In our increasingly digital world, IT systems have become significant contributors to global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Harvard University Information Technology (HUIT) is collaborating with teams across the University, including the Harvard Office for Sustainability (OFS), to examine and reduce the impact of Harvard’s IT emissions and e-waste. To help advance these efforts, last year HUIT hired its first-ever business analyst focused on sustainable IT. Jack Sawyer will play an integral role in addressing that impact and aligning technology with the University’s sustainability goals through innovative strategies.
Below we ask Jack questions about his work in this new role and what interests him in this emerging field of sustainable IT.
Can you tell us how you came into this work and what excites you about it?
My travels growing up across England, Switzerland, and the United States sparked passions for football, nature, and technology. These passions merged (less so the football) during my studies at Boston University and subsequent consulting career, where I focused on sustainable business innovations. IT sustainability excites me as it offers vast potential for addressing climate change, in part by reducing the “embodied” emissions in IT products and services–in other words, decarbonizing the supply chain–and by reducing energy demand when using the products and services. But another key opportunity is leveraging how deeply embedded technology is in our daily lives to then seamlessly integrate broader sustainability strategies.
Why would you say this work is important and why should institutions like Harvard care about this work?
The GHG emissions from the information and communication technology (ICT) sector are significant, matching that of the aviation industry. And there are many factors, such as blockchain and artificial intelligence (AI), contributing to rapid growth in the ICT sector’s energy demand. This reality is particularly relevant to institutions like Harvard, where some cutting-edge research and innovation heavily rely on advanced computing resources. Fortunately, our community is passionate about sustainable IT. By taking action to implement sustainable IT practices, Harvard not only reduces emissions but also provides a model for others to follow.
What does your day-to-day look like in this role and what topics are you focused on?
I collaborate with Harvard’s Sustainable IT Committee, the CIO Council, and various stakeholders to develop and implement strategies that advance sustainability within our IT supply chain. As of now, a major part of my day involves developing processes for engaging IT vendors. This means creating clear guidelines so that sustainability becomes approachable and actionable in IT vendor relationships at Harvard. Additionally, I’m deeply involved in advancing our electronic waste (e-waste) practices. For instance, we are working on a resource guide that helps our community—students, faculty, and staff— responsibly dispose of Harvard-owned e-waste. We’re also taking a data-driven approach to analyze the emissions associated with university’s IT portfolio, identifying emissions “hotspots” so we can prioritize efforts where they can have the most impact.
What are emerging topics in sustainable IT that we should be keeping on our radar?
With new innovations coming out weekly, it can be hard to keep pace with the rate of change and growth in the sustainable IT space. Some notable topics to have on your radar include the growing global concerns around how organizations manage and responsibly dispose of electronic waste. IT organizations are exploring ways to address this growing challenge such as evolving business models to adopt circular economy principles, with the ultimate goal of being a close-loop supply chain where an IT vendor can extract the rare earth metals from old devices and reuse them in creating new products.
An area that often goes unnoticed is the embodied emissions tied to things like laptops and data centers due to the massive energy needs to develop today’s cutting-edge chips. One way the industry can start to address this challenge is to take on a carbon-efficient perspective when designing new computers and chips. Improving upon chip performance is equally important in data centers as the mass adoption of AI is fueling data center growth, putting pressure on electricity grids and hindering climate goals.
Many of these topics are being explored right on Harvard’s campus. A research team co-led by David Brooks, the Haley Family Professor of Computer Science at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), is focused on laying the foundation for sustainable computing and strategies to reduce computing’s carbon footprint in the next decade. This includes ways to standardize how we measure and report the lifetime carbon costs of a device, rethinking the infrastructure of computing, and how to reduce carbon for emerging technology like AI.
On an individual level, what can we be doing to reduce our IT footprint? Do you have suggested resources or readings on this topic?
There are several practical steps individuals can take to reduce their IT carbon footprint. Start by being more conscious of your digital consumption—opt for energy-efficient and EPEAT-certified devices, and manage your device settings to reduce energy use. The non-profit organization sustainableit.org provides a variety of helpful resources and articles. There are new innovations and learnings being published every day in this field, so I encourage anyone who is interested to read a variety of news sources – including technology-focused content from the Harvard Gazette. Another great resource at Harvard is the Waste Wizard tool from Recycling and Waste Management, which tells users how to properly dispose of different types of e-waste. I look forward to continuing to learn, share, and practice new strategies to keep IT sustainable on Harvard’s campus and beyond.
Jack Sawyer is a Sustainable Business IT Analyst for Harvard University Information Technology. Learn more about HUIT and the Harvard Office for Sustainability.