Dear All,
Two recent interconnected articles not emerging from different contexts caught my eye.

1. UK drought response : Besides banning hosepipe and advising households how to save water, the UK’s National Drought Group urged people to delete old emails and photos. The logic: storing and processing digital data consumes electricity, and the cooling of data centres often depends on vast quantities of fresh water.
2. AI and water use : Research shows a single Q&A session with a large AI model like ChatGPT can indirectly consume half a litre of freshwater (depending on region and cooling system). Globally, data centres already compete with households and agriculture for scarce drinking water. Protests have erupted in places like Oregon, Chile, and Uruguay, where new data centres threaten local water security.

The recent technological developments in computing and AI raise a provocative question: should WASH professionals and the wider development sector begin to think about digital behaviour as part of water conservation?

• Is encouraging people to delete emails/photos meaningful, or is it symbolic?
• How do we balance the potential of AI to support climate adaptation and better WASH planning with its very real water and energy costs?

I am curious to know how you see this connection. Is this a distraction from the “real” conservation measures (fixing leaks, reducing demand, etc.), or the start of an important conversation about how our digital lives link back to water systems and equity?

Regards
paresh