This document discusses green approaches to managing the lifecycle of digital technologies from procurement to disposal in order to achieve a more sustainable environment. It outlines challenges like lack of strategy and awareness as well as benefits of asset management systems. Frameworks for green ICT and green by/of IT are presented. The full lifecycle from procurement to disposal is examined, including options for waste refuse. Legislation around environmental protection, electrical safety, and data protection is covered. Methods to refine disposal like clearing data and destroying hardware are described. The document advocates for smart aging and procurement to avoid risks and generate better value throughout the process.

1. Green Formula
to Sustain our
Digital Life
By Ahmed Buhazza

2. Current Life…

6. Green Telecom

7. Final Destination!
• Landfill: The burial of waste in regulated disposal facilities.

8. What to do?!

9. Green ICT approaches

10. Green of IT - Framework

11. Green by IT - Framework
Green by IT

12. Facing the Challenges?!

13. General Challenges
• Lack of national scale and regional Green IT Strategy;
• Lack of incentives, policy and legislation for green practice and e-waste
management;
• Inadequate awareness and public education on the smart use of IT to
protect the environment;
• Absence of national infrastructure for formal recycling;
• Poor corporate responsibility by the industry;

14. ICT Age Factors
Brand, Equipment Quality &
Configuration
Supplier Support and Spare
parts availability
Warranty Period
Software/System update,
version Requirements
User & Business Demands
Usage, Carefulness, Damages

15. Benefits of Asset Management System
& Refresh Period
• Inventory Control
• Total Cost of Ownership
• Software License Compliance
• Operational Monitoring and
Control
• Decision Making about IT
Resource Deployment
• Zero-day Employee Provisioning
• Standardization and Compliance
• More Informed Purchasing
• Business Resumption
Reducing operating costs (10%-40% cost
savings of operating cost)
Source: National Audit Office survey and analysis – UK 2007

16. IC T equipment life-cycle
Procurement  Disposal
Source: National Audit Office survey and analysis – UK 2007

17. Waste Refuse
ZeroWaste SA’s waste management hierarchy
www.zerowaste.sa.gov.au

18. Disposal options
IT conforms to the European Directive on
Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment
(WEEE) to dispose of its IT equipment.
Source: National Audit Office survey and analysis – UK 2007

19. Refining Methods
• Clear
– use software or hardware products to
overwrite storage space on the media with
non-sensitive data.
• Purge
– Degaussing is exposing the magnetic media
to a strong magnetic field in order to
disrupt the recorded magnetic domains.
• Destroy
– Disintegration, Pulverization, Melting, and
Incineration
– Shredding.

20. Legislation
•Environmental Protection
•The Environmental Act (1994), Section 34: Duty of care and The
Environmental Protection (Duty of Care) Regulations 1991
•Hazardous Waste Regulations (2005)
•Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations (2006)
•Electrical Safety
•The Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 1994
•The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974
•Data Protection & Security
•Data Protection Act (1998)
•Official Secrets Act (1989)

21. Generate Better Value
• Smart Aging (Refresh Period) Avoid the time when
– to have no value;
– Define the optimum age for your corporate disposal (3 to 5 – to be unserviceable or beyond
years) economical repair; or
– Consider Reducing the costs of resale and increasing resale – that the disposal cost is higher
than the likely return.
revenues;
– Dispose whenever is practical and cost effective
– Contract for buy-back “revenue sharing”, “zero-cost” or “at cost”,
• Smart ICT Procurement Effective ICT Asset
– Awareness of the longer life items and commercial market values Management and
for used equipments Disposal Policy

22. Avoid the Wider Risk
• Environmental Protection Consider the use of
– Awareness about relevant legislation environmentally sustainable
– Oversight of the disposal agents’ practices methods of
destruction/recycling.
• Data protection and security
– Oversight of Data wiping standard
– Oversight over approaches being used by the disposal agent
• Electrical safety Check
– ICT equipments before resale or donation

23. Replace Cost by Benefits
Cost Benefits Cost Benefits
“Problems can become opportunities when the right people come together.” Robert South

24. Achieve Sustainable Environment