Sustainable IT
Confused about how enterprise IT can support sustainability? Read guides, tips and news on how to decarbonize and green IT, reduce e-waste, support circular economy principles, create more sustainable data centers and hold vendors responsible for net zero goals.
Top Stories
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Tip
28 Mar 2024
How to handle environmental regulations and green networking
Green networking is achievable if network managers ensure devices and supporting systems are energy-efficient and comply with established environmental regulations. Continue Reading
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Feature
25 Mar 2024
Blueprint for IT sustainability: Insights from top experts
Leading experts share insights on sustainable IT, covering green cloud computing, ESG compliance and innovative practices for reducing the ecological footprint in IT. Continue Reading
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News
22 Mar 2024
Generative AI emerges as sustainability opportunity
Generative AI can be a useful tool for helping business leaders achieve climate and sustainability goals. Continue Reading
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Feature
18 Mar 2024
6 sustainability reporting data tips for IT
Data overload presents a real challenge to ESG reporting. But with the right practices, IT teams can streamline their collection processes and help ensure sustainability success. Continue Reading
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Feature
15 Mar 2024
Key sustainability communications strategies for businesses
Sustainability communications are key to reaching lowered carbon emissions and other environmental goals. Learn practices that help improve outcomes and ways to avoid greenwashing. Continue Reading
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Feature
13 Mar 2024
Managing and predicting wildfires with machine learning
CTO Guy Bayes shares his experience developing AI software to predict and manage wildfires at startup Vibrant Planet and offers tips for getting started in climate tech. Continue Reading
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Feature
01 Mar 2024
Web3 and sustainability: Benefits and risks
The Web 3.0 concept presents major advances to the World Wide Web, but the tech that underpins it also has environmental impacts, including carbon emissions and e-waste. Continue Reading
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Tip
01 Mar 2024
5 ways to reduce an organization's digital carbon footprint
From optimizing video conferences to minimizing unnecessary data storage, learn practical strategies that can help shrink an organization's digital carbon footprint. Continue Reading
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Tip
29 Feb 2024
Sustainability benefits of cloud computing data centers
Cloud computing data centers use large amounts of electricity, but a main sustainability benefit is the cloud's large scale and ability to store more data. Continue Reading
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Tip
14 Feb 2024
4 data center trends to watch in 2024
With rising demand for data space, companies must plan to expand their data centers in an eco-friendly way. 2024 data center trends have one main focus: sustainability. Continue Reading
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Definition
02 Feb 2024
embodied carbon
Embodied carbon is the measurable greenhouse gas emissions of an infrastructure's entire construction, maintenance and demolition processes. Continue Reading
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Definition
29 Jan 2024
turbine
A turbine is a machine that plays a key role in transforming fluid or air energy into usable work or electricity. Continue Reading
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Guest Post
17 Jan 2024
How to shrink your IT carbon footprint and why it matters
Organizations are shifting IT priorities toward efficient resource consumption. Learn how strategies prioritizing sustainability can enhance a company's competitive advantage. Continue Reading
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Tip
17 Jan 2024
How to manage data center water usage sustainably
Data centers use large amounts of water to maintain equipment. This consumption is causing water pollution and scarcity. Companies must start to release consumption reports. Continue Reading
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Tip
12 Jan 2024
How to recycle mobile phones in the enterprise
Mobile device disposal requires careful planning. IT teams must learn how to recycle mobile phones to keep e-waste out of landfills and enterprise data out of the wrong hands. Continue Reading
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Tip
11 Jan 2024
How to securely recycle enterprise computers
No matter how an organization wants to retire a device when it reaches its end of life, IT must first ensure that any sensitive data on it has been properly destroyed. Continue Reading
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Definition
05 Jan 2024
dynamic voltage and frequency scaling (DVFS)
Dynamic voltage and frequency scaling (DVFS) is the adjustment of power and speed settings on a computing device's various processors, controller chips and peripheral devices to optimize resource allotment for tasks and maximize power saving when those resources are not needed. Continue Reading
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News
12 Dec 2023
Green IT needs business buy-in for success
In this Q&A, Faith Taylor of Kyndryl explains why sustainability efforts must combine business growth with concrete emissions reporting to meet net zero targets. Continue Reading
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Tip
05 Dec 2023
Why businesses should recycle enterprise devices
Sustainability should be a consideration at every stage of the device lifecycle, and this doesn't stop at device retirement. Recycling enterprise devices offers several benefits. Continue Reading
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Definition
04 Dec 2023
greenhouse gas
A greenhouse gas lets the sun's rays warm the Earth's surface but restricts the heat from escaping into space. Specifically, these gases absorb infrared radiation from the sun in the Earth's atmosphere and release it. Continue Reading
