The power of human ingenuity

Which three technologies convince sustainability business leader and writer Marga Hoek that a cleaner, greener future is possible? Find out in this Environment exclusive

The potential of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR) to address major global challenges such as climate change is immense. So far, we’ve only tapped into a fraction of this potential.

As we move into the 4IR, a wide variety of technologies are emerging. Many of these new tech applications make it possible to leverage sustainable impact at scale.

The technology itself is neutral, but if we deploy it as a force for good, using the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a compass to steer us, it has the potential to build a greener, safer future for all. The 17 goals, agreed upon by 193 countries in 2015, consist of interlinked sustainability objectives designed as a blueprint for achieving a sustainable world by 2030.

Although there’s movement toward a better future for all, we’re progressing too slowly on what is a long journey, with a vast distance that must be covered in so little time. We need to synergise technology for global progress by employing it as a driver for sustainable growth, but how can we move faster to solve global challenges? How can we innovate and create solutions at scale?

Here I explore three of the innovative technologies that I feel offer hope for a sustainable future, the barriers to “tech for good” that need to be overcome and how we can rise to the challenge.

Delivering sustainability
Innovative companies around the world are utilising tech for good to help deliver the UN’s SDGs. In my view, three of the most exciting areas are robotics, drones and 3D printing. Here I explore some of the tech currently under development that has the power to fight climate change (SDG 13), improve agricultural productivity (SDG 2) and access to clean water (SDG 6), and protect life below water (SDG 14).

1. Robotics
Green robots can help to mitigate climate change and lead us into a better future. Combining robots with other advanced technologies maximises sustainability efforts that help to reduce the impact of global warming.

Robots can simplify agricultural practices by helping automate and efficiently carry out environment-friendly tasks. They can also be used to fight devastating wildfires. Robots armed with fire extinguishers and water-propelling capabilities can potentially be leveraged to swiftly contain wildfires and help to reduce the risks faced by firefighters.

Case study: Envirobot, the pollution-fighting robot
A team led by Swiss engineers and roboticists at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne has created Envirobot, a 1.5-metre-long eel-like robot that can pinpoint pollution sources. The team’s ultimate goal is to create a system in which multiple Envirobots can collectively create a detailed pollution map.

The robot is made up of several detachable modules, each of which contain a small electric motor. Some also contain conductivity and temperature sensors, while others have tiny, sophisticated chambers that fill up with water as the robot swims.

The chambers contain biological sensors that use living organisms to check the water. One uses bacteria that have been developed to emit light when exposed to mercury. Another has two compartments that contain tiny crustacea called daphnia (water fleas), one filled with clean water (the control group) and the other filled with the water to be analysed. By comparing the movement of the two groups of daphnia, researchers can gauge the water’s toxicity.

As it swims, the Envirobot sends real-time data to a computer, speeding up the data-collection process. And its portability could make it useful in emergencies such as chemical spills or natural disasters.

2. Drones
Drones promise to accelerate the realisation of the SDGs in a wide variety of ways, from improving agricultural productivity and hence food security to managing and reducing the amount of waste entering the ocean. They can also be used to deliver much-needed medical supplies to underserved or disaster-affected areas and have the potential to serve as a foundational innovation for making cities more sustainable by improving control over traffic congestion.

Case study: DroneSeed – revolutionising reforestation
DroneSeed (which now forms part of Mast Reforestation) is a Seattle-based, tech-led company that specialises in using drones for reforestation. It produces large vehicles specifically designed to deliver seed payloads over large areas efficiently, rapidly and in ways that will maximise the germination of seeds and the establishment of seedlings.

In areas recently affected by forest fires, reestablishing native tree cover quickly is crucial to preventing shrubs and invasive species from taking over the area. Using drones to deliver seeds in such situations has numerous advantages. For example, just three drones can cover an area six times faster than a human-powered planting crew.

DroneSeed makes the process both easier and more effective by first sending out a drone to perform a 3D scan of the terrain. Software analyses the terrain data and determines the best locations to place seeds for the optimal survival rate. Flight paths are created and then another fleet of larger drones flies autonomously on the flight paths while dispensing DroneSeed’s proprietary seed vessels.

