How Data Can Help Optimize a Product’s Ecological Footprint – SPONSOR CONTENT FROM SIEMENS

How Data Can Help Optimize a Product’s Ecological Footprint – SPONSOR CONTENT FROM SIEMENS

By Cedrik Neike, Member of the Managing Board of Siemens AG and CEO Digital Industries

You could see the bottom of the lagoon in Venice. People in Asian megacities could breathe a sigh of relief. And residents in the north Indian state of Punjab could once again see the Himalayas clearly.

The coronavirus gave nature and the climate a brief respite from its stress. Nitrogen oxides, particulates, and above all CO2 emissions plummeted. The Global Carbon Project estimates that fossil emissions fell by a record 7% in 2020, by 2.4 billion tons of CO2, to 34 billion tons. An encouraging sign of what is possible.

But let's not kid ourselves. As soon as the pandemic ends, we'll be traveling more again for both business and pleasure. We'll no longer all work from home; many will resume commuting. And we'll use more resources again, maybe even more than before the crisis.

Experience shows that a rebound effect often sets in after a crisis, leading to an even higher consumption of resources. That is, unless we take countermeasures.

That's why it's especially important now to use our resources more sparingly and efficiently than before the outbreak. And industry can make a major contribution here. The key strategy