 | | For the first time see your relationship with the global network | Can you really save the planet by using the Internet more? The quick answer to that question is yes. The thoughtful answer is explored in The Sustainable Network, which takes a look at the role the Internet and all the other networks that connect the world’s computing devices have on the way we are living our lives, conducting our politics, running our businesses and impacting our planet. The network offers us a sustainable platform for change, but to use it to its full advantage we must understand it; we must understand how it works, how it’s integral to our daily lives and how its potential can be tapped more effectively to tackle our toughest environmental, social, economic and political problems. Here are four things you can do now to support a sustainable network:  | | The network is more than just wires and cables; it’s the answer to our future | | Evaluate and recognize the impact of networks on your life today. The Internet has more than likely changed your relationships and many ways that you go about your daily life. It’s important to recognize, in real terms, both the possibilities and holes created by the network in your personal, civic and business activities. Take stock of the new prospects it’s created, new challenges you face, and the level of your reliance on it every day. The goal is to identify how you want to maximize potential and minimize risk. Invest in the future to take advantage of the opportunities created by the network. Learn as much as you can about what the network really is. You should be able to define it (broadband, 3G, smart grid, etc.) and link that to your future opportunities. Learn how to use new network tools to establish connections to information and people, to give you access to the resources you need to make informed decisions. In business, evaluate your infrastructure in terms of scaling and new requirement adaptability. Investment, time and financial, is critical to participating in the digital world.  | | A sustainable earth involves everyone, connected and informed | |
Protecting your personal information, intellectual property and digital assets. It is critical to be aware of the risks you are taking when sharing information and resources online. There are precautions and security measures you can take to maintain the integrity and confidentiality of your online activities. Risks in the digital world need to be understood before they can be combated, and it’s important to understand the tradeoffs, strengths and weaknesses of the digital world as an alternative to the physical one. Test new ideas. Look for additional ways you could leverage the network to achieve your plans, improve economies of scale or reduce your impacts. Examine your mindset, regulatory landscape, business culture, process and policy environment and ask whether they support change. The more willing a government, business or person is to take a look at the way they normally operate and identify opportunities for improvement and innovation, the better the chance they will be able to effectively leverage the network and new technologies to solve problems and accelerate success. It’s critical to identify and then clear the hurdles and embrace necessary changes to keep up in this fast-paced world. Thinking and answering these broad questions in our own, individualized terms will enable us to find our place in this global network. And then together we can develop more sustainable environmental, economic, social and political models. The Sustainable Network sets out to help each of us understand the network and its role in our lives, so we can nurture our relationship with it–our individualized and collective futures depend on it. Photos courtesy of Kate Richards.
Product Description
"Companies with a stake in the technology industry or that have staked on the Internet (ala Google or Amazon or any of the thousands of small ecommerce companies around the world) are likely to pluck multiple nuggets of wisdom from her book."
-- Heather Clancy, business journalist
What technologies do we need to solve the complex environmental, economic, social, and political challenges facing us today? As this thought-provoking book reveals, one tool for enacting change is already at our fingertips: the global network. Consider the private domains of companies, governments, and institutions along with the public Internet: we have an immense communications network that connects billions of people in ways we never thought possible. In this book, author Sarah Sorensen clearly demonstrates why this network is the best sustainable technology available to help us tackle a wide range of problems. If each of us represents a node on this network, then it's time we realize the potential we hold. The Sustainable Network is a call to action, urging individuals, governments, markets, and organizations to put the power of this network to good use. - Discover how the sustainable network connects us all, with examples of how it's already effecting change
- Understand how this network magnifies the impact of even the smallest change and newest idea
- Explore the role that various market and political forces play
- Learn how the network can be improved to better address environmental, economic, and social conditions
- Get practical advice that you or your business can follow now
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