A fresh approach to new technology will help universities combat climate change

Universities and colleges need to work together in order to prepare for a low carbon future in which they generate, as well as consume energy. This is the message from a new report from Jisc TechWatch, the Jisc service that anticipates how technology developments are likely to impact on the future of higher and further education, which is published today (24th November). The 'Low Carbon Computing: a view to 2050 and beyond' report addresses, for the first time, how UK universities and colleges can use computer technology to help meet future carbon targets set down by recent Government legislation. It is the first report published on the future of low carbon technologies to take into account the Climate Change Act (2008) and Low Carbon Transition Plan (2009). Gaynor Backhouse, director of TechWatch commented, “The government has put in place a legally binding framework and a set of demanding targets for a low carbon future. The onus is now on public sector organisations, such as universities and colleges, to deliver and the planned use of advanced technology is one of the most important ways of ensuring that we do."Gaynor says, "Being serious about climate change means taking a long term view. Our reports usually look perhaps five or ten years ahead, this one has looked to 2050 and beyond. Universities and colleges must do far more than a few quick hits afforded by small behavioural changes and interim technology developments. They must start to work together across the sector to implement much bigger plans for a sustainable future, and the report provides some guidance as to how this might be done.”The report tackles three core issues on the technology horizon:Firstly, it exposes some of the hidden environmental costs associated with Internet 'Cloud', showing how the network technologies used to connect us are, at the moment, highly energy inefficient. Secondly, it looks at the changing nature of energy supply and warns that universities and colleges, as significantly energy-intensive institutions, cannot continue to remain solely as energy 'users'. The report considers how this could be seen as an opportunity for universities and colleges to plan ahead to work with the emerging 'smartgrid' and seek to produce their own renewable energy alternatives.Finally, it turns its attention to data storage and mounting capacity requirements thanks to the growth of multi-media, social media, disaster recovery planning needs and the generation of research experiment data sets. This will be a major test for institutional ICT managers over the years to come, with decisions around technology becoming more and more caught up in policy and governance.The report also considers the carbon sanctions that could be placed on education as a result of targets to cut the UK’s carbon emissions to 80% of 1990 levels between now and 2050. It shows how some of the cuts can be achieved through the use of more sophisticated digital technology systems but argues that this on its own will not be enough, pointing out the potential for universities and colleges to generate their own energy from renewable sources. The report focuses on the technologies and standards that will help to maximise the energy efficiency of digital technologies used within individual universities and colleges over the short-to-medium term; and action that needs to take place from around 2013 in order to prepare for 2050 and beyond. It presents a first attempt at a Low Carbon ICT Roadmap for the sector which puts these issues into a framework that also takes into account what is currently known about the targets associated with the Climate Change Act. It also reflects some of the decisions that might be made at an EU level, as positive measures to slow climate change are implemented across international boundaries over the next 40 years. Gaynor concludes; “Predicting the future accurately is notoriously difficult and this is especially true for low carbon computing. One of the things the TechWatch report does is to think through the key challenges already being felt within the educational community as it tries to respond to increasing pressure to reduce carbon emissions. There are no quick answers, but by considering the future of the technology used by our universities and colleges, the UK can go some way to impact on its energy use and continue to be competitive.” Read the full reportRead more about TechWatch, Jisc’s green ICT programme and Hefce’s consultation on carbon reductionTwitter tag: lowcarbonHE