AI-DRIVEN COGNITIVE SUSTAINABILITY IN GREEN DIGITAL CAMPUSES: A SYSTEMS ARCHITECTURE FOR INDIA’S HIGHER EDUCATION SECTOR

Abstract

The rapid expansion of digital infrastructure across Indian higher education institutions has fundamentally transformed teaching–learning processes, campus operations, and resource consumption patterns. While smart and green campus initiatives have largely focused on energy efficiency and infrastructure optimization, they have paid limited attention to the cognitive sustainability of learners who interact continuously with digital systems. Prolonged exposure to poorly regulated digital workloads, suboptimal environmental conditions, and fragmented learning platforms can result in cognitive overload, reduced academic performance, and diminished well-being. Addressing these challenges requires an integrated framework that treats cognitive performance as a measurable and optimizable operational variable. This paper proposes an AI-driven systems architecture for cognitive sustainability in green digital campuses, specifically tailored to the Indian higher education context. The study introduces the Cognitive Sustainability Index (CSI), a composite metric integrating cognitive-state estimation, workload adaptability, and energy-aware environmental regulation. Drawing upon Cognitive Load Theory, environmental psychology, AI-driven learning analytics, and sustainable campus design literature, the paper presents a scalable, ethically governed architecture that aligns learning effectiveness with environmental responsibility. The proposed framework offers institutions a pathway to harmonize digital transformation with sustainability objectives while preserving learner cognitive well-being.