If you have Zoom fatigue, you’re not alone. But now you have a good reason to keep your camera off during a Zoom call: You’re doing your part to save the planet.
According to one study, leaving your camera off reduces the carbon footprint of a videoconferencing session by up to 96%. The numbers come from a 2021 report from researchers at Purdue University, Yale University, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Science News. A carbon footprint report from Mozilla Advocacy recently brought it back to light.
What sort of savings is that in real-world terms? Well, one hour of videoconferencing or streaming emits 150 to 1,000 grams of carbon dioxide. (That’s as much as the equivalent of 11% of the emissions from a gallon of gasoline.) It also requires between 2 and 12 liters of water.
Dispatches From The Front 