How Our Clicks Cost the Planet: The Internet, Climate Change, and Human Rights (with Michael Oghia)

RightsUp: The Oxford Human Rights Hub Podcast

Covid-19 lockdowns worldwide have forced huge portions of our lives online, from education to work, with important human rights ramifications. But there's an argument to be made that the Covid-19 lockdown has been good for the environment. there have been reports of lower levels of littering and urban pollution. As humans withdrew from public spaces, some native wildlife has reemerged. But our newly intensified online routines, from video conferencing to binge-watching Netflix, might have more of a negative environmental impact than we realise. The Internet and the systems that support it are reportedly responsible for 3.7% of global greenhouse gas emissions, roughly the same as the airline industry. And it's estimated that the typical professional creates 135 kilogrammes of CO2 just sending emails — which is equivalent to driving 200 miles in a family car. We don't often think about the effect of the Internet on the natural environment, and the related implications for human rights. In this episode, we talk to Internet governance consultant Michael Oghia about why we need to build an environmentally sustainable Internet for the future.

Interview with: Michael Oghia (Global Forum for Media Development)

Host: Kira Allmann

Producer/Editor: Kira Allmann

Executive Producer: Kira Allmann

Music: Rosemary Allmann