Green IT: Does it still matter?

By Adrian Thirkill, managing director, Easynet Global Services UK

Five years ago, you couldn’t move for ‘green’ claims from businesses. In a rush to become the first businesses to go carbon neutral, hoards of companies offset air miles, replanted forests, and invested in wind farms. “We turn our lights off at night!” they whooped. “We put monitors on automatic standby!” they gushed.  

All admirable and well-intentioned.  But there’s a worrying hint of tumbleweed as environmental policies move to the archives, and environmental commitments fall from the board agenda.  

The impact of climate change upon our lives isn’t lessening.  It would be glib for me to refer to the recent winter of floods as proof, but the IPCC detailed the likely impact of average temperature increases of 2 degrees or more, and it makes sobering reading.  Already, it says, climate change is negatively affecting food supplies, marine ecosystems …