A green ICT strategy needs an overall sustainability agenda, says Terry Street, green ICT procurement product manager, Socitm Consulting.

All over the country, new schools are being built under the Building Schools for the Future initiative. Several of my colleagues advise LEAs on their BSF programmes, and they frequently comment on the irony that new schools typically have extensive air conditioning, necessary in part to carry away the heat generated by all the new computer equipment.

The latest Socitm briefing examines the urgent issue of energy consumption by public sector ICT and how to reduce it. Informed by the results of a recent green survey of all UK local authorities by Socitm Insight for HM Government, this briefing is essential reading for anyone involved in public sector ICT or cost control.

The green agenda is now mainstream worldwide, and ICT stands accused of consuming two or even three percent of the world’s energy. We can do a lot to make ICT more efficient, but the real prize is what ICT can do to reduce the other ninety-eight percent of world energy usage.

The green agenda is now mainstream worldwide, and ICT stands accused of consuming two or even three percent of the world’s energy. We can do a lot to make ICT more efficient, but the real prize is what ICT can do to reduce the other ninety-eight percent of world energy usage.

"Efficiencies, flexible working, all-electronic information management, virtualisation and careful data centre planning, reduce environmental impact"

The green agenda is gathering pace as the impact of climate change is now being felt in more unstable weather events, and as government steps up policy and legislative initiatives to cut carbon emissions and promote sustainability. 

Across the world CO₂ emissions are triggering extremes of weather. Globally, ICT is responsible for 2% of CO₂ released. In the public sector, ICT accounts for almost 35% of energy consumption. The impact of enacted legislation is imminent. The time to act is now!