minimalcarbon has created a technique to substantially reduce the power consumption of websites. minimalcarbon not only provides a technological solution, but also promotes awareness about the link between information and energy. The rising use of digital energy is a result of the decisions we all make on a daily basis as publishers, software developers, site designers, and Internet users.
So what is the issue?
The Internet has transformed the way we communicate and access knowledge, but it comes at a cost to the environment. Every year, the Internet consumes approximately 1 PWh (petawatt hour) of power, which is equal to 4% of all electricity consumed globally and produces 432 million tons of carbon dioxide (CO₂). This is due to the energy needed to run websites, streaming services, social media platforms, and email.
Unfortunately, even if we operate data centers with renewable energy sources, it will not be enough to meet the energy demands of the Internet. The increasing amount of data traffic is outpacing advances in energy efficiency and the popularity of mobile devices means more and more people are spending more time online, further increasing energy demand. Additionally, the need for constant online data access means that storing data in energy-efficient data centers is offset by the energy needed for access.
Video streaming, bitcoin mining, and cloud computing are not the only contributors to the high energy consumption of the Internet. Private websites also play a role in increasing power demand.
The prototype
Check out our prototype of karlsruhe.digital that reduces its ecological footprint by 95% while maintaining design and functionality:
https://karlsruhedigital.minimalcarbon.site
So how does minimalcarbon work?
minimalcarbon avoids tracking, advertising, third party traffic, autoplay videos, video backgrounds, outdated browser considerations, fancy scripts and effects and webfonts. Instead, it uses modern image and video formats, properly sized images, data compression, browser fonts, compression of HTML, Javascript and CSS source codes and sustainable server infrastructure.
GEO-Ranking vs SEO-Ranking
By optimizing websites, minimalcarbon has proven that it is possible to significantly reduce the energy consumption of the Internet. And the benefits don’t stop there. The site will also be faster, improving usability in areas with lower bandwidth and for those who can only afford a small amount of data. It will also be more secure and have an improved SEO ranking plus a supreme GEO ranking!