How can you reduce your digital impact?

WHAT IS DIGITAL POLLUTION?

Digital pollution is the pollution created by the use of electronic devices, particularly web browsing. Most of this pollution comes from data centers, which host all Internet data and consume enormous amounts of energy to operate. Discover 5 tips to reduce your digital impact.

So without further ado, discover 5 tips to reduce your digital impact.

SORT OUT YOUR E-MAILS

Are you used to sorting your mail? From now on, get into the habit of sorting your e-mails! An e-mail stored for a year emits 10g of CO2. Where to start?

Newsletters

How many newsletters a week do you throw in the garbage can without even taking the time to open them? Subscribing to this type of mail is very simple, but unsubscribing can sometimes be quite complicated. If you want to take the time to sort things out, simply open the newsletter you want to unsubscribe from, scroll to the bottom and click on the unsubscribe button. If, like us, you'd like to get things sorted out quickly, turn to Cleanfox. This site, also available as a mobile application, lets you clean out your mailbox in no time. Cleanfox will scan your inbox, grouping mails by sender, and all you have to do is decide whether to delete, unsubscribe or keep each group of mails by swiping one way or the other.

Personal and professional e-mails

Once the newsletter part is done, it's time to move on to personal and professional e-mails. While some e-mails are worth keeping, we're convinced that a large proportion can be deleted. So grab your courage and let's get to spring-cleaning! To speed things up, sort your e-mails by sender and make multiple selections.

USE SHORTCUTS

When you enter a query in a search engine, it's sent to a data center, which sends you a number of answers via a page of links to various websites. A back-and-forth process then begins between your computer and the data center, giving you access to the information you're looking for. To limit the number of requests, create a shortcut to the pages you visit most often. This not only saves energy, but time too!

CLOSE INACTIVE TABS

When you're doing a search, you may find yourself accumulating tabs. If you think these inactive tabs don't consume any energy, think again! They're constantly communicating with the data centers. So proceed methodically, eliminating tabs that don't interest you as you go along.

OPTIMIZE YOUR DATA STORAGE

Organize your archives to retain the essentials and avoid duplication. The cloud, for example, is an excellent way of archiving all the data you can't afford to lose. For the rest, don't hesitate to back them up on an external hard drive.

CHOOSE YOUR EQUIPMENT CAREFULLY

Finally, and this may seem obvious, choose your equipment carefully to avoid having to change it every year. To do this, we advise you to invest in durable products. And don't be afraid to go "light". It's not necessarily necessary to add up your phone, computer, tablet and connected watch, all of which consume enormous amounts of energy. Ask yourself how you use your equipment, and equip yourself accordingly. Some equipment consumes less energy, such as a tablet (15kWh/year) compared to a desktop computer (250kWh/year). For example, if you only use your computer to watch films and surf the web, perhaps a tablet will suffice.

At CROSSCALL, every thought, decision and action is taken with sustainability and responsibility in mind. From design to final packaging, nothing has been left to chance to ensure the strength and longevity of our products. Building on this commitment, we now offer products with a 3-year guarantee, so you can enjoy them for longer!