Climate By Code - Planet friendly software for planet friendly products.

As the impact of climate change grows more pronounced, we tend to look to the automotive, energy, and manufacturing industries to provide greener choices. However, the technology industry - especially the domain of software development - also has a critical role to play in mitigating humankind's environmental damage.

In an increasingly digital world, software can be found at the origin or in the heart of almost every device we use. Every appliance, every tool, every toy, every mode of transport, every personal and business process.

With nothing more than a little forethought, technology professionals can incorporate some level of climate-friendly behaviour or functionality into software. On a case-by-case basis they may be small changes, but collectively they can make a significant contribution to a sustainable future.

As consumers we can look out for the benefits of planet friendly software, rewarding suppliers and often our bank balances with sustainable buying decisions.

Time for Policy & Action

We live in a world where software is more and more regulated to incorporate “privacy by design” and “security by design”, with increasingly severe penalties for those who fail to take heed. With an even wider and greater impact of human influence on climate change, why not mandate that “climate by design” (or Planet By Design) be incorporated into the foundations of our software driven products; rewarding those that do, and penalising those that don’t. 

The Carbon Footprint of Code

As we accelerate into a future powered by technology, it's easy to forget that every device controlled by software or firmware carries an energy cost. Globally, corporate and personal computing—including servers and data centers—is estimated to consume an astonishing 200–300 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity each year. To put that into perspective, this rate of consumption is greater than the total annual power usage of many individual nations.

But it's not just the "back end" systems. A significant proportion of the world’s energy drain comes from the devices themselves—billions of them, embedded with firmware or software to control their operation. From battery-powered toys, household devices, and industrial tools, to laptops and electric vehicles (EVs). These devices currently require a staggering 200 TWh annually for the production and charging of their batteries.

Every click, every automated response, and every task performed by software translates into an invisible but tangible draw on the grid. As software increasingly controls the functionality of everything from smart thermostats to AI-driven industrial systems, the cumulative energy required grows exponentially. This dual demand—software execution and hardware operation—creates an upward spiraling energy challenge, especially as the proliferation of "smart" devices continues.

The figures are staggering, but they highlight the urgency of rethinking how we design, power, and control the technology systems driving our world.

The Power of Optimisation

Efficiency is the first word in the vocabulary of green software development. The less computational power a piece of software requires, the less energy it consumes. Simple actions like improving algorithms, reducing delays, and better load balancing can save significant amounts of energy. By optimising software and firmware to make more efficient use of power, developers can make a huge difference with little or no impact to their end-users and consumers.

User Engagement: Eco-Friendly Modes

Making it more obvious and seamless for users to activate an 'Eco Mode' in applications or devices could remove any barrier to them selecting a setting that minimises energy consumption and running costs—like dimming the screen, optimising the fan speed, optimising refrigeration temperatures or switching between normal and low power or “away” modes. This not only educates consumers about energy-efficient choices but also puts the power to make a difference at their fingertips.

The Circular Economy of Software

Software updates often entice users to upgrade their devices to access new features—features they didn't anticipate when purchasing the device and often don't require. This leads to hardware becoming prematurely obsolete and encourages unnecessary electronic waste. Creating software that operates efficiently on older hardware extends a device's usable life and minimises waste.

To make this work economically for both manufacturer and consumers, a new buying model may see lower hardware costs but ongoing, or case by case, fees for software feature updates (security updates would of course remain free 👍👍).

Cloud Sustainability

With the shift towards cloud-based applications, choosing services hosted on data centres that are committed to renewable energy is another way to minimise carbon footprint. Providers like Google Cloud and Amazon Web Services now offer sustainable options that can be a part of a green software strategy.

In the same way we are given the ingredients, preservatives and origin stories of food products, why don’t we legislate to provide consumers with the ingredients and origin stories of software driven application products.

Sustainable by Design: The Developer's Ethic

Incorporating a climate-friendly approach should be central to every developer's principles.

Educational institutions, businesses, professional networks, and recruitment services can support this by acknowledging and rewarding sustainable practices, such as efficient coding or reduced data storage needs.

This growing movement is gaining traction, organisations like the Green Software Foundation, Microsoft and The Linux Foundation provide training courses in sustainable software engineering that award participants green badges to be proudly displayed in their career profiles. These badges should serve as a selling point for products and a beacon for future job prospects.

The Triple Bottom Line

Sustainable software development doesn't only benefit the planet; it also makes good business and consumer sense. Reduced energy costs, corporate & social responsibility appeal, and long-term viability are some of the gains that come with being eco-conscious.

The climate crisis is an existential threat that requires collective action.

It's time for technology professionals to rethink the way software is developed and for purchasers to readily know how. By incorporating and rewarding climate-friendly functionality, we can not only reduce our carbon footprint but inspire a culture of sustainability that ripples across industries, and borders.

So, the next time you buy any product or software application or sit down to write the code that makes or controls them, remember it's not just software.

Its quality, its efficiency, its functionality, are shaping the future of our planet.

Please leave a comment below or drop us a line at insights@planetbydesign.com.

Together we can make a difference.

Guy Ballard