Environmental Impact and User Experience of University Websites

Abstract

With the digitalisation, the environmental impact of services also grows. Therefore, understanding and monitoring the environmental sustainability of websites is becoming important. This paper examines the environmental sustainability of websites through analysis of web pages of six Slovenian universities. The primary focus was to assess the carbon footprint and elements of technical optimisation (speed, accessibility, efficiency), which form the basis of user experience. Data were collected using tools or browser extensions for the assessment of emissions and tools for the assessment of technical performance. The use of environmental performance metrics enables developers to gain clearer insight into the impact of digital services and to monitor how changes or improvements affect the environmental sustainability of a website. The findings indicate a correlation between the technical optimisation and the carbon footprint of a website. The most efficiently designed websites (e.g.  University of Ljubljana) achieve significantly lower CO₂ emissions per visit, regardless of high traffic volumes. The findings of this study contribute to the understanding of the importance of integrating environmental criteria into the processes of digital design and website management.