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Tip
28 Nov 2023
Use the data center circular economy for sustainability
Building data center servers and hardware requires use of many of Earth's nonrenewable resources. Data center owners must adopt the circular economy system for sustainability. Continue Reading
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News
18 Oct 2023
Dell PowerMaxOS 10.1 targets operational, energy efficiency
The latest Dell PowerMaxOS update brings greater data reduction and power usage monitoring to its top-of-the-line storage array. The update also keyed in on cyber-resilience. Continue Reading
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Definition
17 Oct 2023
solar power
Solar power is a renewable form of energy harvested from the sun for the purpose of producing electricity or thermal energy (heat). Continue Reading
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News
06 Oct 2023
How machine learning can combat climate change
Machine learning can produce sustainability insights and help plan effective climate action. But researchers face challenges around data, compute and AI's own environmental impact. Continue Reading
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Definition
18 Sep 2023
Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive
The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive is a legislative act that the European Union adopted to address the growing amounts of e-waste that come from electrical and electronic equipment (EEE) at the end of its life. Continue Reading
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Tip
11 Sep 2023
Assessing the environmental impact of large language models
Large language models like ChatGPT consume massive amounts of energy and water during training and after deployment. Learn how to understand and reduce their environmental impact. Continue Reading
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Feature
06 Sep 2023
Toward justice and sustainability in the tech industry
In this excerpt from his book 'Insolvent,' author and professor Christoph Becker outlines why and how to reorient the tech sector toward social justice and sustainability. Continue Reading
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Feature
06 Sep 2023
Designing systems that reduce the environmental impact of AI
Understanding AI's full climate impact means looking past model training to real-world usage, but developers can take tangible steps to improve efficiency and monitor emissions. Continue Reading
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Feature
06 Sep 2023
The role of tech in climate change and climate justice
In this interview, Insolvent author Christoph Becker discusses tech's complex effects on climate and society and the need to center social justice and sustainability in computing. Continue Reading
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News
31 Aug 2023
Hitachi Energy-Google Cloud make energy data accessible
Hitachi Energy Velocity Suite Power Prices is now available on Google Cloud Marketplace, enabling access to energy data that can help with power consumption. Continue Reading
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Tip
30 Aug 2023
Are wireless networks more energy-efficient than wired LANs?
The quick, complicated answer is yes and no. Wireless can be more energy-efficient than wired, but businesses need to weigh several variables to reap energy savings. Continue Reading
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Tip
25 Aug 2023
How to modernize networks with sustainability in mind
A network modernization project is a good time to consider sustainability initiatives, such as using energy-efficient devices and renewable energy sources. Continue Reading
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Opinion
21 Aug 2023
HPE advances ambitious sustainability goals
From an accelerated net-zero goal to an enhanced portfolio of sustainable IT offerings, HPE shares updates from the company's latest Living Progress report. Continue Reading
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Definition
14 Aug 2023
power factor correction (PFC)
Power factor correction (PFC) is the set of mechanisms built into a power supply circuit to raise the power factor (PF). Continue Reading
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Definition
08 Aug 2023
carbon accounting
Carbon accounting is the process of calculating and tracking the amount of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions both produced and removed from the biosphere by an organization. Continue Reading
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Feature
27 Jul 2023
Experts talk impact, challenges of AI and emerging tech
Companies must consider many risks as AI and other emerging technologies evolve at a rapid pace. In this interview excerpt, experts discuss the societal and environmental effects. Continue Reading
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Tip
26 Jul 2023
Data center heat reuse: How to make the most of excess heat
Data center heat doesn't need to go to waste. As part of a sustainability strategy, explore ways to put the heat your data center produces to work, and consider heat reuse. Continue Reading
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Definition
18 Jul 2023
e-waste
Electronic waste, also known as end-of-life (EOL) electronics or e-waste, refers to discarded, recycled or refurbished electrical and electronic products. Continue Reading
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Feature
17 Jul 2023
Weigh video conferencing sustainability benefits and challenges
Video conferencing sustainability is about more than reducing travel. Learn the role video technology can play in ESG goals, as well as potential environmental drawbacks. Continue Reading
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Feature
05 Jul 2023
6 reasons legacy systems are still in use
Staying with tried-and-true legacy systems can feel like the safest route. But as the world changes at a dizzying pace, IT leaders might want to reconsider that strategy. Continue Reading
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Definition
23 Jun 2023
milliampere-hour (mAh)
A milliampere-hour (mAh) is one-thousandth of an ampere hour (Ah), which can also be written as 1 mAh = 0.001 Ah. Continue Reading
