Our planet’s survival is at a critical juncture. A report released by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in March 2023 estimated that global average temperatures are estimated to rise 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels by the 2030s. Scientists have warned that crossing this tipping point could have a catastrophic impact on societies.

But while governments, organizations, and individuals adopt different strategies to lower their carbon footprint and cut greenhouse gas emissions – such as moving away from internal combustion engines and towards greener energy sources – one aspect of sustainability seems to have been overlooked: managing our digital devices.

Covering the entire process of device usage in an organization, device lifecycle management has the potential to play a pivotal role in the world’s journey to sustainability.

Improving energy efficiency

By implementing effective device lifecycle management, organizations can ensure that their devices always run on the latest versions, especially if they enable automated or hassle-free updates and patches. This not only makes sure that devices have the most effective power-saving features, but also increases security and prevents cyberattacks.

The S&P Global Market Intelligence Discovery Report released in 2023 – which surveyed 400 highly qualified security practitioners across the United States and Europe – found that 47 percent of organizations had experienced a ransomware attack in the last year.

Ensuring timely security updates and patches can maximize devices’ functionality and lifespans, saving on costs to fix or replace them.

Additionally, upgrading to energy-efficient hardware and optimizing device settings – such as screen brightness and enabling sleep modes – can significantly reduce an organization’s power consumption.

Leveraging analytics tools will also help organizations identify problem areas within IT infrastructure that they may otherwise miss. This enables them to utilize targeted measures to reduce excessive or ineffective energy usage.

Minimizing waste

Networked devices have jumped by about 58 percent from 17.1 billion in 2016 to 27.1 billion in 2021. This means that if the devices were equally divided among the global population, each person would own at least three.

According to data from the United Nations Environment Programme, 54 million metric tons of phones, computers, and other e-waste are produced yearly. However, only 17 percent are recycled.

Such devices are non-biodegradable, accumulating in landfills, and each contains a mixture of hazardous substances and precious materials. The Geneva Environment Network reported that using open-air burning and acid baths to recover valuable materials from electronic components releases toxic materials into the environment.

The World Health Organization also warned that exposure to some of the known and suspected neurotoxicants found in e-waste – such as lead and mercury – can impact the structural development and function of the lungs. Additionally, it can disrupt the development of the central nervous system during pregnancy, infancy, childhood, and adolescence.

The risks to global health are growing – a study found that greenhouse gases emitted from e-waste increased by 53 percent between 2014 and 2020.

Besides finding ways to maximize the lifespans of devices, organizations should also integrate better recovery and disposal services into their device lifecycle management. With more returns, devices could either be recycled or refurbished.

For instance, up to half of returned devices can be characterized as “no fault found” and resold with a better returns program.

Promoting a circular economy

The rest can be recycled to promote a circular economy – a system that keeps products and materials in use for as long as possible. This would minimize e-waste and its impact on the environment or people.

According to a 2019 joint report by several United Nations agencies, the improper handling of e-waste is also resulting in a significant loss of scarce and valuable raw materials, such as precious metals like indium – which is used in flat panel televisions – and cobalt – which is in great demand for laptop, smartphone, and electric car batteries.

Not only do recycled metals minimize the environmental costs of traditional mining processes, but they are also two to 10 times more energy-efficient than metals smelted from virgin ore.

Organizations can reuse device components that are still functional, or even sell them to make money as well.

Thus, while maximizing productivity is one benefit, effective device lifecycle management also plays an important role in companies’ sustainability journey. In a world where every effort counts, each device that lasts longer or gets resold or recycled makes a difference.