As digital transformation picks up speed, we have to ask a fairly important question: is all the new greentech actually helping the environment and becoming a tool for circular economy, or is it just adding to the noise? On 15 April, at the Digital Transformation Summit in Madeira, a group of experts got together to discuss how AI and robotics are being used to meet the goals of the European Green Deal.
The session, “Digital Technologies for Sustainability,” was led by Josipa Arapović (F6S).
From wind turbines to rural tourism
The workshop showed that digital tools are solving some very different, and often very difficult, environmental problems:
- Cleaning up industry: ROB4GREEN showed how robots are being used to recycle wind turbine blades and electronics. These used to be a nightmare to repurpose, but smart robotics are changing that.
- Smarter Wind Power: TWAIN is using advanced controls to make wind farms more reliable and cheaper to run. This is essential if we want to move away from fossil fuels for good.
- Helping Smaller Businesses: Projects like AID4SME and FORTIS are making sure smaller companies aren’t left behind. They help them adopt AI and robots that work safely alongside people to save on resources.
- Better Policy and Travel: MultiFutures is helping policymakers create better climate scenarios, while Ultreia_Sudoe is using digital tools to help rural tourism thrive without losing its local character.
The verdict
Digital transformation is the engine room of sustainability. Whether it is an AI predicting when a machine needs fixing or a robot dismantling an old tyre, these technologies make a circular economy possible at scale.
We are moving towards a future where “digital” and “green” are two sides of the same coin.
A big thank you to our speakers for their knowledgeable insights: Raimund Bröchler, Micael Couceiro, Marcel Egger, Pedro Pereira, Petro Kersta, and Mariana Carneiro.
