Today’s blog is on a very general topic, but on the other hand a very important one for all my readers.
HARNESSING GREEN IT
As we all know IT helps us in many ways like development of industries, development of life style etc. But as it is said, every coin has 2 sides. IT affects our environment adversely which is not seen by many of us.
Introduction
Information Technology (IT) has fundamentally altered our work and life and improved our productivity, economy and social well-being. IT now has a role to play – helping to create a greener, more sustainable environment whilst offering economics benefits. But IT has been contributing to environment problems which most people do not realize. Computer and other IT infrastructure consume significant amounts of electricity, which is increasing day by day, placing a heavy burden on our electric grids and contributing to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Additionally, IT hardware poses environmental problems during both its production and its disposal.
Whilst many people consider IT to be part of the problem to environmental pollution, it can be its savior too. In other words, IT is both a solution and a problem for environmental sustainability. We can exploit the power of IT in innovative ways to address mounting environmental issues and make our IT systems- and their use –greener. Green IT is the study and practice of designing, manufacturing and using computers, servers, monitors, printers, storage devices and networking and communications systems efficiently and effectively, with zero or minimum impacts on the environment.
Green IT
Green IT is an umbrella term referring to environmentally sound information technologies and systems, applications and practices. It encompasses three complementary IT-enabled approaches to improving environmental sustainability.
1. The efficient and effective design, manufacture, use and disposal of computer hardware, software and communication systems with no or minimal impact on the environment.
2. The use of IT and information systems to empower – that is, support, assist and leverage –other enterprise-wide environment initiative and
3. The harnessing of IT to help create awareness among stakeholders and promote the green agenda and green initiatives.
HARNESSING GREEN IT
As we all know IT helps us in many ways like development of industries, development of life style etc. But as it is said, every coin has 2 sides. IT affects our environment adversely which is not seen by many of us.
Introduction
Information Technology (IT) has fundamentally altered our work and life and improved our productivity, economy and social well-being. IT now has a role to play – helping to create a greener, more sustainable environment whilst offering economics benefits. But IT has been contributing to environment problems which most people do not realize. Computer and other IT infrastructure consume significant amounts of electricity, which is increasing day by day, placing a heavy burden on our electric grids and contributing to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Additionally, IT hardware poses environmental problems during both its production and its disposal.
Whilst many people consider IT to be part of the problem to environmental pollution, it can be its savior too. In other words, IT is both a solution and a problem for environmental sustainability. We can exploit the power of IT in innovative ways to address mounting environmental issues and make our IT systems- and their use –greener. Green IT is the study and practice of designing, manufacturing and using computers, servers, monitors, printers, storage devices and networking and communications systems efficiently and effectively, with zero or minimum impacts on the environment.
Green IT
Green IT is an umbrella term referring to environmentally sound information technologies and systems, applications and practices. It encompasses three complementary IT-enabled approaches to improving environmental sustainability.
1. The efficient and effective design, manufacture, use and disposal of computer hardware, software and communication systems with no or minimal impact on the environment.
2. The use of IT and information systems to empower – that is, support, assist and leverage –other enterprise-wide environment initiative and
3. The harnessing of IT to help create awareness among stakeholders and promote the green agenda and green initiatives.
Some ways to reduce the threat of IT to environment…
Why do we need to buy new computers for each and every project or once every two or three years? We should make use of an older computer if it meets our requirements. Otherwise, we should give it to someone who needs it or use functional components from a retired product. By using the hardware for a longer period of time, we can reduce the total environmental footprint caused by computer manufacturing and disposal.
Refurbish
We can refurbish and upgrade old computers and servers to meet new requirements. We can make an old computer and other IT hardware almost new again by reconditioning and replacing their parts. Rather than buying a new computer to our specifications, we can buy refurbished IT hardware in the market. More enterprises are open to purchasing refurbished goods, and the market for refurbished IT equipment is growing.
From the green angle, reusing what we have is a better long-term way of managing resources. Physically speaking, we can potentially save our cash flow, and capital expenditures. If these options are unsuitable, we can donate the equipment to charities or schools or trade in our computers. Charities refurbish old computers and give them to those in need.
Recycle
When we can’t reuse computers, even after considering the prospects of refurbishing, we must dispose of them properly in environmentally friendly ways. Most unwanted computers and electronic goods end up in landfills. Electronic waste or e-waste—discarded computers and electronic goods—is one of the fastest-growing waste types, and the problem of e-waste is global. Analysts predict that two-thirds of the estimated 870 million PCs made worldwide in the next five years will end up in landfills.
Greening IT
One might wonder how we should go about greening IT, and what subsystems of IT can be greened. In fact, every subsystem and peripheral of IT can be greened. The key among them are PCs, notebooks and servers, data centers and cloud computing, software (system and application software, along with the processes of software design and development), storage systems and networking and communication systems and protocols. Peripherals such as printers can be made energy efficient and environmentally friendly.
