Digital Cleanup Month: clean up your smart device this week

06.01.2025

#sustainability

Further information:

Joonas Masing

Information Technology Office

IT Support Service

Content Manager

Uppsala 10-142

joonas.masing@ut.ee

+372 5681 8250 (6818)

In January, the University of Tartu will hold its first ever Digital Cleanup Month. The university invites you to dedicate at least 30 minutes every week to get rid of your digital waste and tidy up your personal or unit’s digital space. The second week of the Digital Cleanup Month focuses on cleaning up smart devices.

The first winners of raffle prizes are UT staff member Dage Särg and student Tiiu Soomer. We will contact the winners.

When cleaning your smart device, the following principles may be helpful.

Uninstall the apps you no longer use. Also, check your app cache and delete unnecessary data.
Make sure your device software and apps are up to date. This will ensure optimal performance and security.
When you switch phones, choose carefully what you transfer to your new device. Keep only the files and apps you really need.
Delete unnecessary photos, videos and documents, and get rid of duplicate files. If there are similar photos, keep only the best and delete blurry ones.
Sort files by size. Delete large, unnecessary files and apps to free up space on your device.
Find a cloud service of your choice to back up important photos and data. This way, you will not lose important items when your device crashes or gets lost. When choosing a cloud service, remember that your personal items should not be stored in the university’s cloud.
Don’t forget to clean the screen and body of your device to keep it clean and in good condition.

See IT helpdesk guides on freeing up space on Android and iPhone devices.

You can register your participation in the Digital Cleanup Month via the web form. Every Monday, there will be a draw to win great prizes from the university's gift shop.

The university invites staff and students to clean up different types of digital waste every week:

6–10 January – organise your computer and documents;
13–17 January – clean up your smart device;
20–24 January – check and clean your email inbox;
27–31 January – check and clean your cloud services and other environments (OneDrive, Moodle, Panopto, BBB, Mahara, Sisu@UT, LimeSurvey).

General principles for reducing digital waste

Before buying a new device, consider whether you really need it.
If a device does not work properly or is out of date, don’t buy a new one immediately but have it repaired.
If you no longer need your old device, don’t leave it in a drawer, but consider donating, selling or recycling it.
Choose an energy-efficient product that has a long lifespan and is made from sustainable materials.
Use cloud services, as storing data in the cloud reduces the need for physical storage space.
Reduce unnecessary data storage.

Bins for unnecessary external data carriers

In cooperation with the Estates Office, the IT Office has placed special digital waste bins in the university’s academic buildings (Nooruse 1, Ravila 14a, Ravila 19, W. Ostwaldi 1, Riia 23, Jakobi 2, Jakobi 5, Lossi 36, Ülikooli 18, Narva mnt 18, Uppsala 10, Vanemuise 46, J. Liivi 2, Lossi 3, Näituse 2, Näituse 20, W. Struve 1, Ujula 4 and Ülikooli 17) The bins are meant for unnecessary external data carriers: flash drives, floppy disks, CDs and DVDs, smart cards, cassettes, and old video and audio tapes.

Please do not put hard drives, phones and other electronic devices in the digital waste bins.

The labelled bins will be available in the study buildings from 6 January to 3 February.

Until 31 Jan