A groundbreaking new study reveals a striking and troubling trend: websites created for the UN Climate Change Conferences, commonly known as COP (Conference of the Parties), have seen their carbon emissions skyrocket, now producing up to seven times more carbon dioxide than typical internet pages. This finding sheds light on an often overlooked but significant digital dimension of climate change discourse. Researchers from the University of Edinburgh have meticulously analyzed web archive data, spanning nearly three decades since the inaugural COP meeting in 1995, to trace the environmental impact embedded in these pivotal online platforms.
The data reveal a staggering 13,000% increase in the carbon footprint of COP conference websites between 1995 and 2024. This drastic elevation mirrors the broader exponential growth in internet usage and the escalating power demands of digital infrastructure worldwide. Notably, the internet sector itself accounts for as much as 3% of global carbon emissions, illustrating the deep entanglement of digital technologies with environmental concerns. However, even within this context, the specific case of COP websites stands out due to their markedly higher-than-average emissions per page view compared to global internet norms.
In the initial years, particularly until COP14 held in 2008, the carbon emissions from these websites were minimal, averaging roughly 0.02 grams of CO2 per page view. But from COP15 onward, a dramatic surge in emissions has been observed, linked to progressively richer, more media-heavy content that demands greater energy from servers. By recent measurements, an average COP web page generates more than 2.4 grams of carbon per visit, a figure that dwarfs the global average webpage emission of approximately 0.36 grams per visit. This significant increase is attributed to the integration of high-bandwidth multimedia files such as videos, interactive graphics, and real-time updates specific to COP events.
This rise in carbon intensity per page load is compounded by an even sharper increase in traffic to these COP sites. The number of visits has ballooned exponentially in parallel with global awareness and engagement efforts around climate issues. For instance, during COP3 in 1997, the cumulative emissions from website views were equivalent to 0.14 kilograms of carbon—about what a mature tree can absorb in two days. Fast forward to COP29, and homepage visits alone produced around 116.85 kilograms of carbon, translating to the carbon absorption capacity of ten mature trees over an entire year. This dramatic escalation underscores the widening digital footprint of climate activism and diplomacy.
The University of Edinburgh team also highlights that the COP30 website, planned for the upcoming summit, remains under scrutiny as it currently lacks hosting on verified renewable energy infrastructure. This detail raises important questions about the sustainability of digital platforms critical for global climate negotiations and public engagement. Researchers caution that without deliberate interventions, the digital carbon footprint of such influential sites will continue to grow unchecked, potentially undermining the very environmental principles these conferences advocate.
To address these challenges, the research proposes actionable strategies to curtail the energy demands of COP websites and reduce their associated emissions. Among these, strict limits on webpage sizes, the optimization of site layouts to minimize unnecessary data loads, and the imperative to host websites on servers powered exclusively by renewable energy sources stand out. Implementing these measures can significantly lower the environmental impact of digital climate diplomacy and set a benchmark for sustainable web design practices globally.
This study is particularly innovative in employing web archives such as the Internet Archive to assess the historical environmental impact of digital media over time. Using bespoke computer codes developed by the research team—now freely available to the academic community—this method allows unprecedented insights into how the digital footprints of specific websites evolve and contribute to carbon emissions. The approach paves the way for similar analyses of other high-profile sites, potentially transforming how digital sustainability is measured and addressed across internet governance and climate action sectors.
Leading voices within the study emphasize the paradox at the heart of these findings. Professor Melissa Terras of the Institute for Design Informatics at Edinburgh College of Art remarked on the overlooked nature of digital emissions even among climate-conscious stakeholders. Despite the centrality of COP conferences to global climate discourse, their websites’ digital carbon footprints have remained largely unexamined until now. These insights prompt a broader reconsideration of how institutions approach digital presence in an environmentally responsible manner.
PhD student David Mahoney added that while artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies dominate contemporary discussions about environmental impact, the humble website remains one of the longest-standing and most ubiquitous forms of human-computer interaction and a significant contributor to the internet’s energy consumption. His commentary underlines the crucial need to expand digital sustainability efforts beyond cutting-edge tech, incorporating fundamental internet infrastructure and content delivery systems.
Furthermore, Professor Frauke Zeller stressed the interdisciplinary nature of the research. The collaboration between arts, humanities, and computer science within the Institute for Design Informatics showcases how combining diverse academic perspectives can generate innovative analytical tools and foster societal impact. This cross-pollination is essential in tackling complex environmental issues that manifest across technical, cultural, and policy domains.
The implications extend beyond academic circles, urging policymakers, web developers, and hosting services to rethink and realign their strategies to accommodate sustainability imperatives. COP websites are more than informational hubs; they are symbolic frontlines in the fight against climate change. Ensuring these digital spaces are as green as their mission statements is vital not only for reducing emissions but also for maintaining credibility and leadership in climate action on the global stage.
Overall, this research illuminates a critical blind spot in climate advocacy: the environmental cost of the digital platforms that promote it. The societal reliance on web-based communication, especially for global summits and outreach, demands immediate attention to the energy profiles of these technologies. Reducing digital carbon footprints is no longer optional but a prerequisite for genuine climate commitment.
As we prepare for COP30, the findings serve as a clarion call to integrate sustainability at every level of climate discourse, including the invisible yet powerful networks of data transmission and website hosting. By adopting the recommended practices and embracing innovative research tools, the international community can begin to close the gap between digital convenience and ecological responsibility, setting a precedent for how the internet supports a sustainable future.
Subject of Research: Not applicable
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News Publication Date: 10-Nov-2025
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Keywords: Climate change, Greenhouse gases, Internet, Computer science, Climatology
