Digital Product Decarbonization

This four-week online course outlines techniques that digital product managers and builders can take to measure and reduce emissions from their products.

The course starts Jun 25, 2024. Enrollments close Jun 24, 2024.

Live sessions: Tuesdays from 8:00-9:30am PT

Course level: Intermediate

About this course

This course outlines tangible action that product managers and other seasoned operators in digital product companies can take in their roles to minimize their companies’ climate impact while driving their key OKRs. We’ll start by learning how to measure emissions for digital products. You’ll then explore several emissions reduction techniques both at the product design stage (such as reducing page weight, optimizing multimedia files, and minimizing data transfer) and the product development and delivery stages (such as promoting green user-behaviours and tactically pausing and deactivating services).


Importantly, you’ll learn about critical ways to engage and align stakeholders (i.e. your peers and customers) using metrics, processes, and mandates to implement these climate-efficient techniques. You’ll also build a strong network of peers in the field.


The course was initially created by Product for NetZero co-founders Chris Moisan and Dan O’Connell, with contributions from the Climate Product Management Playbook by François Burra, Co-founder of Climate Product Leaders, and Antoine Cabot, Senior Director of Product Management at Salesforce.

Who is this program for?

Product managers and leaders

Build climate-friendly digital products by integrating sustainability from the ground up and aligning stakeholders around it

Mid- and senior-level operators in digital product

Articulate climate-efficient value propositions and develop business practices in conjunction with key stakeholders, including the product team

Sustainability and ESG professionals

Understand the climate impact of digital products and identify effective strategies to reduce those impacts

What climate skills you'll learn

Digital emissions accounting

Tools and techniques for measuring the climate impact of digital technology

Designing digital products for climate efficiency

Techniques for minimizing climate impact when designing products, including mobile-first strategies, avoiding obsolescence tactics, and promoting green user behaviors

Minimizing climate impact of product delivery

Best practices for reducing the environmental impact of software and digital products, including choosing sustainable hosting providers, and responsive energy use

Aligning stakeholders using climate KPIs

Strategies to align your stakeholders on climate initiatives by establishing environmental standards and processes, such as including climate requirements in PRDs and RFPs and openly disclosing environmental commitments

free event

The Carbon Footprint of Digital Products

The first step to reducing climate impact for our digital product is knowing where all the impacts come from and what sources matter. Join François Burra, Co-founder, of Climate Product Leader as he goes through the top sources of climate emissions in the way we build digital products today.

The Terra.do difference

Live lab groups

You will meet weekly with the instructor and fellow learners to share perspectives

Skills-based learning

You will engage in individual real-world assignments to immediately apply the skills you’ve learned

Personalized attention

Meet with the instructor 1-on-1 and get individualized feedback on your assignments

Asynchronous and synchronous learning

Flexible learning options to fit your learning style

Meet the course creator

François Burra

Co-founder, Climate Product Leaders, 3X product lead

François is a sustainable digital and low-carbon product consultant, mentor, and speaker with several successful turns as a Product Lead and UX Designer and 13 years of experience working with startups and agencies in Canada and the US. He helps digital companies reduce their digital emissions by delivering training, measuring digital emissions, and creating low-carbon experiences. He has trained individuals and teams in a variety of organizations such as Huge, ServiceNow, Planes, fruggr, Accenture Song, Cossette, etc. He recently wrote the climate product playbook “How to Become a Climate-Conscious Product Manager”. François is also a Terra.do fellow, completing Climate Change: Learning for Action in 2022

Course schedule

Week One: Welcome and introduction to climate product management
  • Readings/viewing: The environmental impact of digital products, Emissions sources of digital products
  • Assignment: Assess the sustainable digital maturity of a company
  • Readings/viewing: How to measure digital emissions, How to embed climate into your workflow, How to mindfully build product to reduce climate impact
  • Assignment: Identify opportunities to embed climate into your current role/company
  • Readings/viewings: How to design climate-frugal products, How to explain and sell the benefits of climate-aligned products to stakeholders
  • Readings/viewings: Review other fellows’ final projects
  • Assignment: Create a climate action plan for your company focusing on the digital impacts and opportunities

Pricing and expected commitment

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Previous fellows say it best

Aaron Monro

"Taking this course has truly shifted my perspective on the digital world and its physical impact on the world. This knowledge and insight is invaluable and should be share with the world."

Freelance UX designer
Francesco Fullone

“Physical is Digital, if you are developing or managing a digital product or infrastructure you have real impact on the environment. Francois gave us a lot of practical insight to reduce this impact and to change our approach to the digital product development.”

Strategic Business Consultant at
Daruma Consulting di Francesco Fullone

Frequently asked questions

The course is four weeks long and will be offered from Jun 24 to Jul 26, 2024 with a break the week of Jun 30-July 6. Live sessions will run on Tuesdays from 8am-9:30am PT

People who are product managers, working on products, or product adjacent roles who are motivated to build digital experiences and services more sustainably.

Prior experience in product management is useful but not required. We welcome participants from all backgrounds and regions of the world to participate.

Several organizations have learning or professional development budgets for their employees. We encourage you to enquire about and utilize this budget to attend the course. Terra.do will help you get reimbursed for the course by providing an invoice, a certificate, and any other documentation you need. If you have approval from your company, we can also arrange for your company to pay directly.

We expect to run more cohorts given ongoing demand for this course. If you’re interested in taking the course, please add yourself to the waitlist.

Financial aid is not available for this course.

If you have a question about this course that isn’t covered in the FAQ, please email us at climate-product@terra.do

Learn the skills to work on climate