Delivering a Net Zero emissions Europe by 2050 will require significant cooperation between business, government, and civil society. As more and more aspects of life are digitalised, and as data, storage, and networking increasingly lie at the heart of our economies, the ICT sector’s contribution to the Green Deal will be critical. In this context, the EU is currently assessing its policy options to ensure that digital products and services’ growth goes hand in hand with the EU’s Green Deal and sustainability commitments.

Cloud services, which were already growing rapidly pre-Covid, are forecast by the Commission to increase their share of total electricity demand by almost 20% in the EU by 2030. As Europe moves towards greater digital sovereignty, we will need more localization of data and data centres. But if this impedes use of best-in-class technology then it runs counter to fully optimizing energy efficiency in data centres, jeopardizing the EU’s sustainability commitments. What policymakers and businesses decide today will influence the development of efficient and eco-friendly digital services, and by extension, the green agenda, in the Union significantly.

But what are the policy options? How can ICT provision be optimised from a sustainability perspective? How could more exact overarching EU-wide standards and rules be created and implemented, including through public procurement? With the growing use of the cloud, how can this backbone of the digital economy further reduce its carbon footprint, as Europe pushes for increased digital sovereignty? This Forum Europe conference organised in partnership with VMware will look at how essential connectivity and reliable access to digital and cloud-based services will delivered alongside a green transition for the European economy.