Book Image

Sustainable IT Playbook for Technology Leaders

By : Niklas Sundberg
Book Image

Sustainable IT Playbook for Technology Leaders

By: Niklas Sundberg

Overview of this book

We are at a critical point in human history. Humanity is under threat, but all is not lost. We can take action! But how? Sustainable IT Playbook for Technology Leaders will show you how. It will walk you through the construction and implementation of a sustainable IT strategy and enable you to do your bit for the future of mankind. The book is split into three parts. Part I details the “why” and the clear and present danger that humanity faces today: the climate crisis. How did we get here, what are the immediate threats, what are the planetary boundaries that we need to peel back to safe levels, and what impact does IT have on society at large? Part II will focus on the "what.” It examines the nitty-gritty details of what we can do to unlock significant returns on sustainable investments toward a more sustainable future. Part III, the final part of the book, focuses on the “how.” How do you turn your ideas into action? What do you need to do to establish your baseline and your direction of travel towards your objective? This part provides tangible case studies and explains how you can start your journey today to begin delivering global and impactful objectives. By the end of this book, you’ll be able to plan, implement, and communicate a sustainable IT strategy and set yourself apart as a progressive technology leader.
Table of Contents (18 chapters)
1
Part 1: Why Is Sustainable IT Important?
4
Part 2: What Are Sustainable IT Practices?
12
Part 3: How Do You Accelerate Sustainable IT?

Simulating your target state

Now that we have established a carbon emission baseline, we can start setting our target direction for the next 10 years. We will use similar techniques to arrive at the carbon emission baseline. Still, to do a 10-year simulation, we need to consider a few more parameters over time, such as company growth, employee headcount, IT asset count, IT asset disposition refurbishment, energy mix, regulations such as EU Taxonomy or SEC climate disclosure rules, potential geopolitical implications, and recycling rates. To help you follow along, I have tried to make the assumptions as straightforward as possible. I encourage you to experiment with the model and make your own assumptions. Remember that your journey may look completely different than the one for the model company.

Our primary assumption follows the Science Based Target Initiative (SBTi) guidelines and the general research community’s recommendation to halve our emissions by 2030. Since our...