Collective project #2 : Indirect effects inquiry

Project goal

The two collective projects aim to develop your understanding of environmental policy planning in the context of the deployment of digital infrastructures and technologies. Throughout the projects, you will focus on a specific city. For the first project, you analysed the environmental challenges associated with setting up a data centre. For the second project, you will examine the direct and indirect environmental effects of deploying a specific technology, such as smart meters or car-sharing schemes, in the same city.

Assignment

You are civil servants tasked with delivering a recommendation to the city council and the mayor. Your analysis will help the city decide whether to reject, modify, or support the deployment of a given technology.

You will conduct a qualitative assessment of the direct and indirect environmental effects of the digital technology assigned to your group by the teacher.

You will build on the analysis of environmental and climate risks and transition policies developed for your assigned city during the previous collective project.

• Stay in the same group as last collective project
• Each group keep the same city
• Apply the protocole seen in the net impacts assessment activity

Method

1 - Identify a digital solution

2 - Study the context of implementation

3 - Choose a reference scenario

4 - Identify the directs and indirects effects of the solution and represent them in a consequence tree

Datasources

• The teacher will give to each group a relevant research paper as a starter to constitute a quick literature review
• Additional scientific literature (using right keywords in search engine such as Semantic Scholar or equivalent)
• External analysis from consultancy groups, NGOs, etc.
• Industry reports

Outcome

Your assessment should take the form of a 15 mins presentation that you will deliver during last session.

Deadline : Last session

Assessment grid