Green PCs, Notebooks and Servers
We can significantly reduce energy consumption by making small changes to the ways we use computers. Most desktop computers run even when they aren’t being used, because users needlessly leave them on, wasting electricity. Furthermore, computers generate heat and require additional cooling, which add to the total power consumption and cost.
Enabling power management features
Without sacrificing performance, we can program computers to automatically power down to an energy-saving state when we are not using them.
Turning off the system when not in use
This is the most basic energy conservation strategy for most systems.
Using screensavers
A blank screensaver conserves more power than a screensaver that displays moving images, which continually interacts with the CPU. But even that reduces the monitor’s energy consumption by only a small percentage.
Using thin-client computers
Users can choose to employ thin-client computers, which draw about a fifth of the power of a desktop PC.
Green Cloud Computing
Cloud computing represents a paradigm shift. It is a transition from computing-as-a-product to computing-as-a-service, which is shared and scalable on demand. Driven by the benefits that cloud computing offers, businesses, educational institutions, governments and individuals in both developed and emerging markets have begun to use it for several applications. Cloud offerings and use are growing, and hence these created huge demands on data centers that house the clouds. To cater to the growing demands of cloud-computing services, vendors use large-scale data centers which consolidate thousands of servers
Conclusion
As the climate debate heats up, IT finds itself part of the problem – and part of the solution. Environmentalism and economic growth can go hand in hand in the battle against global warming. A vigorous green IT plan is an economic – as well as an environmental – imperative. Companies can out-compete their peers by tackling sustainability head on, engaging stakeholders, developing partnerships and adding environmental stewardship to their corporate culture.
So that’s all for today, hope you enjoyed it.
-Ronbesty
Why do we need to buy new computers for each and every project or once every two or three years? We should make use of an older computer if it meets our requirements. Otherwise, we should give it to someone who needs it or use functional components from a retired product. By using the hardware for a longer period of time, we can reduce the total environmental footprint caused by computer manufacturing and disposal.
Refurbish
We can refurbish and upgrade old computers and servers to meet new requirements. We can make an old computer and other IT hardware almost new again by reconditioning and replacing their parts. Rather than buying a new computer to our specifications, we can buy refurbished IT hardware in the market. More enterprises are open to purchasing refurbished goods, and the market for refurbished IT equipment is growing.
From the green angle, reusing what we have is a better long-term way of managing resources. Physically speaking, we can potentially save our cash flow, and capital expenditures. If these options are unsuitable, we can donate the equipment to charities or schools or trade in our computers. Charities refurbish old computers and give them to those in need.
Recycle
When we can’t reuse computers, even after considering the prospects of refurbishing, we must dispose of them properly in environmentally friendly ways. Most unwanted computers and electronic goods end up in landfills. Electronic waste or e-waste—discarded computers and electronic goods—is one of the fastest-growing waste types, and the problem of e-waste is global. Analysts predict that two-thirds of the estimated 870 million PCs made worldwide in the next five years will end up in landfills.
Greening IT
One might wonder how we should go about greening IT, and what subsystems of IT can be greened. In fact, every subsystem and peripheral of IT can be greened. The key among them are PCs, notebooks and servers, data centers and cloud computing, software (system and application software, along with the processes of software design and development), storage systems and networking and communication systems and protocols. Peripherals such as printers can be made energy efficient and environmentally friendly.
Green PCs, Notebooks and Servers
We can significantly reduce energy consumption by making small changes to the ways we use computers. Most desktop computers run even when they aren’t being used, because users needlessly leave them on, wasting electricity. Furthermore, computers generate heat and require additional cooling, which add to the total power consumption and cost.
Enabling power management features
Without sacrificing performance, we can program computers to automatically power down to an energy-saving state when we are not using them.
Turning off the system when not in use
This is the most basic energy conservation strategy for most systems.
Using screensavers
A blank screensaver conserves more power than a screensaver that displays moving images, which continually interacts with the CPU. But even that reduces the monitor’s energy consumption by only a small percentage.
Using thin-client computers
Users can choose to employ thin-client computers, which draw about a fifth of the power of a desktop PC.
Green Cloud Computing
Cloud computing represents a paradigm shift. It is a transition from computing-as-a-product to computing-as-a-service, which is shared and scalable on demand. Driven by the benefits that cloud computing offers, businesses, educational institutions, governments and individuals in both developed and emerging markets have begun to use it for several applications. Cloud offerings and use are growing, and hence these created huge demands on data centers that house the clouds. To cater to the growing demands of cloud-computing services, vendors use large-scale data centers which consolidate thousands of servers
Conclusion
As the climate debate heats up, IT finds itself part of the problem – and part of the solution. Environmentalism and economic growth can go hand in hand in the battle against global warming. A vigorous green IT plan is an economic – as well as an environmental – imperative. Companies can out-compete their peers by tackling sustainability head on, engaging stakeholders, developing partnerships and adding environmental stewardship to their corporate culture.
So that’s all for today, hope you enjoyed it.
-Ronbesty