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Feature
16 Jun 2023
4 PC lifecycle management best practices
There isn't a perfect PC lifecycle plan for all organizations, so IT teams and management should ask themselves these four questions to shape their PC policy. Continue Reading
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Feature
09 Jun 2023
New Cisco tools aim to enable green networks, data centers
At Cisco Live 2023, Cisco unveiled new products and updates to its portfolio to help organizations create sustainable data center networks as they modernize their infrastructures. Continue Reading
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Tip
07 Jun 2023
Strategies to work toward data center decarbonization
Global temperatures are rising, and organizations can do their part by decarbonizing their data centers. Examine ways to cut back on data center carbon emissions. Continue Reading
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Definition
05 Jun 2023
procurement plan
A procurement plan -- also called a procurement management plan -- is a document that is used to manage the process of finding and selecting a vendor. Continue Reading
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News
05 Jun 2023
HPE adds environmental reporting dashboard to GreenLake
A new dashboard for HPE's GreenLake tracks a company's carbon emissions and energy use. But ESG experts warn the lack of standardization opens the market up to greenwashing. Continue Reading
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Definition
02 Jun 2023
agri-tech
Agri-tech, sometimes ag-tech, agtech or digital agriculture, is the application of technology and digital tools to farming. Continue Reading
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Tip
02 Jun 2023
Best practices for a PC end-of-life policy
Organizations that deploy PCs need a strong and clear policy to handle hardware maintenance, end of life decisions, sustainable disposal practices and more. Continue Reading
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Opinion
01 Jun 2023
Sustainability highlights from Dell Technologies World 2023
At Dell Technologies World 2023, company reps discussed sustainability and showed some areas where the company has advanced. But making progress is no straightforward journey. Continue Reading
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Feature
30 May 2023
7 key benefits of enacting a BYOD policy
While some benefits of a BYOD program are obvious, such as allowing users to only carry one endpoint, other benefits are worth exploring, such as lowering corporate emissions. Continue Reading
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Tip
25 May 2023
Differences between Green Globes vs. LEED for data centers
Consider Green Globes and LEED certifications when building green data centers. Learn the differences in how the assessments are done, the costs and documentation needs. Continue Reading
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Definition
25 May 2023
load shedding
Load shedding (loadshedding) is a way to distribute demand for electrical power across multiple power sources. Continue Reading
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Tip
22 May 2023
Navigate Energy Star data center standard and certification
Organizations can use the Energy Star data center standard and certified assets to be more energy efficient. Consider Energy Star certification to preserve capital and save energy. Continue Reading
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Definition
16 May 2023
watt
A watt (symbolized W) is the standard unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI). It is derived from the SI base units kilogram (kg), meter (m) and second (s), all of which are constructed from the standard's defining constants. Continue Reading
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Opinion
02 May 2023
Calculating sustainability and emissions for VDI and DaaS
Though VDI and DaaS are both desktop virtualization services, their sustainability can differ significantly, so business leaders should learn how to calculate their emissions. Continue Reading
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Feature
02 May 2023
Where climate change and cyber attacks intersect
One session at RSA Conference 2023 focused on climate change -- a topic that is not commonly featured during cybersecurity conversations, but should be. Continue Reading
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Definition
01 May 2023
green cloud
Green cloud refers to the potential environmental benefits that green IT services delivered over the internet can offer to individual companies and society as a whole. Continue Reading
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Definition
28 Apr 2023
business sustainability
Business sustainability, also known as corporate sustainability, is the management of environmental, social and financial concerns by a company to ensure responsible, ethical and ongoing success. Continue Reading
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Feature
28 Apr 2023
3D printing has a complex relationship with sustainability
3D printing promises some sustainability benefits, including creating lighter parts and shorter supply chains, but the overall question of its environmental value is complex. Continue Reading
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Tip
26 Apr 2023
Overcome obstacles to storage sustainability
Green IT initiatives should include data storage, but there are various sustainability challenges related to both on-premises and cloud-based storage systems. Continue Reading
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Definition
26 Apr 2023
green IT (green information technology)
Green IT (green information technology) is the practice of creating and using environmentally sustainable computing resources. Continue Reading
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Definition
25 Apr 2023
carbon-aware computing
As a green design principle, carbon-aware computing steers software and hardware development up a path of sustainability toward carbon neutrality. Continue Reading
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News
25 Apr 2023
KubeCon highlights open source to combat climate change
Addressing climate change takes a community. At KubeCon Europe 2023, experts discussed how open source practices and projects can foster sustainability. Continue Reading
