Top 5 Tech Trends To Fuel The Green Economy | Importance of Green Economy

At the moment, sustainability is a trending topic, and even with COP26 in full flow, there is a lot of discussion about sustainability including climate change. Clean technology is critical for sustainable growth, environmental preservation, and working toward a sustainable future.

In this article, we’ll go over all things clean and green, including the definition, examples of green tech, the significance of green tech, and lastly, top tech trends that fuel the green economy. 

What Is The Definition of Clean & Green Technology?

Let us start by identifying green technology; what would it mean to have green technology? Simply described, green technology refers to any action done to mitigate, or ideally eradicate, negative environmental consequences while promoting economic and social progress.

Natural resources should be conserved or avoided wherever feasible, and green technology has always been about addressing the need to maintain these non-renewable resources.

Green technology attempts to eliminate or significantly decrease pollution and waste while simultaneously increasing production and efficiency. These modifications should be made at every stage of a product’s or process’s life cycle.

Oftentimes, the phrase “green technology” is used synonymously with “clean technology” or “sustainable technology.” It is a broad phrase that encompasses a wide variety of ecologically beneficial behaviors. 

Examples Of Environmentally Friendly Technologies

Many businesses are making a concerted effort to engage in sustainable technologies in the present atmosphere. There are several methods for mitigating your carbon emissions at the source. Consider the following instances of clean technology deployment.

Hydroponics

Given agriculture’s significant contribution to global warming, we must find a solution and immediately begin adopting smart agricultural practices. Hydroponics is one method of doing this. This sort of eco-innovation is producing crops without utilizing soil and instead relying on nutrient-enriched water.

Hydroponics has several advantages; it requires less area than conventional farming, crops can be produced anywhere, less water is utilized, and that there are no seasonal constraints. Having said that, this alternative to conventional farming is far more costly, and hence not everybody can afford it. 

Solar Energy

Energy usage also contributes significantly to climate change, making a replacement to fossil fuels and nonrenewable materials an incredible potential. Solar energy generates power by absorbing sunlight via solar panels.

Renewable energy such as solar energy is completely free to utilize and has no negative influence on the environment. We rely on power for a variety of daily tasks, so switching to solar energy might have a significant effect. Solar panels, like hydroponics, may be costly to deploy initially. Solar panels are already being used by firms like IKEA, Apple, and Microsoft as part of their business strategies.

Transportation That Is Environmentally Friendly

Transportation contributes significantly to greenhouse emissions, which eventually contribute to global warming. In 2019, transportation accounted for 29% of greenhouse gases emissions in the United States. We rely on transportation for jobs, school, social events, and a variety of other purposes.

For something we utilize on a daily basis, it’s frightening to consider the influence transportation has on our ecosystem. Fortunately, more sustainable modes of transportation are becoming accessible; solutions such as electric cars are now widely available and widely utilized across the globe.

Along with electric solutions to fossil-fuel vehicles, expanding public transit is an excellent method to introduce clean technologies. As more individuals use shared transportation, personal automobiles contribute less to greenhouse gas emissions.

Material Recycling

While this may seem to be a simple strategy, recycling, as well as upcycling, are very effective ways to boost sustainability efforts. Recycling takes many forms – whether it’s consumers reusing bottles to decrease plastic waste or businesses repurposing abandoned things, recycling is a game-changer for sustainability.

Fashion sustainability, in particular, is growing in popularity as more people become aware of the negative consequences of rapid fashion. Numerous fashion businesses, such as Levi’s, operate clothing recycling programs that convert old garments into new items. These businesses often provide incentives and discounts to encourage customers to bring in unwanted clothing.

Electronics are another leading waste contributor in the United States. More specifically, e-waste accounts for 2% of the country’s trash in landfills. The number may not be as high as the waste contribution rate in the fashion industry. Nonetheless, both wastes are damaging to the environment. One way you can help is through recycling and upcycling. Are you considering upgrading the computers, laptops, and other devices you use in your business? If yes, don’t throw away your old ones. Instead, sell your used IT hardware to an e-cycling company like PC Liquidations. In doing so, you hit two birds with one stone! You don’t only earn some bucks, but you also get to help save the planet.

What Is The Significance of Green Technology?

We’ve mentioned many reasons that state why green technology is critical throughout the post, but let’s go further into why green technology is critical. Our world is in peril, and we must strive toward a sustainable future in order to safeguard it. What are some of the ecological difficulties that our world is now facing?

• Climate change — possibly the most well-known ecological issue, climate change is the general change in a place’s temperature or weather patterns. Global average temperatures are rising at an alarming pace, and unless we take action to limit our carbon footprint, they will continue to climb.

• Pollution – pollution may be defined as the introduction of hazardous material into an otherwise natural environment. Pollution manifests itself in three ways: air pollution, water contamination, and land pollution, all of which may be exceedingly detrimental to living organisms.

• Biodiversity loss – biodiversity refers to the diversity of life on Earth. As we discussed in our blog article on extinction prevention, biodiversity loss has enormous consequences for the planet’s health. Living beings rely on the presence of other species to survive, and a loss of biodiversity may result in a disastrous domino effect.

• Food waste — this is food that is thrown despite the fact that it is suitable for human consumption. This is a massive problem that we are now confronting; a million tonnes of food are thrown away each year. Food waste happens at every level of the manufacturing, processing, distributing, and even consuming processes.

Now that we’ve identified a few of the reasons why we need to apply sustainable technology, how might green tech help? Several of the ways that sustainable technology might affect change are as follows:

• Sustainable energy – a number of cleantech technologies contribute to the development and use of sustainable energy. Electricity is ubiquitous across the world, and inventions including wind generators, solar panels, even geothermal energy have the potential to make a significant impact.

