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Climate change is the greatest threat to human existence, and we are currently witnessing the consequences of our collective inaction on climate issues. The ´óÏó´«Ã½ is committed to reaching Net Zero by 2030 and our team is working to make that possible. The move to a digital-first ´óÏó´«Ã½ is an opportunity to innovate, understand, and reduce the environmental impact of our services.

Project from 2010 - present

What we're doing

With our focus on sustainable engineering, we:

• Develop and test different methods for measuring the climate impact of the media industry and digital delivery
• Partner with colleagues and external researchers to reduce the energy usage of the ´óÏó´«Ã½
• Develop strategic interventions for decarbonisation of the ´óÏó´«Ã½ and the wider media sector
• Explore ways to embed sustainability into the design and development of technology

We also look for opportunities to improve the environmental performance of ´óÏó´«Ã½ R&D’s operations. To do this, we analyse the impact of our offices, laboratory spaces, and on-premises clouds. We estimate the carbon footprint of these services and use this to inform environmental understanding across the ´óÏó´«Ã½.

We model the energy used by ´óÏó´«Ã½ television, radio, and online services. These models help us understand our current carbon impact. They can also help us identify energy hotspots and strategies for decarbonisation.

It’s also important to look to the future, and this means learning more about the impact of scaling up our digital services. We work with industry and academic partners to improve our understanding of how networks and cloud services use energy. By doing this, we can develop new strategies to reduce emissions.

Sustainability requires systemic change, so internal and external collaboration is crucial. We collaborate with others in the media industry to share knowledge and expertise. Previous partners include the , the  and the . We continue to engage with UK-based sustainability initiatives and research institutions. Current partners include DIMPACT, the University of Lancaster, and the University of Glasgow. If you are interested in working with us, please get in touch with our team!

• ´óÏó´«Ã½ R&D - How much energy is used to deliver and watch TV programmes?
• ´óÏó´«Ã½ R&D - How much energy is used to deliver and listen to radio?
• ´óÏó´«Ã½ R&D - The Carbon Footprint of Watching Television

Why it matters

The ´óÏó´«Ã½ is committed to , and launched its ‘Net Zero by 2030’ pledge in 2021. To reach Net Zero we need to transition to green energy and reduce the energy we do use wherever possible.

The last decade has seen significant sustainability improvements in the media industry. For example, the switch from old-style analogue TVs to more efficient modern digital TVs. Because of this, TVs now use much less power when in standby mode. But there is always more to do.

In media production and distribution there are opportunities to make equipment more efficient. In consumer spaces, equipment choices affect the impact of the media industry. Audience preferences and behaviours have key roles to play and remain key topics of investigation.

No-one can predict the future, but we can be ready for it. We can reduce our energy usage now, to make our future greener. We can understand the ´óÏó´«Ã½'s complex systems, to see the energy hotspots and how we can improve. We can collaborate across the media industry, to share ideas and make a real difference.

By taking these actions now, we help the ´óÏó´«Ã½ have a sustainable future.

Learn more about our how we improve the performance of ´óÏó´«Ã½ technology:

•  - 
• ´óÏó´«Ã½ R&D - How much energy is used to deliver and watch TV programmes?
• ´óÏó´«Ã½ R&D - How much energy is used to deliver and listen to radio?
• ´óÏó´«Ã½ R&D - The Carbon Footprint of Watching Television
• ´óÏó´«Ã½ R&D - From Lens to Screen: An Industry Collaboration for Sustainability
• ´óÏó´«Ã½ R&D - Sustainability in broadcast and digital media
• ´óÏó´«Ã½ R&D - Sustainability in broadcast and digital media: Video Coverage
• ´óÏó´«Ã½ R&D - Understanding and Decreasing the Network Footprint of Catch-up TV
• ´óÏó´«Ã½ R&D - A comparison of a Carbon Footprint of Digital Terrestrial Television with Video On-Demand