Lesson Two: Environmental Impact – Immediate vs. Long Term Sustainability Steps
This three-part series covers the lessons learned from our time spent at the UK DRI Retreat, held January 13 – 17, 2025 in Manchester. To see the previous post on Developing Industry Relationships, click here.
Addressing the environmental impact of technology is both a local and global challenge. From physical hardware to code, optimizing and streamlining their use can save time and money while creating ripple effects that positively impact the future. The challenge, however, lies in knowing where to start.
Alces Flight Crew Member, Michael Rudgyard, engaged with the UK DRI community at their annual retreat in Manchester to discuss how environmental impact ties into legacy building and long-term continuity. His key message? Focus on actions you can take today while empowering yourself and your team to plan effectively for the future.
Immediate Actions
Michael noted the following steps could provide the fastest impact in terms of the environmental, technical, and business sides to sustainability.
- Switch to green energy providers or move hardware to green energy-powered sites.
- Adopt best practices for hardware and software procurement, usage, and decommissioning.
- Simplify resource access by standardising processes and reducing reliance on bespoke or customised engagements.
“Alces’ commitment to environmental impact spans all levels of engagement. Our aim is to simplify and make transparent the complexities of what we do—not just in terms of carbon impact, but also through the optimisation of current resources and thoughtful consideration of legacy when planning new projects.”
– Michael Rudgyard
Long-Term Actions
Michael noted that the technical community is working daily to understand the long-term impacts of the industry, and that much of this knowledge requires contribution directly from those in the field. Building towards the future requires a framework to improve upon, and areas that could be explored include:
- Educate and align with global green energy and carbon standards, including transitioning physical and digital infrastructure and reporting to meet defined benchmarks.
- Engage with projects focused on developing and refining best practices, ensuring the needs of your field and specialty are represented.
- Embed continuous improvement by establishing monitoring systems, educating teams, and adopting change management processes to adapt over time.
Addressing environmental impact is a long-term commitment that requires balancing today’s efforts with tomorrow’s vision. Creating an environmental plan is not just about meeting current needs—it’s about legacy building and paving the way for the next generation entering the field. This process is continuous, with each project building upon the last, ensuring sustained progress toward a greener future.
Our final piece in the series covers facilitating goals in hiring and staff retention! If you wish to start at the beginning of our series check out our first piece on Developing Industry Relationships.
The UK DRI Retreat, held from January 13–17, 2025, in Manchester, was designed with a specific focus on developing the soft skills of technical research professionals. The event also provided valuable networking opportunities, with an aim to create connections across various institutions and communities. We are grateful for the invitation to take part in this event and share our insights, as well as gain invaluable opportunities to connect to the current needs from our community.