Google, Greenwashing, and the Great Carbon Debate
This month marks the third anniversary of my writing on Medium. Reflecting on this anniversary, one of the primary reasons I started this blog was to share my concerns about the world of Big Tech. As an internet researcher specializing in communication and media studies, I am always interested in how technology companies construct rhetoric and release products to the public. Therefore, I started writing about the digital carbon footprint several years ago.
If you remember, from 2020–2021, many of the largest technology companies (like Microsoft and Google) made carbon pledges to become carbon-neutral or net-zero in the next few decades. This news generated excitement and applause from many people for their efforts to address climate change. However, as a researcher, my initial thought upon seeing these pledges was how these companies would be held accountable for achieving carbon neutrality and what carbon neutrality even means within digital tools.
In my original Medium articles, I mentioned the importance of monitoring carbon pledges made by companies to see if they stay…
