Green IT - Greening ICT programme
ICT in UK higher and further education has a large carbon footprint. It is estimated that in the sector there are one and a half million computers, 250,000 printers and 240,000 servers which collectively produce 500,000 tonnes of CO2 a year and in 2009 cost the sector around £116m in ICT related electricity bills.
The environmental impacts of ICT are not just in their energy use while in service. The whole lifecycle of ICT procurement and use consumes energy and resources both in manufacture and transportation to end users, and more in disposal – which itself can leave a legacy of waste, some of it toxic.
Environmental sustainability and climate change are considered urgent problems by governments worldwide and there are legislative and regulatory drivers for change. In his annual grant letter to HEFCE in 2008 the Secretary of State indicated that capital funding for institutions should be linked to performance in reducing carbon emissions . The Climate Change Act directs that emissions are to be reduced 80 per cent against 1990 levels by 2050 and at least 26 per cent by 2020.
JISC’s Greening ICT programme will be delivered via a number of strands of activity that will be embedded in a structure of support, synthesis and benefit realisation activities. The programme will seek to work closely with other teams and committees in JISC to ensure that duplication is avoided and opportunities for synergistic working are grasped.
Key objectives for the programme
- Greening the sector - attitudinal and behaviour change embedded across the sector
- New sustainable procurement paradigms
- Sustainability seen as key driver and yardstick for sector activities
- Harnessing of sector research activities
Intended outputs from this programme
- Substantive body of knowledge illuminating areas of uncertainty in respect to Green ICT
- Exemplar projects providing leadership and best practice example
Outcomes
- Reduction of sector carbon footprint and associated energy costs
- Increased capacity and expertise across the sector in sustainable ICT
- Improved reputation of sector and UK as leaders in this area
- Reduction in waste generated by ICT use
Greening ICT - Case study Queen Margaret University Video
Film created by Jon Mowat and Michelle Pauli. © 2009 HEFCE. This film is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 2.0 UK: England & Wales license.
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