Sustainable 6G by Design - An SNS-Driven Vision for AI-Native, System-Level Sustainability.
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1.
Huawei Technologies (Germany)
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2.
Instituto de Telecomunicações
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3.
University of Genoa
- 4. Digital for Planet
- 5. UC3M
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6.
Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology
- 7. Orange
- 8. Nokia
- 9. Martel Innovate
- 10. Erescom
- 11. PSC Europe
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12.
University of Sussex
- 13. Gigasys Solutions
Description
This technical report provides a comprehensive framework for embedding holistic sustainability directly into the architecture of next-generation 6G networks. It shifts the focus from simple hardware energy efficiency to an end-to-end approach covering environmental, social, and economic dimensions. The paper details key trade-offs in AI-native systems, identifies standardisation and research gaps, and outlines strategies to reduce 6G's direct footprint while maximising its positive impact ("handprint") across vertical industries like energy and transport.
Note:
This report is a collaborative work done by various projects. It was presented at the EuCNC & 6G Summit 2026 during Workshop 11: "Sustainable by Design, Sustainable in Operation: The 6G Perspective".
Authors/ Contributors: Chiara Lombardo (University of Genoa); Artur Hecker (Huawei); Rui L. Aguiar (Instituto de Telecomunicações); Anna Aseeva (Digital for Planet); Ayat Zaki Hindi (LIST); Akshay Jain (Nokia); Anastasius Gavras (Erescom); Katrina Petersen (PSC Europe); Mays AL-Naday (University of Sussex); Eva Hajdok, Massimo Neri (Martel Innovate); Carlos Jesus Bernardos Cano (UC3M); Christoph Schmelz (Nokia); Stefan Wendt (Orange); Sébastien Faye (LIST)
Files
Sustainable 6G by Design_Technical Paper_EUCNC & 6G Summit 2026.pdf
Additional details
Funding
- European Commission
- EXIGENCE - Devise & explore a novel approach for energy consumption and carbon footprint reduction of ICT services in the era of next-generation mobile telecommunications (6G) 101139120
- European Commission
- BeGREEN - Beyond 5G Artificial Intelligence Assisted Energy Efficient Open Radio Access Network 101097083
- European Commission
- 5G-STARDUST - Satellite and Terrestrial Access for Distributed, Ubiquitous, and Smart Telecommunications 101096573
- European Commission
- HORSE - Holistic, Omnipresent, Resilient Services for future 6G Wireless and Computing Ecosystems 101096342
- European Commission
- NATWORK - Net-Zero self-adaptive activation of distributed self-resilient augmented services 101139285
- European Commission
- 6Green - Green Technologies for 5/6G Service-Based Architectures 101096925
- European Commission
- CENTRIC - Towards an AI-native, user-centric air interface for 6G networks 101096379
- European Commission
- SUSTAIN-6G - SUSTainability-Advanced and Innovative Networking with 6G 101191936
- European Commission
- 6G-SANDBOX - Supporting Architectural and technological Network evolutions through an intelligent, secureD and twinning enaBled Open eXperimentation facility 101096328
- European Commission
- 6G-TWIN - Integrating Network Digital Twinning into Future AI-based 6G Systems 101136314
- European Commission
- 6G-GOALS - 6G Goal-Oriented AI-enabled Learning and Semantic Communication Networks 101139232
- European Commission
- DESIRE6G - Deep Programmability and Secure Distributed Intelligence for Real-Time End-to-End 6G Networks 101096466
- European Commission
- SUPERIOT - Truly Sustainable Printed Electronics-based IoT Combining Optical and Radio Wireless Technologies 101096021
- European Commission
- 6G-NTN - 6G Non Terrestrial Networks 101096479
- European Commission
- ORIGAMI - Optimized resource integration and global architecture for mobile infrastructure for 6G 101139270
- European Commission
- Hexa-X-II - A holistic flagship towards the 6G network platform and system, to inspire digital transformation, for the world to act together in meeting needs in society and ecosystems with novel 6G services 101095759
- European Commission
- 6G-VERSUS - 6G Vertical trials for Sustainability 101192633
- European Commission
- TrialsNet - TRials supported by Smart Networks beyond 5G 101095871
- European Commission
- 6G-EWOC - AI-Enhanced fibre-Wireless Optical 6G network in support of connected mobility 101139182