Can Data Solve The Climate Crisis?

Erich Gerber, Senior Vice President of APJ and EMEA, TIBCO Software Inc. (Photo: Special)

JAKARTA - Recent extreme weather in any part of the world, has prompted the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to issue "Code Red for Humanity" in their latest report. It contained warnings of increasingly extreme heat waves, droughts and floods, and a decade of rising temperatures.

The IPCC presents the strongest warning to date of the threat posed by climate change. A report compiled by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) also shows that in 2020 the impact of climate change will continue to increase. The IPCC warns that we only have until 2030 to prevent permanent damage caused by climate change.

At a granular level, the specific causes of climate change are complex. However, we can see one cause that might also offer a solution, and that is data.

The rapid digitalization of the global economy and the increasing number of energy-intensive data centers are a major cause of concern for climate change. Data centers and data transmission networks each accounted for about 1 percent of global electricity use in 2019, and global internet traffic jumped nearly 40 percent between February and mid-April 2020.

Erich Gerber, Senior Vice President of APJ and EMEA, TIBCO Software Inc, said the explosion in demand and capacity was due to the increased reliance on technology during the pandemic.

"The puzzle is how to continue to expand the use of important data, but do it in a sustainable way?" said Erich, in his written statement, quoted Friday, February 18.

This problem, said Erich, was serious enough that a solution was identified to develop a "green" data center and around the world, industry players are working hard to make it happen. One thing is for sure, the exponential increase in data creation and usage will not stop.

"Indonesia in particular has witnessed a population explosion that relies heavily on data usage," he said.

Erich further said, putting aside the question of sustainable hardware, the integration of big data with knowledge makes an important positive contribution to fighting climate change. Only highly sophisticated data analytics can handle the large and complex amounts of data generated by variables such as sea level change, rainforest destruction, glacier loss, and macro weather patterns.

"Analyzing this data facilitates climate modeling and that can reveal hidden insights and thus recommendations for action," he explained.

Leveraging AI and machine learning

Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technologies will be critical in tackling climate change. Climate researchers and innovators have used AI/ML to test their climate theories and solutions and develop useful products and services, for individual citizens and businesses.

At a major AI conference in June 2019, the researchers and experts in attendance discussed a recently published paper by AI industry leaders called “Coping with Climate Change with Machine Learning”. The paper covers 13 areas where machine learning can be applied, including energy production, CO2 removal, education, solar geoengineering, and finance.

Scotland's Environment Web (SEWeb) has already implemented this technique. SEWeb uses data visualization tools to create a picture of the state environment and interact more deeply with the data. These tools save users time and effort, allowing them to more easily analyze and view multiple layers of data, with filters for their areas of interest (air, water, soil) and contributing factors.

Related information is more readily available and visible, allowing users to absorb it more quickly and more fully. Applied more broadly, these tools can help governments and policymakers understand the realities of the global situation, and work towards potential solutions.

Indonesian Response

Erich said the IPCC report was very clear, where we talked a lot but took very little action. Southeast Asia will not be spared from climate change.

According to research firm McKinsey, the region has the potential to face more severe consequences of climate change than any other part of the world. Indonesia like other regions for example has a tropical climate, but the country experiences periods of prolonged heat and irregular temperature changes and unpredictable flooding.

Indonesia is taking serious action. According to the report, Indonesia is optimistic about achieving its net zero emission target by 2060.

It also further strengthens Indonesia's commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 41 percent by 2030 with international assistance in its commitments to the UN's 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the Paris Agreement.

"This is all very well, but the question remains whether the world's countries have the political will to collaborate and share data on a truly global scale, or will they continue to walk blindly towards the end of the world?" said Eric.

"It's not too late. Big decisions need to be made that can improve the global economic model. But whatever the results, it is data analysis and data that provides insight to make these decisions possible and effective in solving the climate crisis," concluded Erich.