Image Moth Wanasinghe
As part of our ongoing commitment to digital sustainability, several improvements have been implemented on the University of Worcester’s SusThingsOut website to reduce the amount of data transferred each time a visitor loads a page. Susthingsout is a digital sustainability magazine that shares stories and initiatives related to climate action and sustainable development.
What Changed?
Image Optimisation
The largest contributor to page weight was high-resolution imagery. Images have now been reviewed and optimised by:
- Compressing image files without noticeable loss of quality.
- Serving appropriately sized images for different screen sizes.
- Removing unnecessarily large media files.
Improved Loading Performance
To reduce the amount of data loaded during the initial visit:
- Images and media below the fold are loaded only when needed (lazy loading).
- Unused assets and unnecessary requests have been reduced.
- Browser caching has been enhanced so returning visitors do not need to download the same files repeatedly.
Streamlined Website Assets
Additional improvements include:
- Minifying CSS and JavaScript files.
- Removing redundant plugins and resources.
- Optimising page templates to reduce overhead and improve efficiency.
The Impact
These changes significantly reduce the volume of data transferred between the website and visitors’ devices. The result is:
- Faster page load times.
- A better user experience on mobile devices and slower connections.
- Lower energy consumption associated with website usage.
- Reduced digital carbon emissions, supporting the sustainability values promoted by SusThingsOut itself.
Digital sustainability is not only about the content we publish but also about how efficiently we deliver it. By reducing data transfer across SusThingsOut.com, we are taking another practical step toward a lower-impact digital presence.