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Digital4Sustainability Learning Path
The "Digital4Sustainability Learning Path" explores how digital solutions and innovations can serve as powerful drivers of environmental and social sustainability.
In particular, it examines how digital technologies can accelerate the green transition—and how the digital transition itself can be made environmentally sustainable.
In today’s digitally connected world, we spend over a third of our lives in front of screens—linked to people and places across the globe, while witnessing the growing crises driven by socio-environmental degradation.
Despite the immense power of technology—and the rising urgency marked by heatwaves, hurricanes, and global concern—we continue to fall short in harnessing digital technologies to build a more sustainable, equitable, and peaceful world.
Governments, businesses, civil society, and individuals all face critical choices in how they harness and govern emerging technologies to protect both the environment and human freedoms.
The Digital4Sustainability Learning Path was developed through a joint partnership between UNEP and the UN System Staff College (UNSSC), in collaboration with GIZ, the EU, the Coalition for Digital Environmental Sustainability (CODES), and the Office of the UN Technology Envoy. The content is inspired by the CODES Action Plan for a Sustainable Planet in the Digital Age.
Upon completing the learning path, participants will gain a clear understanding of:
· Core concepts such as digitalization, digital transformation, and digital sustainability
· The role of digital transformation in countering the triple planetary crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution
· How to harness digital transformation to advance sustainability through a systems-thinking approach
· The negative impacts of digital transformation and strategies to mitigate them for sustainable outcomes.
Each module takes approximately 3 to 4 hours to complete and is designed for asynchronous, self-paced learning.
This learning path consists of four modules, released in chronological order:
- Module 1: Digital Transformation for Sustainable Development: offers a concise introduction to the profound changes reshaping our world as technology becomes increasingly integrated into all aspects of life. It provides an overview of digital transformation, including key terminology and emerging trends, and examines challenges and entry points for impactful action—illustrated through global case studies.
- Module 2: Digital Sustainability for Climate Action: examines how digital transformation can support efforts to combat human-induced climate change. It highlights major opportunities and threats associated with using digital technologies for climate mitigation and adaptation, supported by real-world examples that showcase practical applications of digital innovation.
- Module 3: Digital Sustainability for Biodiversity Action: explores how digital innovation can be leveraged to support biodiversity conservation. It outlines both the opportunities and challenges involved, using real-world examples to demonstrate how digital transformation can help safeguard the planet’s diverse ecosystems.
- Module 4: Digital Sustainability for Pollution Action: investigates the vital role of digital technologies in addressing pollution. It explores how emerging technologies can drive systemic change and prevent pollution, offering insights into how digital tools can help mitigate the risks associated with six major types of pollution currently rising at an alarming rate globally.
The "Digital4Sustainability Learning Path" welcomes anyone interested in exploring the role of technology in driving sustainable outcomes—and understanding the steps needed to achieve them.
The Digital4Sustainability Learning Path is free of charge.
You can sign up for the learning path using the sign-up button at the top of this page.
Once you have signed up:
1. You will be sent log-in information to access all available modules via email.
Please note: The email with the login details may end up in your spam folder. To avoid this, please whitelist the email addresses noreply@unssc.org and noreply-contactus@unssc.org.
2. If you already have an account on https://elounge.unssc.org, you can log in using your current username and password and access the course under My Courses, after you have signed up.
You only need to sign up once.
You will be notified via email as subsequent modules become available in the coming months.
