Objectives:
- Advocate the policy: desktop computers should be in low-power states when not doing useful work e.g. switched off at the end of each working day.
- Improve awareness across the FE and HE community about the environmental considerations associated with manufacture, packaging, transport, use, re-use, recycling and disposal of computing devices.
- Bring together resources that help improve desktop computing purchasing and recycling/reuse practices
Rationale:
The UK FE and HE sector is currently wasting millions of pounds each year, by powering desktop computers that are not doing useful work: http://www.oucs.ox.ac.uk/wol/index.xml.ID=body.1_div.2
- There are a 'simple' measures that operations managers, IT managers and end-users can put in place to dramatically reduce this waste
2009 is a very good year to implement energy saving measures considering the current economic situation, recent dramatic increases in electricity prices, and new legislation on greenhouse gas emissions (e.g. the "carbon reduction commitment": http://www.climatechangecorp.com/content.asp?ContentID=5751)
- Desktop computers underpin most learning, teaching and research activities so are perhaps a good focus for communicating simple messages: (a) we have to reduce financial costs and carbon emissions, (b) there are ways to do this without negatively impacting the core activities that constitute academic life
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