Columbus leads the way: Evolving our Green IT ambition
Introduction
The Green IT Playbook: A practical guide to sustainable, future-ready tech
The Columbus Region is setting the pace for sustainable technology practices. This effort is guided by the Columbus Green IT Playbook 2.0, co-authored by Smart Columbus and Rackspace Technology. After a year of continued conversation with technologists and sustainability leaders across the Columbus region, the 2025 Playbook builds on the success of the 2024 edition with expanded guidance to address the proliferation of AI and advanced automated technologies.
The playbook isn't simply a guide. It's a call to action for the technology community, offering clear and practical steps to improve tech sustainability, even in a complex political and business landscape.
Engineering a smarter way forward
Green IT, is about building future-proof systems that are more resilient, efficient, and secure. It means designing IT infrastructure that maximizes efficiency, reduces waste, and strengthens business operations in an era of rising energy costs, regulatory scrutiny, and energy-intensive emerging technologies like AI.
When organizations adopt Green IT practices, they gain cost savings, operational agility, and a competitive edge:
Reducing energy consumption lowers expenses
Leveraging hardware and operational practices to support community growth and a strong workforce pipeline
Optimizing cloud performance improves speed and reliability
Inspiring innovation in a rapidly advancing technology and energy landscape
Why Green IT matters now
The IT sector consumed 7% of global electricity in 2020, and it’s expected to hit 13% by 2030 (source: European Union Commission). At current rates, IT-related carbon emissions could surge to 14% of total global CO2 emissions by 2040 (source: Forbes). These figures continue to rise as energy-intensive technologies like AI become increasingly integrated into business practices.
With Central Ohio's booming tech industry, our Region is primed to lead the Green IT movement and ingrain our competitive economic, infrastructure, and civic advantage in the information age. The time to act is now. Green IT is a competitive advantage, an operational must, and a responsibility we can't afford to ignore.
14 essential Green IT practices
The Columbus Green IT Playbook 2.0 provides a blueprint with 14 measurable and actionable "plays" (best practices) organized across four key impact areas:
Measure & Report – Track emissions, adopt formal reporting methodologies, monitor IT energy consumption, and publicly disclose reduction targets.
Optimize Infrastructure – Shift workloads to the cloud, power operations with renewable energy, monitor vendor emissions, procure energy-efficient hardware, and implement circular device lifecycles.
Build Capacity – Build a diverse IT workforce, recruit and upskill talent, and provide formal AI training to empower teams working alongside emerging technologies.
Govern & Scale – Establish “Green AI” usage policies and comprehensive IT governance structures that embed sustainability into operations.
Build the future of Technology: Join the Green IT movement
The Columbus Green IT Playbook 2.0 provides a clear, actionable roadmap for sustainable IT operations. We've designed it as a vital tool for organizations looking to make an impact.
Businesses that take the lead on Green IT today will set the standard for the future.
Download the full Green IT Playbook 2.0