• Garbage minimization — on a globe quickly running out of space, it is critical to minimize waste transported to landfills. Clean technology may be associated with any endeavor to decrease trash generation, including recycling.

• Water quality – Although often disregarded, water quality is a major environmental concern. Numerous businesses are attempting to save water and supply safe drinking water to underdeveloped regions. Cleantech may be applied to water in a variety of ways, including water treatment including wastewater treatment.

Importance of Green Economy

When it boils down to it, we all gain from green technology deployment; each step toward sustainable technology contributes to environmental preservation. While it may be difficult to fathom how you or your business might contribute to the Earth’s well-being, every step toward sustainability counts.

Almost every sector has the potential to benefit from green technologies. By using clean technology, even start-ups, as well as small enterprises, can make a difference. While certain businesses have a disproportionately bad influence on the environment, we could all contribute to the conservation of natural resources.

Energy, garbage, and agriculture are just a few of the industries that have the most detrimental influence on the environment. Nonetheless, unless all sectors act, it will be too late to rescue the ecosystem as we approach the Earth’s tipping point.

Corporate sustainability and social responsibility are rising topics that urge firms to play a role in improving our environment.

What Does The Future Of Green Technology Look Like?

Sustainable living and climate change awareness are growing in popularity – it’s apparent that clean technology is more important than ever.

Rising Demand For Environmentally Friendly Technologies

With population growth and environmental hazards growing, it is critical to scale up sustainability activities globally. Our natural ecosystem is undergoing dramatic changes, and we must act quickly before conditions deteriorate further.

Water is becoming more limited, an increasing number of creatures are facing extinction, and the Earth’s average temperature is rising. Regrettably, a large portion of the reasons for these unfavorable changes are attributable to human activity, and hence we must mitigate these destructive behaviors using sustainable technology.

The green technology industry was valued at 11.2 billion dollars in 2020 and is expected to reach 36.6 billion dollars by 2025. Sustainability is generating more awareness, and with it, people are prepared to act. In the future, we may anticipate cleantech being used in even more applications than it presently is.

The Generation That Will Endure

The increased awareness of sustainability might be a result of a generational transition in our culture. Today’s youth are more ecologically aware and willing to make sustainable decisions.

According to reports, 73% of Gen Zers are prepared to pay a premium for sustainable items. Gen Z is more inclined to acquire products depending on the values and environmental ideals of the firm. The fact that younger generations are so concerned about the preservation of the Earth is a sign that we may anticipate more cleantech in the upcoming years.

Trends In Green Technologies

What was previously an afterthought in terms of company operations is now central to practically every business strategy and operation. Consider some of the ways in which green technology trends are likely to continue to flourish in the future.

Investing With An Impact

Effect investing is the practice of investing in businesses that have a beneficial environmental impact while still generating financial returns. These impact investments are directed at businesses that are committed to continuous improvement as a basic component of their business strategy.

The emergence of impact investment provides an extra incentive for businesses contemplating a cleantech strategy. The world is moving toward a more ecological way of life, aided by cleaner technologies.

When the clean technology sector is developing at such a fast clip, it makes sense for investors to follow suit. Impact investing rises in lockstep with cleaner technological advancements; the impact investment industry was predicted to be around 715 billion USD in 2020.

Agriculture That Is Prudent

As previously said, smart agriculture is a game-changer when it comes to carbon emissions reduction. Agriculture has enormous consequences for our world; the livestock sector alone accounts for 44% of human-induced methane production.

Hydroponics is merely a subset of the area of smart agriculture. There is much to unravel when it comes to technology in agriculture, with topics including precision farming as well as artificial intelligence being adopted.

Artificial Intelligence

This sophisticated computer program simulates human intellect via the use of machine learning. Artificial intelligence is not limited to agriculture; it may be used in a broad variety of other sectors. AI is capable of doing jobs with extreme accuracy, hence reducing enormous quantities of waste, whether in terms of resources or time.

AI has been especially beneficial in industrial operations since it can automate a large number of phases in the manufacturing process. Additionally, it may save expenses, which can be used to fund other clean technology efforts. 

Moreover, as we’ve seen a significant boost in the use of AI thanks to the fast speeds of the 5G network, the looming launch of 6G is only going to help the use of AI become more common for businesses. 

Companies Must Be Required To Disclose Their Carbon Footprints

Large corporations in the United Kingdom will be legally forced to report all financial information relating to climate change. This law will take effect on 6 April 2022, and as a result, we may anticipate more openness from businesses on their approach to sustainability.

This law intends to educate investors and companies on the financial consequences of climate change. With the passage of this legislation, businesses will be unable to conceal or mislead their clean technology obligations.

COP26’s Implications

Despite the fact that it has not been concluded yet, COP26 has already made a difference in several nations’ climate change strategies and promises. At the event, world leaders will discuss a variety of issues, including gender, money, fashion, and education.

We can anticipate other innovations that will be enacted after the event, but here are just a handful of the outcomes from COP26 so far:

• Over 20 governments and financial organizations have committed to suspending all finance for fossil energy development projects in other countries.
• US Vice President Joe Biden has committed to reducing global methane leaks by 30% by 2030.
• Africa is set to invest $6 billion USD in climate change adaptation.
• India’s goal for 2030 is to achieve net-zero emissions.

Final Thoughts 

We hope that this post has provided you with an in-depth grasp of what clean technology is and how the industry might anticipate in the future. It’s reasonable to predict that clean technology is expected to gain importance and, ideally, will contribute to our transition to a more sustainable economy.