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There’s a growing assumption that digitalisation will help solve sustainability challenges, but the reality is less straightforward. In this interview, Veiko Lember, Professor at Tallinn University of Technology explores why digital and green goals often move on separate tracks, and what it takes to bring them together in a way that changes outcomes.
Can an innovative and highly digital society also become sustainable, or is that much harder than it sounds?
There is a considerable consensus among research communities that digitalisation is key to the transition towards more sustainable societies. But it is much harder than popular slogans suggest. Digital technologies do not automatically lead to greener outcomes; they can just as easily reinforce existing, unsustainable practices. Also, digitalisation itself carries a rapidly growing ecological footprint due to rising energy and resource use. Sustainability gains only occur when digital tools are used to redesign sustainability practices and when sustainability concerns are incorporated into digitalisation. Without rethinking the underlying economic and social practices, digitalisation mainly improves the efficiency of the existing systems, not long-term sustainability.
Your research examined how European cities seek to combine digitalisation and sustainability. What did you find, and are these transitions actually working together in practice?
We studied 10 European cities across the continent and found that cities pursue digitalisation and sustainability on parallel tracks rather than as a joined-up effort. In practice, the two come together mostly in specific projects, such as smart mobility, energy management, or digital planning tools. These initiatives can work well at the task level, but they rarely add up to coherent city-wide twin transition pathways.
Many policymakers talk about the “twin transition” as if digital and green goals naturally reinforce each other. Why does that often not happen?
Because digital and green transitions follow very different logics and timelines. Digitalisation has strong internal spillover effects, where one innovation converts rather quickly and easily to another, while sustainability is driven by external, political goals and where one innovation rarely converts smoothly to another. Without active coordination, digital tools tend to optimise existing (unsustainable) systems rather than change them. As a result, the “twin transition” remains more rhetoric than reality.
What does this gap tell us about the kind of knowledge or skills governments and organisations are currently missing?
Governments often lack people who can bridge digital expertise and sustainability expertise. There is a shortage of practical knowledge about how specific digital tools can meaningfully support climate, energy, or circular economy goals. Organisations also struggle with coordination skills, aligning private and public stakeholders, budgets, and data across socio-technical and policy fields. In short, the missing capability is not always technology itself, but the ability to create new institutional structures and practices.
How does TalTech’s Technology Governance & Sustainability programme prepare students to deal with exactly these kinds of challenges?
The programme trains students to understand technology not just as a neutral tool, but as part of wider governance, policy, and socio-technical systems. Students learn how digitalisation, sustainability, governance, and interactions among private and public organisations occur in real-world settings. A strong focus is placed on problem-based learning, governance capabilities, and strategic coordination. This directly reflects the kinds of challenges identified in the research.
For someone considering applying, why does this programme matter now and who is it really for?
It matters now because governments urgently need people who can connect digital innovation with climate and sustainability goals. The programme is for those who want to work at the intersection of technology, public policy, and societal change, not just in IT or environmental roles alone. It is especially relevant for future policy entrepreneurs and innovation managers. In short, it is for people who want to shape how digitalisation and technological change in general can support sustainable futures.
More detailed information about TalTech’s Technology Governance & Sustainability programme can be found here.
