Reducing Energy Consumption from Digital Infrastructure

Digital infrastructure, including devices, cloud services, storage, data transfer and on-campus IT systems, consumes energy and contributes to greenhouse gas emissions through both electricity use and the lifecycle impacts of hardware. By adopting these measures, we can collectively reduce the University's digital carbon footprint, lower operational costs and contribute to our net zero ambitions while maintaining secure, reliable and high-quality digital services.

Practical Actions

Devices and Equipment

• Switch off computers, monitors and other IT equipment when not in use, particularly overnight, at weekends and during University closures.
• Use sleep or power-saving modes when devices are temporarily inactive.
• Switch off monitors when away from your desk for extended periods.
• Avoid leaving chargers and peripherals powered on when they are not required.
• Use energy-efficient devices and equipment where available.
• Keep devices for as long as they remain secure and fit for purpose to reduce the energy associated with manufacturing and replacing equipment.

Data and Storage

• Delete unnecessary, duplicate and outdated files to reduce the energy required to store and manage data.
• Avoid storing multiple copies of the same files across University systems.
• Regularly review and remove unused data from cloud storage and shared drives.
• Follow University data retention policies to ensure data is not stored longer than necessary.
• Use appropriate storage locations based on how frequently data needs to be accessed.

Cloud Computing and IT Systems

• Use only the computing and storage capacity required for your work.
• Close applications, virtual machines and computing environments when they are no longer needed.
• Avoid leaving high-performance computing tasks running unnecessarily.
• Schedule energy-intensive computing activities efficiently where possible.
• Avoid unnecessary data processing, particularly for large datasets or compute-intensive applications.
• Where options are available, use more energy-efficient or lower-carbon cloud services.

Digital Working Practices

• Avoid unnecessary video streaming or use lower resolution where high-definition quality is not required.
• Turn off cameras during online meetings when video is not necessary.
• Share links to documents rather than repeatedly downloading or sending large files.
• Avoid unnecessary duplication of files across different platforms.
• Use shared collaboration platforms to reduce the number of separate copies of documents.
• Close unused applications and browser tabs to reduce device processing requirements.
• Where appropriate, download frequently used content rather than repeatedly streaming the same material.

Procurement and Replacement

• Prioritise energy efficiency when purchasing or replacing digital equipment.
• Select appropriately sized and specified equipment rather than purchasing higher-performance devices than required.
• Consider the energy consumption of equipment throughout its expected lifetime when making purchasing decisions.
• Repair, upgrade, refurbish and reuse equipment where practical before purchasing new devices.
• Dispose of obsolete equipment through appropriate University processes to enable reuse, recycling and responsible end-of-life management.