Last updated: 2 years ago

Definition for Green IT

The SDIA follows the Radboud Centre for Green Information Technology definition of Green IT as;

“energy-efficient hardware (greening of IT) [and] smart software solutions that contribute to the sustainable development goals (greening by IT).” (https://www.ru.nl/sustainability/vm/green/)

As “green” has no specific definition, the term has so far mainly been used in marketing, which is why its use can be misleading. The SDIA’s definition of “green” in the context of Green IT, is environmentally sustainable IT and software.

Other definitions

In “Harnessing Green It: Principles and Practices,” San Murugesan defines that sustainable software “benefits the environment by improving energy efficiency, lowering greenhouse gas emissions, using less harmful materials, and encouraging reuse and recycling.” (Murugesan, IT Professional, 2008, p. 24)

GreenIT Amsterdam defines Green IT as "innovative IT solutions for increasing energy efficiency and decreasing carbon emissions.” (https://www.greenitamsterdam.nl/about/)

The European Union partially explain Green IT in their Eco-innovation Action plan as “The most commonly-adopted green IT practices are energy-efficient power supplies, multi-core processors, energy efficient central processing units (CPUs), and virtualisation and consolidation projects.” However, the SDIA focuses on a combination between sustainable hardware in combination with sustainable software.