Each vessel contains a combination of seeds optimal for the location and the necessary fertiliser. By combining proven reforestation practices with new technology, the company regrows healthy, resilient, climate-adapted forests.

3. 3D printing
3D printing has had a transformative impact on people and the planet by “democratising” manufacturing, reducing waste and carbon footprints, and supporting the circular economy.

Additive manufacturing (layer-by-layer) processes optimise the use of raw materials, saving precious resources. They also enable people to make complex items themselves, cutting transport emissions and improving access to useful tech in remote areas.

3D printing has a unique potential to help deliver on several SDGs, through everything from health care initiatives, such as the manufacture of prosthetic limbs or hearing aids in underserved communities or creating medical supplies and equipment on demand for disaster relief, to improving access to clean water by 3D-printing filters or pumps for wells.

Case study: Saving coral reefs with SECORE
Conservation organisation SECORE International is helping to repair and retain coral reefs using 3D-printed ceramic settlement substrates, which it refers to as “seeding units”. SECORE gathers naturally released coral eggs and sperm (using special 3D-printed funnels), nurtures them until they transform into larvae and then introduces the larvae to the 3D-printed tiles, which feature grooves and micro-ledges to support settlement and protect the larvae as they mature, while also helping to prevent algal growth.

The tiles, complete with their complement of baby corals, are eventually strategically positioned in reef zones for the purpose of restoration, the coral larvae helping to attract still more wild examples. They’re designed to be self-stabilising, removing the need for time-consuming manual attachment to the reef.

This technology is helping to turn the tide for one of the most beautiful and important wonders of the ocean by providing a base on which coral can grow and flourish. While the practice doesn’t fix the underlying issues that are destroying coral reefs – mostly a mixture of ocean heating and pollution – it does buy the reefs and our oceans some valuable time.

The barriers to tech for good
Tech for good has immense potential, but in order to reach that potential, it will need to be scaled up rapidly, which raises two fundamental issues: shortfalls in both skilled workers and investment.

Rapid advances in technological development and adoption require significant human expertise, but the current tech workforce is too small to roll out new systems at scale. According to research by Skillsoft, around three-quarters of IT decision-makers worldwide claim to be facing critical skills gaps across tech departments.

There’s also the investment-scaling hurdle. Within the business community, there’s often an unwillingness to invest in innovative, emerging technologies that haven’t yet been proven and deployed at a commercial scale. Many potentially planet-saving innovations end up in this so-called “valley of death”, unable to raise the funds needed to go from prototype to commercial production.

Overcoming the barriers
Collaboration is key to overcoming these and other barriers; no single agent, whether it’s an academic, an entrepreneur, a business, a government or anyone else, can do it alone. Instead, harnessing the power of tech for good will require a multi-stakeholder approach with active engagement from actors across the business spectrum.

This need for collective action must align with a strong ethical foundation reflected in legislation and regulatory frameworks; the pace of regulatory change must match the pace of technological change. Government policies must move quickly to address new challenges, risks and threats, including those around privacy and security. Businesses, along with other ecosystem partners, have an essential role to play in helping governments develop effective regulations that can steer the impact of advanced technologies in a positive direction.

There’s also a need for “moonshot thinking” as a catalyst for radical change – that is, solving seemingly insurmountable problems using radical technology. But these new business approaches must start with a sustainable end goal and then work back to the fundamentals.

A more hopeful future?
We’ve learned a lot since the first industrial revolution. Armed with wisdom gleaned from the past, we can create a future that we all want. The next industrial revolution must be a global movement toward sustainable progress.

We hold the key and responsibility to repurpose technology to create a better future for all. The vision of this bright, prosperous future can help to steer us along the right path and drive us to take positive action.

Marga Hoek is a global thought leader on sustainable business and capital. Her new book, Tech for Good: Solving the World’s Greatest Challenges, is out now

This post was originally published in the Spring 2024 issue of The Environment.