A shiny green lever you might want to pull | Cloud Core

It’s probably time we talked about the environmental impact. Let’s be clear: IT operations will be having one.

We really want to make it a better one.

But we’re not here to guilt trip or greenwash or anything like that. We’re here to help guide practical change, so you can slowly make your IT footprint a little bit greener.

So, if you’re already on your journey towards greener IT, nice job. Maybe there’s a few things you could do to make it even better.

And if you haven’t started making those changes, that’s OK too. You might just want to start right now - and here’s some ideas.

🌎 Understanding your environmental impact.

We shouldn’t shy away from the fact that IT-related emissions are on the rise, and this will continue with the increasing demand for data-intensive tech.

But there are some things we can do to soften this impact. And this isn’t all about moving to cloud, it includes things like hardware, and understanding your current footprint so you can benchmark and target improvement.

Our sustainability hero Tanja’s helpfully pulled together this great infographic. It gives a nice clear breakdown of:

🌳 The top reasons why this should be on your agenda

🌳 Areas to benchmark and monitor

🌳 Opportunities to lower consumption

View the infographic here.

🛢️Your data setup might be a good place to start

Looking for a place to start? Maybe a shiny green lever you could pull to run things a bit more efficiently?

That shiny green lever could well be your data pipelines. Here’s why.

Designing data pipelines to be intermittent leads to better flexibility, cost control, efficiency and improved environmental impact. 

This approach basically means avoiding having idle machines running 24/7 that are burning power for no reason. Our data and sustainability guru Quentin’s new blog breaks down the concept really clearly.

And he also sheds some light on these areas:

💚 Hyperscaler efficiencies and why these are so powerful

💚 Data best practices for sustainability

💚 A really nice breakdown of useful Google, Azure and AWS services for sustainability

It’s really worth a read - check it out here.

👂Hear what the experts are saying.

In this month’s Cloud Core podcast, we’re joined by Tanja and Quentin, as they dive a little deeper into the real impact of IT operations and how cloud can really make a difference. 

They also share their experiences around why companies are and should be putting sustainability at the top of their agendas, and actionable steps that are being taken.

And Tanja shares some takeaways from her recent work with a major company in this area. 

It’s a golden listen. Or a green one. You know what I mean - just give it a listen.

🔊 Cloud quote of the month

“Cloud efficiencies and smart data design can help organisations reduce these carbon emissions by up to 84%. This can mean a staggering 65% reduction in energy consumption.”

It’s probably time to think about your data design.

😎  There’s more from Quentin.

Is this email a little Quentin-heavy? Yes.

Is that a problem? No.

He really knows his stuff when it comes to data.

(And he’s got a great accent).

If you’re interested in Quentin’s data pipelines, check out his 10-minute video on the topic here. He also breaks down the notion of “data is the new oil.” 

You might be familiar with the analogy, but is it accurate? 

Watch the video here.

☁️ Cloud, cars and new fuels - driving change for good.

There’s a melting pot of game-changing technologies and cloud capabilities that’s going to be really important in keeping things green. Read why here.

🚗 Carbon-neutral vehicles and innovation.

Check out this infographic on carbon-neutral vehicle design and how companies should be using data to drive innovation.

💚  What we’ve been talking about this month

⚡ Cloud data centers consume 3% of the world’s energy (+ more ‘fun’ facts)

💡 Cloud, smart grids and optimised energy consumption in IoT

🌱 How the tech sector can make sustainability stick

♻️ Google bets on GenAI to drive sustainability

🎥  Video: What does Cop28 mean for tech?

🐸 Join our Sustainability GameDay with AWS

12 December - Webinar

We're holding a virtual Sustainability GameDay with AWS. This unique hands-on event lets AWS users to understand how to be mindful of energy efficiency across AWS infrastructure, in a practical and fun way.

We'll also be covering topics like 'if the cloud is just a bunch of Linux servers anyways, why does sustainability matter?' And 'the pitfalls of doing everything green: dealing with complexity.'

We're excited for it - sign up here.

🗓️ Some dates for your diary:

27 November -  1 December  - Las Vegas: AWS re:Invent 2023

Are you out in Vegas this week? There’ll be a few Nordcloudians out there, so please do say hi (and drag us away from the roulette tables if needed).

+ re:invent watch parties

Wish you were in Vegas but can’t make it? Live in Stockholm or Oslo?

Well, we're live-streaming the key stuff straight from the re:Invent. And we're pairing it with an endless flow of pizza, beers and AWS talks.

Click here for the Stockholm Edition, 29 November.

Click here for the Oslo Edition, 30 November.

🎧 Something to listen to in the home office

Anyone else used to recreate this video in their bedroom doorway? (Asking for a friend).

Thanks for reading, 

I’ll be back with some fresh thoughts next month.