Jason Hiner, the executive editor of TechRepublic, recently published a story on Green IT (http://blogs.techrepublic.com.com/hiner/?p=653&tag=nl.e138 ). In the article he claimed that Green IT is viewed by some as a fad or a myth.
Closer to the truth, I think, would be to say that the critics of “greenwashing” are pointing out that there is a great deal of marketing hype around something we as IT professionals should be doing anyway.
Part of our goal in any project is to deliver a solution with a low cost of operations. We are not going a client any favors by creating a solution that requires more servers, with their attendant capital, licensing and operational costs. Our code and solutions need to be operationally efficient, to minimize these costs. If that has the happy consequence of conserving energy and preserving the planet, I am one happy man. The bottom line for this, however, is the bottom line, not a lower carbon footprint.