Is digital the coal of the 21st century?

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Is digital the coal of the 21st century?

Côme Girschig

Graduate of Sciences Po Paris and Ponts et Chaussées, Côme Girschig was France's representative at the UN World Youth Climate Summit. A committed speaker for several years, he has founded several associations including the Young Ambassadors for the Climate and Trial 5G Europe.

We are in the middle ages of digital technology. It has its kings (the GAFAs), its wars (cyber-attacks that international law is struggling to regulate), and its misery (platform workers). Yet, digital technology could also become a solution to the greatest problems of our century, such as climate change, social exclusion, or the aging population.

Through the writings of Hannah Arendt, Hartmut Rosa, Alexis de Tocqueville and Alexander Langer, we will draw the contours of what a sustainable digital use could be. The first part of the conference will be dedicated to the identification of the impacts of digital technologies (on climate and biodiversity, democracy and social movements, use of natural resources, mental health of its users, or social and territorial inequalities). In the second part, as a practical case, we will then discuss a recent digital evolution: 5G. Why is it being developed? What are its benefits and pitfalls? How can it be a solution for a sustainable transition?

About Côme Girshig

Graduate of Sciences Po Paris and Ponts et Chaussées, Côme Girschig was France's representative at the UN World Youth Climate Summit. A committed speaker for several years, he has founded several associations including the Young Ambassadors for the Climate and Trial 5G Europe.