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Definition
24 Apr 2023
Energy Star
Energy Star is a government-backed labeling program that helps people and organizations save money and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by identifying factories, office equipment, home appliances and electronics that have superior energy efficiency. Continue Reading
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News
21 Apr 2023
Sustainability strategy must focus on energy consumption
In this Q&A, Greg Cudahy of EY discusses why more efficient energy consumption helps companies meet sustainability goals and how public-private investment drives energy transitions. Continue Reading
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Feature
20 Apr 2023
5 IT sustainability approaches to consider
IT plays a crucial role as companies prioritize ESG efforts. These five sustainability approaches could help organizations reduce long-term environmental effects. Continue Reading
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Definition
19 Apr 2023
LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, more commonly known as LEED, is an environmentally oriented building certification program run by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). Continue Reading
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Feature
19 Apr 2023
ESG strategy and management: Complete guide for businesses
ESG initiatives can help boost business success. This guide takes an in-depth look at creating and managing an ESG strategy to benefit a company and its various stakeholders. Continue Reading
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Feature
11 Apr 2023
18 sustainability management software providers to consider
Various software tools are available to help manage ESG and sustainability initiatives. Here's a look at 18 sustainability management vendors and their products. Continue Reading
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Opinion
10 Apr 2023
The era of the sustainable data center
Sustainability in product design is becoming important to organizations. In the age of sustainability in the data center, don't forget about energy efficiency in your messaging. Continue Reading
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Feature
10 Apr 2023
Sustainability and ESG glossary: 52 terms to know
Sustainable strategies require basic understanding of the fundamentals. Business leaders and IT teams can benefit from this list of essential sustainability terms and ESG concepts. Continue Reading
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Feature
07 Apr 2023
A timeline and history of ESG investing, rules and practices
Many events, trends, actions and milestones over the past three decades have imbued businesses and investors with a stronger social, environmental and sustainability commitment. Continue Reading
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Definition
04 Apr 2023
sustainable AI
Sustainable AI is the use of artificial intelligence systems that operate in ways contingent with sustainable business practices. Continue Reading
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Definition
29 Mar 2023
environmental, social and governance (ESG)
Environmental, social and governance (ESG) is a framework used to assess an organization's business practices and performance on various sustainability and ethical issues. Continue Reading
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Feature
28 Mar 2023
Top 10 enterprise technology trends for 2023
IT investments underpin an organizational performance and help businesses gain a competitive edge. That's why CIOs and IT leaders should know the top enterprise tech trends. Continue Reading
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Guest Post
28 Mar 2023
How IoT helps environmental, social and governance goals
Organizations must address sustainability concerns as IoT device use grows. Cloud optimization, smart buildings and predictive maintenance can help meet ESG goals. Continue Reading
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News
27 Mar 2023
AWS public cloud advocate talks cloud spend, ChatGPT and ESG
In this Q&A, AWS' Mark Schwartz argues that a pure cloud future is inevitable to manage ESG compliance, test cutting edge technologies and weather economic turbulence. Continue Reading
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Feature
17 Mar 2023
10 key ESG and sustainability trends, ideas for companies
From consumers to employees to investors, more people are choosing companies that prioritize environmental, social and governance concerns. Here are 10 ESG trends that matter. Continue Reading
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Tip
09 Feb 2023
4 ways to reduce network power consumption
A heavy reliance on the network can increase energy use across businesses. Here are some best practices network teams can follow to reduce power consumption. Continue Reading
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Feature
06 Feb 2023
Why is sustainable marketing important?
On a grand scale, sustainable marketing brings awareness to environmental and social issues. On a business level, this practice can improve brand loyalty and worker engagement. Continue Reading
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Definition
02 Feb 2023
circular economy
A circular economy is a model of production and consumption, where items and products are reused whenever possible rather than discarded. Continue Reading
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Feature
01 Feb 2023
Kepler project aims to help curb Kubernetes energy waste
Running Kubernetes clusters can lead to high costs and energy use. The researchers behind the Kepler project hope the tool will help IT pros track and curb cluster energy waste. Continue Reading
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Feature
27 Jan 2023
Why IT asset management should include sustainability
CIOs must do more with less as economic concerns grow, and continue to drive environmental, social and governance efforts. Pairing IT asset management and sustainability can help. Continue Reading
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Feature
27 Jan 2023
How do green marketing and sustainable marketing differ?
