We automatically assume because something is digital it must be better for the environment than something printed on a piece of paper. We need to look carefully though, as there has been a push within the printing industry for many years to address and improve environmental behaviours.
This article poses an interesting argument by Laurel Brunner concerning the ongoing carbon footprint of something like digital signage as opposed to the initial carbon footprint of printed signage.
While Brunner concedes that updating printed signage requires a new version of the print, as opposed to digital which can be quickly and easily altered, she says that this provides an incentive to create a compelling message in the first place, and that recycling printed material is a relatively simple proposition.