Community Talk: Mitigating energy consumption (while) using AI

The effects of climate change can be felt worldwide, but as an Alpine country, Switzerland is particularly affected. In the study ‘Smart and Green: Digital Paths to Net Zero’, digitalswitzerland and Economiesuisse, in collaboration with Accenture, analysed how digitalisation can help close the climate gap and what concrete measures industries can take to help achieve the climate goals. In this blog series, we want to take a closer look at different industries and give concrete recommendations for action. In this second post, we discuss ‘Why is digitalisation an important catalyst for reducing emissions and what does it mean for Swiss companies?’

The pressing challenges of climate change cannot be ignored, and as an alpine country, Switzerland is particularly at risk. The average temperature has risen by about two degrees Celsius since pre-industrial times, double the global average increase. These alarming changes show the need to use all available levers to reduce emissions in Switzerland. One promising strategy for meeting this challenge is digitalisation.

Digitalisation, understood as the integration of digital technologies into business processes, products and services, offers numerous opportunities to increase efficiency and reduce emissions. Particularly in Switzerland, where the ambitious climate targets of the Paris Agreement require a 50% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 compared to 1990, digitalisation plays a central role. But how exactly can digitalisation help to achieve these goals, and what does it mean for Swiss companies and the population?

Digitalisation and sustainability are often seen as separate issues, but in reality they are closely linked. Digital technologies make it possible to optimise processes, use resources more efficiently and thus significantly reduce CO2 emissions. For example, the use of smart grids can optimise the control of energy networks and energy consumption, reduce consumption and promote the use of renewable energy. In agriculture, digitalisation enables precise fertilisation methods and more efficient field management, which protects the environment and can increase yields.

Different sectors offer different potential for using digital technologies to achieve climate targets. In building management, for example, smart homes and intelligent building management systems can achieve significant energy savings. These technologies make it possible to monitor energy consumption in real time and adjust it automatically, resulting in a significant reduction in CO2 emissions.

The transport sector, one of the largest emitters of greenhouse gases, can also benefit greatly from digitalisation. Real-time route optimisation and mobility-as-a-service platforms offer potential for making transport more efficient and thus reducing emissions.

For Swiss SMEs, digitalisation not only offers an opportunity to operate in a more environmentally friendly way, but also a chance to increase their competitiveness. By using digital technologies, SMEs can make their production processes more efficient, reduce energy consumption and make their products and services more sustainable. This not only opens up new market opportunities, but can also reduce operating costs at the same time.

One example of this is the predictive maintenance of machines. By using data analysis and machine learning, machines can be serviced in good time and breakdowns avoided. This not only prevents unplanned downtime, but also reduces resource consumption and the associated emissions.

Our study shows that Switzerland has the potential to save between 1.2 and 3.2 million tonnes of CO2 equivalents in 2030 through the use of digital technologies. If we exploit this potential to the maximum, Switzerland could close up to 20% of the remaining climate gap. However, the study emphasises that this 20% can only be achieved if digitalisation is pursued ambitiously.

Digitalisation offers Switzerland a unique opportunity to achieve its climate targets and at the same time increase the competitiveness of its economy. For SMEs and the general population, this means that investing in digital technologies not only contributes to climate protection, but also makes economic sense and is forward-looking. It is up to politicians, among others, to create the necessary framework conditions so that digitalisation can be used as a lever for greater sustainability. Only in this way can Switzerland achieve its ambitious climate targets while also benefiting from the advantages of the digital transformation.

Digitalisation offers Swiss companies enormous potential savings in a range of areas. Whether it’s optimising production processes, reducing energy consumption or increasing efficiency in logistics, the possibilities are diverse and promising. Companies that take advantage of this potential not only make an important contribution to climate protection, but also secure competitive advantages and cost savings for themselves at the same time. It is therefore essential that companies recognise digitalisation as a key technology for a sustainable future and invest in digital solutions accordingly.

In the coming blog posts, we will take a close look at different industries and their specific challenges, opportunities and developments. We will start with the building sector, highlighting how technologies such as smart homes and building management systems can be utilised to reduce emissions and use resources more sustainably.

The effects of climate change can be felt around the world. But as an Alpine country, Switzerland is particularly affected. In the study ‘Smart and Green – Digital Pathways to Net Zero’, digitalswitzerland and economiesuisse, in collaboration with Accenture, analysed how digitalisation can help close the climate gap and what concrete measures industries can take to help achieve the climate goals. In this blog series, we want to take a closer look at different industries and give concrete recommendations for action. In this first post, we shed light on the question: ‘What is the climate gap and why does Switzerland need to close it by 2030?’

To prevent the increase of extreme weather events such as heat waves, floods and winters with little snow, Switzerland urgently needs to take measures to reduce its emissions. Evidently, increasingly frequent extreme weather events not only have a devastating impact on the environment, but also on human health and the economy. Climate scientists, politicians and the Swiss population all agree that action is needed. A central concept in this discussion is the so-called ‘climate gap’. But what exactly is the climate gap? And why is it so important to close this gap by 2030?

