
2017
Cumulated CO2 emissions
since 1870 in Gt
÷ 3 in 2050

3. www.jancovici.com
Dematerialized, uh?

4. www.jancovici.com
No digital without device!
Assessment of various environmental impacts of the production of three “basic” IT devices.
Source: The Shift Project, 2018

5. www.jancovici.com
A digital system is not just servers!
Other
production 6%
TV production
11%
Terminal use
20%
Network use
16%
Data center use
19%
Smartphone
production
11%
Computer
production
17%
Source : https://theshiftproject.org/article/pour-une-sobriete-numerique-rapport-shift/

6. www.jancovici.com
And virtue is not in sight
Source: The Shift Project, 2018

7. www.jancovici.com
Faster than air travel!

8. www.jancovici.com
IT would dematerialize the rest of the
world?
CO2 emissions since 1860. Jancovici, on primary data from Shilling et al, and BP
Statistical Review.
Beginning of “IT
revolution” (&
“renewable boom”)

9. www.jancovici.com
1
H
2
He
3
Li
4
Be
5
B
6
C
7
N
8
O
9
F
10
Ne
11
Na
12
Mg
13
Al
14
Si
15
P
16
S
17
Cl
18
Ar
19
K
20
Ca
21
Sc
22
Ti
23
V
24
Cr
25
Mn
26
Fe
27
Co
28
Ni
29
Cu
30
Zn
31
Ga
32
Ge
33
As
34
Se
35
Br
36
Kr
37
Rb
38
Sr
39
Y
40
Zr
41
Nb
42
Mo
44
Ru
45
Rh
46
Pd
47
Ag
48
Cd
49
In
50
Sn
51
Sb
52
Te
53
I
54
Xe
55
Cs
56
Ba
*
72
Hf
73
Ta
74
W
75
Re
76
Os
77
Ir
78
Pt
79
Au
80
Hg
81
Tl
82
Pb
83
Bi
**
*Lanthanides
(rare earths)
57
La
58
Ce
59
Pr
60
Nd
62
Sm
63
Eu
64
Gd
65
Tb
66
Dy
67
Ho
68
Er
69
Tm
70
Yb
71
Lu
**Actinides
90
Th
92
U
Source : UNEP / Recycling rates of metals 2011
Recycling rate of metals
< 1% 1 – 10% 10 – 25% 25 – 50% > 50%
High tech saving the world: how many
times can I play?

10. www.jancovici.com
18 months!
You wouldn’t want the life
expectancy of a smartphone