Looking on the bright side of a tough 12 months, one benefit from our on-and-off spells in lockdown has been the positive effect on the environment.
People are travelling less, both locally and international, meaning pollution from vehicles has lowered dramatically.
In fact, a new study recently found that global carbon emissions in 2020 saw a record drop.
But that’s not to say it’s all good news…
Research from a clan of universities has found that a one-hour video conference on Zoom could emit up to 1,000 grams of carbon.
By way of comparison, using one gallon of petrol in a car would equate to 8,000 grams of carbon.
So, the carbon emitted during eight hours of video conferencing could equate to the same as driving around 50 miles in an average Ford Focus.
Kaveh Madani, who led the research, said: “Banking systems tell you the positive environmental impact of going paperless, but no one tells you the benefit of turning off your camera or reducing your streaming quality.
"So without your consent, these platforms are increasing your environmental footprint”
There is however a caveat. The research estimates the carbon usage to be between 150g-1000g, so the calculations above are something of a worst-case scenario.
