Responsible digital workshop: 21 ideas to reduce your digital footprint

Smartphone, computer, internet box, video calls, cloud, artificial intelligence… Digital technology is everywhere, and its environmental impact is growing as fast as our use of it. The Ecofrugal Responsible digital workshop brings colleagues, friends or neighbours together to share everyone's good practices: making devices last, lightening our digital use, and keeping control of our screen time. It's free, friendly and open to all: the facilitation booklet guides you step by step.

In English too. Workshops can be run in English. The booklet is written in French and its English version is being prepared: contact us to receive a translated copy.

Why talk about responsible digital?

Most of the impact of digital technology comes from manufacturing our devices: metal mining, energy, water. Keeping your smartphone or computer longer is therefore the most effective habit… and the cheapest. Then come our uses: video, storage, emails, and now AI. Good news: everyone already has tips to share.

The 21 responsible digital ideas

The workshop has two parts, which can be held on the same day or on two different dates. As always, the group chooses the ideas it is most interested in.

Part 1 — My equipment (10 ideas)

1. I protect my equipment: case, tempered glass, sleeve… a protected device lasts longer.
2. I optimise my equipment: cleaning, updates, battery care to keep devices running well.
3. I reuse: giving a second life to an old phone or computer, at home or at the office.
4. I repair or have my equipment repaired: repairers, Repair Cafés, tutorials, and in France the repair bonus with approved professionals.
5. I refuse what I don't need: do we really need a new device, or one more connected gadget?
6. I take back, I give: the devices sleeping in our drawers can be useful to others.
7. I choose my equipment according to my needs: the latest model is not necessarily the best fit.
8. I buy second-hand or refurbished: cheaper, and that many fewer new devices to manufacture.
9. I take environmental criteria into account: repairability index, durability, labels.
10. I recycle: in shops, at the recycling centre or at collection points, never in the bin.

Part 2 — My uses (11 ideas)

1. I connect through the network with the least impact: Wi-Fi rather than 4G or 5G when possible.
2. I print less and better: double-sided, black and white, and only when necessary.
3. I browse less and better: precise searches, bookmarks, closed tabs… and well-phrased AI prompts.
4. I reduce the number of emails I receive and send: unsubscribing, lighter attachments, a simple signature.
5. I use less data: video in a suitable resolution, autoplay switched off.
6. I store less and better: sorting your photos, clearing your cloud, limiting automatic syncing.
7. I reduce the energy consumption of my devices: standby, a switchable power strip, the internet box switched off at night.
8. I choose open source and free software, which often extends the life of computers.
9. I schedule digital detox periods: for the planet, but above all for yourself.
10. I share my good practices and teach my children responsible digital use.
11. I use digital technology to reduce my impact elsewhere: car-pooling, anti-food-waste apps, buying second-hand…

Want to go further? The Zero waste (repairing, buying second-hand, giving) and Energy saving (electricity used by devices) workshops extend several of these ideas.

How does a responsible digital workshop work?

1. You create your workshop on monatelier-ecofrugal.fr, open to the public or for your guests only, in person or online.
2. You bring 8 to 12 people together — colleagues, friends, neighbours, members of an association.
3. You run it with the booklet: a ready-to-read script, quizzes and questions to get everyone talking. The length is flexible: we recommend one-hour sessions, about 8 minutes per idea, and you pick up the rest at a later meeting. You can also do both parts on the same day.
4. Everyone leaves with their own action list to put into practice at home and at work.

The golden rule: no debate, we talk about solutions. Nuclear power, 5G, AI, iPhone versus Android… that's not today's topic! Everyone talks about what they do or would like to do, we give each other ideas and tips, and learn from each other. It feels more like a neighbourhood party than a training course.

Because the workshop is also a chance to discover everyone's hidden talents — the one who knows how to change a battery, the one who has tamed her inbox — and to grow together the wish to act. And what better than a real, screen-free get-together to talk about digital technology? At a time when we spend so much time alone in front of our screens, the workshop helps bring back community and connection.

Ecofrugal Workshop and Digital Collage: two complementary formats

The Digital Collage (Fresque du Numérique) helps you understand the environmental impacts of digital technology. The Ecofrugal Responsible digital workshop starts from solutions: everyone shares what they already do and leaves with practical ideas. After a Digital Collage, it's the ideal format to take action together; and after a workshop, some participants want to understand the issues better with a Digital Collage.

A booklet designed with a major digital company

The Responsible digital booklet was co-designed with Orange: more than 1,800 employees of its Enterprise France division have already taken part in Ecofrugal workshops. It also helps organisations raise their teams' awareness of responsible digital use, as encouraged in France by the REEN law on reducing the environmental footprint of digital technology.

More broadly, Mon Atelier Ecofrugal is listed by ADEME Académie (the French Agency for Ecological Transition) among the facilitation tools that support behaviour change. Since 2018, more than 1,000 Ambassadors have organised workshops all over France, and more than 10,000 participants have taken part.

Ecofrugal survey of members, July 2024. See what it changes

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to know about computers?

No! The workshop is for everyone, from tech enthusiasts to technophobes. The solutions come from the participants, and the booklet gives the facilitator the whole running order and useful explanations.

Can the workshop be held online?

Yes, the workshop can take place in person or on a video call. But nothing beats meeting around a table!

How much does it cost?

Nothing. Signing up, the facilitation booklet and the workshop are free, and the Ambassador who runs it is a volunteer.

And at work?

It's one of the most requested workshops at work. It's always free if an employee runs it with the booklet: talk to your HR, CSR or IT team. Organisations that want to involve a large number of people can book the XXL Ecofrugal Workshop, run by an Ecofrugal Coach. This paid format is presented on ecofrugal.fr (in French).

To go further

Le Guide Écofrugal (Leduc, 2025, in French), with a foreword by Fabrice Bonnifet, has a whole section on reducing your digital footprint, in its Consumption part, with many ideas for action at home and in your organisation. More than 500 solutions to save money and reduce your ecological footprint, at work and at home.