EcoN’UM: The University of Montpellier is committed to more responsible digital practices
From March 4 to 11, the first edition of EcoN’UM, a week-long event raising awareness about the environmental footprint of digital technology, took place at the University of Montpellier.
Throughout the week, students and staff had the opportunity to participate in several events designed to foster a better understanding of the environmental challenges posed by digital technology. Highlights included workshops led by La Fresque du Numérique to explore the global impact of digital technology, and a lecture on artificial intelligence and the ecological transition delivered by Michel Robert, director of CINES. And finally, to engage all staff in a fun way, an “inbox cleanup” challenge organized by the Office of Information and Digital Services (DSIN). The goal was to free up as much space as possible in their email inboxes.
The challenge attracted more than 1,200 participants, representing over 8% of all UM email account holders. It freed up 1 TB of the 44 TB currently occupied by staff email. The three winners freed up as much as 90% of their email storage space and were notified of their victory.
In addition to these initiatives, the DSIN offered personalized assistance to help students clean out their inboxes over the course of a day and provided various educational resources to explore the topic further: podcasts, videos, and infographics available online on the University’s website. These resources remain available on the Responsible Digital page to encourage more sustainable practices and provide the community with a platform for reliable information on environmental and ethical issues in digital technology.