Corporate social responsibility and increasing overall sustainability continues to be a rising concern for many businesses. Yet there remains to be a vast amount of organizations that are oblivious to the impact of technology on the environment. We’ve compiled some statistics to aid your organization’s IT department in becoming more sustainable in 2020 and years to come.
Reduce the Amount of Emails You Send
A recent report by OVOenergy found that over 64 million unwarranted emails are sent per day, in the UK alone. So, why does that matter? Well if every adult in the UK alone sent just one less email daily, it would save more than 36 million pounds of carbon a year.
This is just a tiny percentage of the data that is sent out every day. Now think about the data centers and the amount of electricity required to run those cloud services. Forbes reported in 2017 that U.S. data centers used more than 90 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity a year, needing roughly 34 giant (500-megawatt) coal-powered plants in order to operate around the clock. This amount is expected to double every four years.
Recycle the E-waste
In 2017, United Nations University’s Global E-waste Monitor report discovered that worldwide we created 49.2 million tons of e-waste. The same report also found that e-waste had doubled in nine years since 2008. They project that by 2021, the annual total of e-waste will exceed 57 million tons, with only 20% being properly recycled.
Another way your IT department can ensure your company is maintaining sustainability is by partnering with a certified ITAD service provider. Working with a certified ITAD partner will ensure your retired IT assets are recycled safely and properly. That means your business’s e-waste will not end up in a landfill long after it’s useful life. Heck, they might even be able to get you a return on your initial IT investment, lining your pockets with green in 2020!
