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# IoT: The road to sustainability

Is planned obsolescence destroying the Internet of Things? Discover how developers can eliminate e-waste using open-source hardware and the W3C Web of Things standard.

- **Speakers:** Philipp-Alexander Blum
- **Event:** WeAreDevelopers LIVE
- **Published:** April 18, 2023
- **Duration:** 57:23
- **URL:** https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/557-iot-the-road-to-sustainability

## Summary

The video examines the mounting sustainability crisis in the Internet of Things (IoT) landscape, driven by planned obsolescence and restrictive repair policies from major equipment manufacturers. To combat this, the narrative advocates for a foundational shift in engineering mindset, urging developers to prioritize consumer repairability and transparent lifecycles over closed ecosystems. By embracing the right to repair movement and Open Source Hardware—championed by component creators like Adafruit and SparkFun—engineers can build accessible circuits and PCBs that extend hardware utility and significantly reduce electronic waste.

A critical technical framework for solving fragmented IoT ecosystems is the W3C Web of Things (WoT) standard, which brings web-like interoperability to connected devices. By utilizing standard protocols like HTTP, MQTT, and IPv6 alongside a "Thing Description" (a JSON-based metadata file), engineers can abstract hardware limitations into cloud- or edge-based digital twins. This standardized architecture allows constrained microcontrollers, such as an ESP32, to seamlessly align with broader system topologies using modern tools like Node.js and TypeScript, ultimately eliminating the need to write custom parsing logic for every proprietary sensor.

Beyond hardware specifications, the presentation delves into practical developer experiences, contrasting the polished tooling of modern software engineering with the historically cumbersome workflows of embedded systems environments like Arduino. Adopting platforms like RIOT OS to dynamically manage hardware profiles pushes IoT development closer to the ergonomics of web creation. The session concludes by evaluating broader industry risks, emphasizing that maintaining obsolete legacy infrastructure poses severe business threats, while the next decade of technology will be heavily driven by the convergence of AI efficiency tools, Web of Things device interoperability, and the environmental hurdles surrounding decentralized finance.

**Keywords:** iot sustainability concepts, right to repair movement, open source hardware frameworks, w3c web of things standard, wot thing description format, json device metadata, digital twin abstraction layers, esp32 microcontroller development, node.js embedded integration, riot os embedded software, arduino hardware tinkering, legacy system operational risks, proof of work environmental impact, decentralized finance concepts, ai prompt engineering

## Chapters

1. **Impact of unsustainable hardware on end users and industry** (00:04) — Real world examples demonstrate the consequences of abandoning support for older hardware and actively preventing right to repair.
1. **Adopting open source hardware to promote device repairability** (03:16) — Engineers must take responsibility by supporting right to repair policies and leveraging open source circuit designs to extend product lifespan.
1. **Using the web of things standard for device interoperability** (06:51) — Connecting constrained devices through standard web protocols bridges existing communication gaps in the internet of things ecosystem.
1. **Defining device capabilities with the web of things description** (10:10) — Abstracting hardware into digital twins via standardized JSON descriptions enables future-proof integration with legacy and constrained devices.
1. **Demonstrating device interaction using standardized api implementations** (15:11) — A node.js and typescript application queries device descriptions to run a bandwidth test and display results on an external screen.
1. **Transitioning from web development to constrained hardware engineering** (20:18) — Bringing familiar web development workflows to internet of things environments improves efficiency compared to traditional embedded toolchains.
1. **Persuading product leadership to prioritize hardware sustainability metrics** (28:26) — Framing repairability as a marketing advantage and highlighting long-term cost benefits helps shift organizational mindsets toward greener engineering practices.
1. **Navigating legacy systems and unconventional software testing practices** (33:35) — Implementing live platform tests on banking infrastructure reveals the persistence of outdated practices and undocumented technical debt.
1. **Exploring microcontrollers and communication protocols for amateur hardware** (41:58) — Utilizing affordable microcontrollers with built-in networking enables sophisticated personal projects by running complex communication stacks directly on wearable devices.
1. **Contributing to open standards and open source operations** (45:03) — Focusing on widespread adoption of universal specifications requires contributing standardized platform integrations into open source operating systems.
1. **Predicting technological convergence across edge devices and artificial intelligence** (46:59) — Combining autonomous internet of things networks with artificial intelligence sets up a future of advanced automation and decentralized finance.
1. **Evaluating the environmental impact of blockchain consensus algorithms** (51:43) — The severe computational waste generated by proof of work calculations necessitates a shift to more sustainable ledger technologies.
1. **Developing specialized hardware kits for web of things integration** (55:31) — Building an accessible hardware development platform encourages mainstream adoption of normalized internet of things protocols.

## Related Moments

- [Complexities of hardware prototyping and compliance in IoT](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/1113-smart-connected-unexpected-the-wild-side-of-iot-and-ai) (from "Smart, Connected, Unexpected: The Wild Side of IoT and AI")
- [Mitigating the unreliability of connected hardware endpoints](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/64-shared-mobility-for-everyone) (from "Shared mobility for everyone!")
- [Questions on protocol performance, security, and industrial adoption](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/771-from-bedside-beeps-to-interoperable-bytes-getting-your-medical-devices-ready-to-talk-the-ieee-11073-language) (from "From Bedside Beeps to Interoperable Bytes – Getting your medical devices ready to talk the IEEE 11073 language")
- [Summarizing key takeaways for scaling hardware prototypes rapidly](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/590-building-your-way-to-a-serverless-powered-iot-buzzwire-game) (from "Building your way to a serverless powered IOT Buzzwire game")
- [Connecting web performance optimization to ecological sustainability](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/937-sleek-swift-and-sustainable-optimizations-every-web-developer-should-consider) (from "Sleek, Swift, and Sustainable: Optimizations every web developer should consider")
- [Examining connectivity concerns in modern consumer hardware ecosystems](https://www.wearedevelopers.com/videos/1805-wearedevelopers-live-modern-devops-for-iot-devices-and-more) (from "WeAreDevelopers LIVE - Modern DevOps for IoT Devices and More")

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