Shria Dembi

Do social media and technology help spread the ideas of sustainability and what medium of technology is most successful in doing so?

Started July 28, 2022

Abstract or project description

Sustainability is the future. Going green is key to help stop the worsening progression of climate change. Sustainability allows for less waste to go into landfills and less CO2 emissions being released. This is through the introduction of daily-practices without the excessive use of plastic and harmful behaviors. Social media is known for how quick ideas can spread through different platforms. Swaying away from the traditional system of waiting for a news broadcast, users can now click on to an app and all information that is “relevant” to them pops up. For some it's information about serious issues around the world like human rights or equality, but for others it's simply just funny cat moments. The algorithm is responsible for determining which content one enjoys and interacts with more. Learning about how the algorithms work is key to determining which content is more likely to be recommended. The algorithm could be utilized to boost more content about sustainability and provide resources to encourage people to get started; many more users could get involved and change their detrimental ways. In order to do so, the social media algorithms will be studied to see what kind of content it popularizes and suggests to people, and why it does or does not share sustainability accounts and resources. Also, different types of technology such as social media, the news, and podcasts will be assessed to see which ones are more successful in spreading sustainability. This will be through research on algorithms and by observing the different platforms. Some sources I plan on using include scholarly articles and academic journals.