Many organizations use green and sustainable marketing to build trust with consumers. Green marketing focuses on the environment, whereas sustainable marketing is broader. Continue Reading
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Tip
25 Jan 2023
Use ISO 50001:2018 as a guide for green data centers
Data centers use a lot of energy, and it can be difficult to navigate how to reduce energy use. ISO 50001:2018 provides guidance to create energy-saving plans and use targets. Continue Reading
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Definition
18 Jan 2023
green networking
Green networking is the practice of selecting energy-efficient networking technologies and products and minimizing resource use whenever possible. Continue Reading
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Feature
20 Dec 2022
5 sustainability initiatives in the telecommunications industry
Telecom operators have committed to sustainability plans to reduce carbon emissions and energy use. But they also face challenges, like competing goals and behavioral changes. Continue Reading
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Feature
14 Dec 2022
How AI can assist industries in environmental protection efforts
While technology for environmental protection isn't a new concept, AI advancements empower businesses to achieve sustainable operations. Continue Reading
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Feature
06 Dec 2022
AWS analytics tools help French utility go green
The cloud computing giant's suite enabled Engie SA to transition away from fossil fuels and now helps the French utility manage a network of renewable energy sources. Continue Reading
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Feature
01 Nov 2022
Sustainable software needs more tools, corporate buy-in
Several tools can help developers build sustainable software, but it won't make a dent in carbon emissions without organizational support and better monitoring tools. Continue Reading
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Feature
25 Oct 2022
New ways of upcycling CO2, decarbonizing steel and cement
The industrial sector has a massive carbon footprint. That's why some companies are working to clean up steel and cement and find new uses for carbon. Continue Reading
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News
14 Oct 2022
Sustainable procurement goes mainstream, influences IT buys
ESG considerations add a new dimension to IT purchasing criteria and, more broadly, could bridge the gap between business leaders and IT professionals. Continue Reading
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Feature
30 Sep 2022
Fair Repair Act could help spur circular economy model
New regulations including the Fair Repair Act coupled with factors like consumer demand for sustainability are motivating manufacturers to consider a circular economy model. Continue Reading
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News
29 Sep 2022
Climate LLC taps feature flags for mobile app development
Feature flags facilitated fast rollbacks and trunk-based mobile development for a digital farming software maker amid volatility due to business growth and climate change. Continue Reading
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Feature
20 Sep 2022
Climate tech vs. clean tech: What's the difference?
Businesses and consumers are becoming more concerned with environmental effects -- and how they can make changes or use clean tech and climate tech to make a difference. Continue Reading
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Feature
31 Aug 2022
Techniques to get started with green networking
'Emerging Green Technologies' details how technology is a flexible tool organizations can use to make business operations more sustainable. Here's how to make your network green. Continue Reading
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Feature
31 Aug 2022
How energy-efficient networking supports sustainability
In this Q&A, 'Emerging Green Technologies' author Matthew N. O. Sadiku discusses the importance of going green and how to make networks energy-efficient to achieve this goal. Continue Reading
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Definition
01 Aug 2022
green software
Green software, also known as sustainable software, is software that is designed, developed and implemented to limit energy consumption and have minimal environmental impact. Continue Reading
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Feature
28 Jul 2022
How vendors support sustainable networking initiatives
Organizations are focusing on sustainability in all business divisions, including network operations. These tools could help organizations make their enterprise networks green. Continue Reading
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News
25 Jul 2022
SAP green CX tech aids sustainable retail, B2B sales
SAP users can tackle sustainable e-commerce -- and be accountable to customers wary of 'greenwashing' -- with a bundle of Qualtrics, CDP, e-commerce and other tech tools. Continue Reading
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News
15 Jul 2022
Consultancy benefits from green coding certification mandate
In this Q&A, GFT CTO Dean Clark details how his company's green coding certification program is bringing benefits beyond higher-quality, more efficient code. Continue Reading
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Feature
11 Jul 2022
Green AI tackles effects of AI, ML on climate change
AI and ML are making a significant contribution to climate change. Developers can help reverse the trend with best practices and tools to measure carbon efficiency. Continue Reading