Broadening Horizons through
Information Technology
Lisa P. Nathan
University of British Columbia | lnathan@interchange.ubc.ca
Bill Tomlinson’s book, Greening through IT:
Information Technology for Environmental Sustainability,
explores the design and use of IT to address environmental challenges. Using straightforward writing, he claims information technology systems
can help us overcome the limitations of human
cognition and develop a less destructive presence
on the planet. Tomlinson presents descriptions of
three of his projects as evidence of what he clas-sifies as “Green IT.” Overall, the text has many
strengths: a timely topic, unpretentious writing,
and a thoughtful overview of the nascent field of
sustainable HCI. Tomlinson builds a strong case for
pushing the problem of environmental degradation
to the forefront of research and design in the field
of human-computer interaction. Yet I suspect the
book’s most significant contribution is that it reveals
the current gap between the large-scale efforts that
are needed and the small-scale work that is currently supported. Will HCI practitioners, academics,
and researchers be able to develop radical, ambitious
projects that achieve this label of Green IT?
November + December 2010
The Crisis
As the human population continues to grow exponentially, so does our influence on our environment. According to government and NGO sources
highlighted throughout the book, this influence
has dramatically degraded ecosystems around
the globe. Tomlinson does not plead for saving
starving orcas or drowning polar bears. Instead,
he goes straight to the anthropocentric argument
that access to the essentials of healthy human life
(e.g., unpolluted air, clean water, nutritious food)
is under threat. His next move is to lay out why
IT systems should be an integral part of efforts to
cope with this threat.
Greening through It: Information technology
for environmental Sustainability
Bill Tomlinson
Cambridge: MIT Press, 2010
interactions
The Claim
Tomlinson’s main assertion is that modern
information tools are well poised to help people
around the world shift to more sustainable life-
styles. He supports this claim by suggesting the
reason humanity faces so many environmental
quandaries is directly related to our limited abil-
ity to think on a broad scale. We have thrived as
a species because of our ability to plan ahead, but
typically on the order of days, weeks, and months.
As human anatomy, physiology, and behavior
have evolved, we have become highly skilled in
satisfying current needs and evading immediate
threats. This time frame was sufficient when our
