A Modest Proposal

Introduction
Nowadays information technology is at its peak and has integrated itself in every aspect of business, education, and even our own lifestyle. But that comes at a price – the consequences from overusing electricity to power up computer machines and all their peripherals have already started manifesting themselves in the form of the greenhouse effect, caused by excessive carbon emissions. Additionally, constant technical upgrades due to the development of new technologies lead to the disposal of disproportionate amounts of electronic waste, thus polluting the environment with toxic materials (Robinson, 2009).

Being a highly respectable educational institution, the University of Southampton should both provide facilities of admirable

They are only the first step of turning any computing facility into one that operates in accordance with the present-day’s ecological obligations.

The Strategic Approach

The next step, is taking a strategic approach (Unhelkar, 2011 cited Murugesan, 2007) which requires much more engagement regarding time and money. However, it is the most impactful one and it has the best ratio between effort put in it and effectiveness. It involves more sufficient procedures such as:

• Conducting an audit and producing a comprehensive plan

The following strategies demand a predetermined system for their successful execution. The principal idea is to assess the current infrastructure of every building/facility that provides computers, and schedule a revamp. An evaluation should be made about what components need and need not be replaced.

• Refitting the data centres and clusters in the high powered facilities

The two Iridis supercomputers and the Lyceum cluster (Cmg.soton.ac.uk) have perhaps the greatest power consumption rates. Possible options for improving the efficiency/usage ratio include better airflow management, liquid cooling, energy management software and introducing eco-friendly designs for the data centres themselves (Harmon and Auseklis,

On the other hand, other strategies can actually improve performance. Most of the suggested changes will not tremendously change the technical standard in the facilities, however, it will greatly reduce electricity costs and carbon footprint. For this reason, the staff and students are not expected to have any problems with the adjustments, as some of them will even enhance their experience.

The inauguration of even a couple of all the suggested practices so far will have evident positive impact in the long term.

Moving on to the more complex in execution approaches will cement the university’s reputation and promise long-term benefits as well, with the only disadvantage being that the project will be costly. Only this time, the energy savings from the all improved facilities together with energy generation will save a colossal amount of money, and therefore quickly compensate for the big investment.

Finally, the addition of greenery to the university sites will give a nice touch to their overall appearance and atmosphere.