Powering the future: IT's role in university sustainability - UW

A message from Lois Brooks, vice provost for information technology and chief information officer:

Behind every server, network connection and digital service at UW–‍Madison are dedicated people working to balance technological advancement with environmental responsibility. As we continue to digitally transform our university, the question becomes: How do we meet our growing computing needs while reducing our environmental impact?

Each of us in the IT community contributes to UW’s broader sustainability mission in ways that might not be immediately visible but can be quite impactful:

Systems administrators optimizing server configurations to reduce energy usage
Desktop support specialists extending device lifecycles and managing proper recycling
Developers writing more efficient code that requires less computing power
Procurement specialists selecting energy-efficient equipment

This mindfulness is crucial because the environmental footprint of information technology is substantial. According to the World Bank, the information and communication technology (ICT) sector accounts for approximately 1.7% of global greenhouse gas emissions—nearly as much as the aviation industry. With exciting emerging technologies like generative artificial intelligence and machine learning driving demand for data services, these emissions are projected to increase without intervention, according to recent Gartner research.

At UW–‍Madison, our community is committed to addressing this challenge head-on. Our university has set an ambitious goal to achieve net-zero emissions by 2048, coinciding with the university’s 200th anniversary. The people working in IT play a critical role in meeting this target.

Our community’s progress toward sustainable IT

The collaborative efforts of staff across the university have already led to significant progress in sustainable practices:

Modernizing our data centers

Following industry best practices, our data center teams are working to optimize operations through virtualization and server consolidation. These approaches can significantly reduce the number of physical machines needed, resulting in lower energy consumption and heat production. Improvements to cooling system efficiency also represent an important opportunity to reduce our environmental impact, according to Gartner.

Sustainable equipment management

University programs like Surplus with a Purpose (SWAP) and DoIT’s recycling program for personal electronics ensure proper disposal of IT equipment. These programs help prevent e-waste, which globally has reached a record 62 billion kg, with only 22.3% formally recycled, according to Gartner. Programs like this can significantly reduce e-waste at large institutions like UW–‍Madison, diverting thousands of pounds of electronics from landfills.

Enterprise efficiency

Our approach to enterprise architecture has championed green principles like “reuse, before buying, before building” and prioritizing the greatest common good in decision-making. We reduce waste and extend resource life by encouraging departments to leverage existing systems rather than creating duplicative solutions. Our focus on adaptable, standards-based solutions ensures technology investments last longer and work together seamlessly—turning strategic planning into practical sustainability.

Our path to greener IT

Our collective action has achieved real results. Despite a growing headcount, physical campus and digital footprint, since 2007 the UW–‍Madison has managed to:

Reduce our direct and indirect greenhouse gas emissions by over 40%
Reduce our energy use by 19%
Reduce our water use by more than 29%

But there’s more work to be done. Here are some areas where we should consider focusing our efforts in the future:

Cloud strategy with sustainability in mind: When evaluating new vendors, we should consider not just cost and performance but also their environmental commitments. Leading cloud providers are generally more energy-efficient than on-premises data centers and are incorporating increasing amounts of renewable energy, according to Gartner analysis.

Smart power management: As power-hungry machine learning and large language models take larger roles in the university’s courses, research and operations, we should explore advanced power management technologies that can reduce energy consumption in our computing environments. This includes configurations that make services “always available” rather than “always on”—a simple change that can yield substantial energy savings.

Sustainable digital workplace: With remote and hybrid work now a permanent part of our operations, we can develop strategies to make our digital workplace more sustainable, such as reevaluating device lifecycles, encouraging the use of refurbished equipment, and promoting energy-efficient campus and home office setups.

Measuring our impact: You can’t improve what you haven’t measured. We should establish key performance indicators to track our IT-related emissions and energy use, creating a baseline against which we can measure future progress.

Sustainability through collaboration: We can leverage and strengthen partnerships with our colleagues in Facilities Planning & Management and the Office of Sustainability to align IT initiatives with broader university sustainability efforts. Together, we can explore innovative approaches—such as using waste heat from data centers to warm buildings, and optimizing scheduling of computational workloads during times when more renewable energy is available.

The road ahead: A community effort

As we look to the future, the ingenuity and dedication of our people will be our greatest asset in meeting the dual challenge of supporting growing computing demands while reducing our environmental impact. Emerging technologies bring both opportunities and challenges for sustainability, and we’ll need everyone’s creativity and commitment to navigate this landscape.

I invite everyone in our community to join this effort. Whether you’re managing IT resources, developing applications, preparing a request for proposals, or simply using technology in your daily work, each of us has a role to play in creating a more sustainable digital environment at UW–‍Madison.

Together, we can harness the power of IT—and more importantly, the power of our people—to build a more sustainable university for generations to come.

Best,

—Lois

This is part of our Envision the Future blog series exploring key technology trends in higher education. Join us each month as we explore different aspects of UW–‍Madison’s IT future.

Powering the future: IT’s role in university sustainability