The climate gap is the difference between current greenhouse gas emissions and the emission reduction targets required to limit global temperature increases to a safe level. More precisely, it is the amount of CO₂ and other greenhouse gases that still need to be reduced in order to achieve the defined climate targets.

As part of the 2015 Paris Agreement, Switzerland has committed to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 2030 compared to 1990 levels. This means that emissions must be reduced from 55.3 million tonnes of CO₂ to 27.7 million tonnes of CO₂. Currently (as of 2023), emissions are around 43.9 million tonnes. A considerable reduction (16.2 million tonnes) is therefore still required to close the gap.

The study results show that digital technologies can make a significant contribution to reducing CO₂ emissions. Two digitalisation scenarios were examined in the study: one in which Switzerland continues to push ahead with digitalisation at its current pace, and one in which Switzerland could more than double its CO₂ savings through ambitious digitalisation efforts.

Effectively, this means that we could save between 1.2 and 3.2 million tonnes of CO₂ through digitalisation. This corresponds to a closure of 7% to 20% of the existing climate gap.

Companies in particular play a key role in closing this climate gap. By investing in technologies and processes, they can not only reduce their own emissions, but also contribute to achieving the national climate targets. For example, by using energy-efficient machines or using IoT (Internet of Things) technologies and big data to optimise processes.

Promoting innovation in the field of sustainable digitalisation is crucial. When companies invest in research and development projects leading new technologies and solutions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, they not only improve their internal processes, but also contribute to the resilience of the economy in times of climate change.

Closing the climate gap by 2030 is one of the greatest challenges of our time. Switzerland has set an ambitious target for itself, and now must act decisively to achieve it. The quickest way for this is for politics and business to pull together. The targeted use of digitalisation and technologies can have a significant positive impact on processes and industries. If we use these levers effectively, we can make great strides towards this goal and thus contribute to a future worth living for generations to come.

In the next parts of this blog, we will take a closer look at the five sectors analysed: energy, agriculture, buildings, transport, and industry, providing specific recommendations on how companies can use technologies to reduce their emissions and operate more sustainably.

The sustainability sector faces the interconnected challenges of climate change and biodiversity loss, threatening the preservation of sustainable habitats. Digital solutions will play a vital role in supporting the conservation of biodiversity, paving the way for a more sustainable future.

To accelerate innovative and technological solutions, established organisations with extensive experience can support startups and scaleups by providing resources, expertise, and mentorship. This is why digitalswitzerland has launched the #Biodiversity Digital Academy. This initiative aims to foster an innovative ecosystem by bridging the gap between well-established partners, industry experts, and ten promising Swiss startups committed to driving innovative solutions for biodiversity conservation.

The #Biodiversity Digital Academy was inaugurated in May 2023 through an open call for applications from Swiss biodiversity startups and scaleups. An expert jury identified the ten most promising and leading startups and scaleups to participate in the Academy. By the end of June, each of the participants will be matched with a suitable mentor from the expert panel, consisting of industry representatives from SAP, Samsung, Wipro, Bluerain Partners, Lidl, and the Noah Conference. Over the course of six months between July and December, these participants will benefit from workshops, mentorship programmes, networking events, and bootcamps designed to create synergies between industry experts and startups that foster digital solutions. The culmination of this journey will be the participation of all startups in the Noah Conference, accompanied by the publication of an open innovation whitepaper featuring their work.

For a sneak peek at the innovative solutions that will drive biodiversity conservation in the future, let us introduce you to the ten selected leaders from the Swiss startup ecosystem.

CyberTracker Conservation is a non-profit Public Benefit Organisation that promotes the vision of a worldwide environmental monitoring network.

Inverto provides technology that allows scalable wetland restoration through the automated remote collection of samples to companies sponsoring climate and biodiversity impacts.

Open Forest Protocol (OFP) is a scalable open platform that allows forest projects of any size to measure, report, and verify (MRV) their forestation data.

Nomica is a novel blockchain-based platform that values previously untapped ecosystem services.  

PORINI Solutions is a Swiss company building a bridge between innovative technology and conservation, with a special focus on the DLT / blockchain space.

rrreefs is a startup dedicated to the preservation of our planet’s coral reef, offering reef regeneration as a service to businesses with ambitious targets for nature.

SimplexDNA provides next-generation sequencing solutions for environmental monitoring, enabling biodiversity assessments with high accuracy and resolution.

Stream Ocean is changing the way we understand and assess changes in our oceans.

THE ARK helps to accelerate your impact with its digital platform and gives investors access to biodiversity and nature conservation investment opportunities. It uses verified data sets to scale conservation efforts and ensures effectiveness of capital allocation and drives investment decisions.

Xilva creates a global digital marketplace for forests – bringing transparency, ease and innovation to the deployment of capital.

Clara Wrede, Sustainability Project Manager