Together with the association that promotes a responsible use of technology, we are strengthening our commitment to a form of sustainability that also looks at digital technology, artificial intelligence and their impacts.
At a time when artificial intelligence is bringing about a profound transformation in the way we work, build relationships, access knowledge and make decisions, digital technology can no longer sit at the margins of the sustainability conversation.
This is why Amapola has become a supporter of Sloweb APS, an association committed to promoting the responsible use of IT tools, the web and internet applications.
It is a choice that feels very close to our way of understanding sustainability: not as a separate field or a technical requirement, but as a culture, a responsibility and the ability to understand the impacts that every organisation generates. Including those impacts that pass through seemingly intangible tools: platforms, data, software, algorithms and digital infrastructure.
Why digital sustainability matters
Digital sustainability concerns the way technologies are designed, selected, used and governed throughout their entire life cycle. It means taking into account the environmental, social and ethical impacts of digital technology: from the energy consumed by IT infrastructure to data management, from the accessibility of online services to the wellbeing of people who work with digital tools every day.
This is not an issue only for those who produce technology. It concerns all companies and organisations that use digital tools to work, communicate, make decisions, manage processes and build relationships with clients, communities and stakeholders. Today, we could say, it concerns virtually every business.
This reflection has become even more urgent with the acceleration of artificial intelligence, which has now entered the public and social debate also because of its ethical, cultural and environmental implications. The question is not only how efficient or innovative AI can be, but what idea of progress we want to build through technology.
Digital technology has a tangible footprint
One of the first cultural shifts we need to make is to recognise that digital technology is material. It consumes energy, water, land and raw materials; it produces electronic waste; it affects accessibility, equity and people’s wellbeing; and it raises major questions around ethics, transparency, security, privacy and data governance.
A few figures help convey the scale of the issue: 40% of workers experience technostress; the ICT sector is responsible for almost 4% of global CO₂ emissions; in Italy, 60% of websites do not meet the minimum requirements for people with visual impairments; and in Europe, between 2025 and 2026, an average of 443 data breaches were reported every day.
Environment, people, accessibility, security, governance: digital sustainability cuts across every ESG dimension. That is precisely why it needs to become a more conscious part of business strategy.
Amapola and Sloweb: responsibility, culture, action
Sloweb APS promotes a responsible, informed and participatory approach to digital technology, software development and IT infrastructure. Through awareness-raising, education, training, advisory activities and publications, the association has become a point of reference in Italy for those who want to explore the environmental, social and ethical impacts of technology.
The collaboration with Sloweb stems from a shared belief: innovation and responsibility cannot be treated as two separate paths. They have to move forward together.
Amapola brings its experience in ESG pathways, responsible communication and stakeholder engagement; Sloweb contributes specific expertise in sustainable digital technology and a network of professionals committed to spreading more conscious practices in the use and development of technology.
For us, as a Benefit Corporation since 2021, this support is also a concrete way to give continuity to our common benefit goals and contribute to the spread of a sustainability culture in an area that is becoming increasingly decisive.
Sustainability must address digital technology
Supporting Sloweb means helping to spread a culture that enables companies, institutions and communities to look at digital technology with greater awareness. A culture that does not separate innovation from responsibility, but brings them together: from reducing the environmental footprint of technologies to promoting more mindful and accessible digital behaviours, from data governance to training on the ethical and productive use of artificial intelligence.
In this perspective, the dialogue between Amapola and Sloweb may also translate into operational support for organisations that want to assess their level of digital maturity, define policies and guidelines, train their people and integrate digital responsibility into their ESG strategies.
Because sustainability also passes through this: the ability to recognise the impact of digital technologies and steer it towards the environment, people, relationships and the common good.
