that GREEN blog

In a world that is turning “green” everywhere you look, what other areas could possibly come more eco-friendly?  One place to look is your business.  The ability to turn your data center green is a very possible and practical step.  But first, for those who do not know, let’s define what a datacenter is.  A data center is the location owned by a website host that contains the web servers.  So how can you make this location that runs on so much energy into an environmentally friendly place?

Energy experts estimate that data centers use mean 1.5 percent and 3 percent of the electricity that is generated in the United States.  At the high end of the spectrum the whole state of Michigan can be powered for one year.  According to Uptime Institute, “more than 60 percent of the power used to cool equipment in the data center is completely wasted.”  Not only are you helping the environment by making your data center more eco-friendly, you may also get benefits through the government.

The website IT management.com has provided steps that will help you get started in your venture of making your business’s data center more environmentally friendly.  We will focus on the first 5 in this post and the last 5 in the next.

1. Evaluate your energy efficiency. Add up your energy bills, learn where your energy comes from, and how it’s being distributed in your company. Plan a road map for monitoring and reducing usage. Your initial evaluation can provide a         baseline for calculating your ROI after implementing changes.

2. Redesign your cooling system. Enclose your servers in hot aisles so you can concentrate your cooling directly onto the racks. Be sure to reduce airflow loss by sealing off holes in your walls, floors and ceilings, and make sure you have proper air ducts.

3. Reconsider your redundancy. Many companies invest in redundant cooling and heating systems that use double the  amount of power they usually need — for each kilowatt of energy needed, redundant circuits use two. This helps prepare systems for growth and times of peak performance, but the result is a maximum power flow where only a fraction of that power is put to use. This practice is inefficient and inflates your energy bills. Cut back your redundancy wherever possible, to operate based on your current needs rather than projecting your future needs.

4. Use adjustable equipment. You can also plan for growth and times of peak power needs by implementing scalable and modular systems. Scalable blade servers can concentrate more computing power in a smaller space, requiring less power to cool. Also any scalable system will let you operate at your minimum power requirements and give you the capacity to  grow into higher power consumption when you’re ready.

5. Virtualize your storage.  Most servers are underused, because they’re loaded with archaic information or software that’s only needed some of the time. With storage virtualization software or a device, you can make your applications mobile and thereby shutdown unneeded servers. The virtualization device will keep track of your server space and remap applications to different physical locations as necessary to achieve optimal efficiency. Thus, information can be made location independent and redirected across multiple I/O devices from different vendors.

Green Earth Expo 2008, presented by Global Green Alliance, is expected to draw over 300 exhibitors and 50,000+ attendees

Where? Orlando, FL

Global Green Alliance announced the launch of Green Earth Expo 2008 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida. The Green Earth Expo will be the largest show of its kind, allowing hundreds of Green and Sustainable corporations and non-profits to showcase their Green initiatives to other businesses and consumers.

The Green Earth Expo 2008 will feature major automakers, alternative energy providers, green construction fabricators and contractors, Green service providers, energy efficient appliance manufacturers, as well as health & wellness groups and organic retailers. Confirmed speakers include top-level government fficials, Green business leaders, and environmental experts.

“We think it is important for businesses and consumers alike to know what Green products and services are available,” said Jim Griffin, Founder and President of Global Green Alliance. “We want people to understand that ‘Going Green’ does not mean sacrificing your way of life or spending more money. It means that you care about your environment and you are making efforts to preserve it.”

The Green Earth Expo 2008 will be held from May 15-18, 2008, and is booked for the next ten years. The Orange County Convention Center is the second largest convention center in the U.S., and is the only one to earn ISO 14001-2004 certification for environmental management due to their successful recycling program. Additionally, OCCC recently announced a major solar energy project to provide power to the convention center. The Expo is designed to promote Green and Sustainable commerce.

The Expo will kick off with a Green Business Symposium and dedicated Business-to-Business day on Thursday, May 15 to network with like-minded organizations and collaborate on new Green projects and emerging technologies. The general public will be welcomed for the last three days of the Expo, enabling exhibitors to showcase their Green initiatives to tens of thousands of consumer, business, and government attendees.

The Expo is proud to feature an Eco-Kid’s Corner on Friday-Sunday, with educational activities and entertainment for children and adults alike. Top designers will host an Eco-Fashion Show on Saturday, May 17, 2008.

“Green should not be exclusive. Reducing our carbon footprint, protecting our resources, and bettering our individual health should be a natural goal of any organization or person,” noted Griffin. “We feel it is our mission to promote Green commerce to encourage its growth amongst the business community. Furthermore, we want to educate the public about the quality and affordability of Green products and services that are available to them to further incorporate Green into their lives.”

While we at the Green Blog realize that this is short notice, it was just brought to our attention today. If you live in Florida, visit the Global Green Alliance Trade Show. Show your support for the tremendous effort made to acquaint you with local and national green business. If you have children, you simply cannot afford to miss it.

There are lots of high profile examples of big enterprises making strides in this area, but what can small businesses do? To to Cisco’s headquarters in San Jose for a networking breakfast and panel discussion featuring experts in developing eco-friendly business practices and share your ideas on how small businesses can embrace the green initiative.

Topics for discussion wilk include:

• Being green — what are the definitions and criteria by which a business is considered eco-friendly?
• Return on investment — does being green really cost more? Can small businesses owners and entrepreneurs use being green to their advantage in the marketplace?
• Risks and pitfalls to avoid
• How can technology enable your company’s green initiatives?
• What workplace policies, values and tools help enable your employees pursue their own eco-friendly agendas?
• Simple ideas to get started locally and make an impact globally

Go here to register

Ever wondered if you live in a walkable neighborhood, if you’ll be moving into one or if the city planners did a good job when they designed your neck of the woods? Or ponder what exactly you can do in your neighborhood? Well there’s a new tool online that can help you find out. It’s called Walk Score and you can try it out at: www.walkscore.com

Although this tool is not perfect yet and the designers will even admit to it too. It is a neat way to learn about some of the resources in your neighborhood that you can reach on foot. We invite you to take a walk this summer and meet a few of your neighbors while you’re at it! You may just end up saving your gas money, making the air cleaner, getting some exercise, supporting your local economy and making a few new close friends!

They also have a new widget that can be downloaded from:
www.widgetbox.com/widget/walkscore-badge

October is International Walk to School Month where thousands of students will walk or cycle to school with parents, school staff and community leaders. They learn safe routes to school, and safe pedestrian and cycling skills – all while having lots of fun!!

Kids need to move

Obesity rates among children have more than doubled in the past twenty years, according to the National Longitudinal Study of Youth. Even worse, rates of obesity are much higher among minority children than among white youth, suggesting a grave social inequity in the availability of safe, healthy recreational opportunities.

Add walking to the mix. Physical activity recommendations for children suggest that they need a variety of activities each day-some intense, some less-so, some informal, some structured. Walking or cycling to and from school is an ideal way to get some of that activity at no extra cost to the child or family.

Walking to school is a missed opportunity. Roughly 10% of children nationwide walk to school regularly. Even among those kids living within a mile of their school, only 25% are regular walkers.

Parents who walk or bike to school with their kids get to be sociable. Nearly nine out ten parents who walk their children to school see it as an ideal way to meet new people, according to a survey in the UK. Many said that the school gate was a better place to meet new people than pubs, clubs, evening classes or the supermarket.

Originally a one-day celebration, the initiative has grown to International Walk to School Week and then this year into International Walk to School Month. Schools can choose the day or week to participate, or they can celebrate a whole month of walking to school. Last year, 40 countries took part in the event.