Asst. Prof. Dr. Heba Jabbar Aleqabie

Faculty of Computer Science and Information Technology

The world’s attention has increasingly turned to sustainability and green programming due to several interconnected factors. These include increased worries about climate change, the need for resource conservation, and the awareness of the economic and social advantages of sustainable practices.

Green programming, formerly referred to as sustainable programming or eco-friendly programming, is the process of building software applications and systems with the goal of reducing their environmental effect. It entails using coding techniques, software design concepts, and infrastructure decisions that increase energy efficiency, minimize resource use, and reduce carbon emissions.

Recent incidents and advancements have hastened this transition to sustainability even further.

1. Environmental Awareness: In recent years, more individuals have become aware of the urgency of addressing the effects of the global climate catastrophe. Extreme weather conditions, rising sea levels, and wildfires have brought the terrible effects of climate change into sharp relief. Initiatives such as the Paris Agreement and research conducted by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) have made people more aware of the significance of lowering greenhouse gas emissions and switching to renewable sources of energy.
2. Environ Degradation: Globally, key issues include ecological degradation, biodiversity loss, deforestation, and pollution. It is becoming increasingly clear that these practices have negative consequences on wildlife populations, human health, and natural resources. Through campaigns and initiatives, groups like Greenpeace and WWF have been actively striving to increase public awareness of these concerns.
3. Resource Scarcity: As the world’s population tends to rise quickly, limited resources including water, food, and energy are being strained. Finding sustainable solutions that reduce waste and guarantee long-term availability is becoming more important as these resources grow scarcer. As an alternative to fossil fuels, Interest in alternative energy sources, such as solar and wind, has increased as a result.
4. Benefits to the Economy: Sustainability is being recognized as an investment chance along with an issue for the environment. Many companies are increasingly aware that using sustainable practices can end up in reduced expenses by using less energy or spending lesser on the disposal of waste. Customers are also expecting more environmentally friendly goods and services, which is generating market incentives for businesses to use sustainable methods.
5. Government Policies: Governments across the globe actively put sustainability and green programs into practice. Countries like Germany and Denmark have made significant investments in renewable energy, which has led to the growth of their economies and the creation of new employment. The Green Deal of the European Union seeks to make Europe the first climate-neutral continent by 2050, highlighting the significance of sustainability.

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought attention to the connections between sustainability, environmental health, and human health. The issue has sparked ideas on the demand for more durable and robust mechanisms to stop pandemics in the future and lessen their effects.

The latest IPCC report, which warned of the severe effects of global warming surpassing 1.5°C beyond pre-industrial levels, was published by the United Nations in September 2021. Discussions on how urgent it is to take immediate action to address climate change have been revived in light of this research. In November 2021, international leaders gathered in Glasgow for the COP26 climate conference, where they discussed and pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This occasion underlined the growing emphasis on sustainability and green programs around the globe.

The Requirements for Green Programming

It may differ based on the unique circumstances and aims of the project. Some typical criteria, however, are as follows:

1. Energy Efficiency: Green programming seeks to reduce energy usage by minimizing superfluous calculations, improving algorithms, and utilizing hardware resources efficiently.
2. Resource Conservation: To decrease waste, developers should attempt to consume as little system resources as possible, such as memory, storage space, and network traffic.

3.Reduced Carbon Footprint: Green programming take into consideration the carbon issues connected with software development and deployment procedures. This includes using renewable energy to power servers or data centers and minimizing needless data transfers.

4. Sustainable Design: When creating a software program, developers should consider the complete lifespan, including the phases of creation, consumption, maintenance, and disposal. This entails planning for durability, modularity, scalability, and simplicity of maintenance.

The importance of green programming

The ability to aid the technology sector in becoming more environmentally sustainable is what gives it importance. Software applications’ considerable environmental effect is a result of their energy and resource usage, which is a result of the world’s growing reliance on digital technology.

Microsoft’s pledge to become carbon zero by 2030 serves as a recent example underscoring the significance of green programming. Microsoft said in January 2020 that it will invest in green solutions to assist other businesses in becoming more sustainable in addition to reducing its own carbon emissions. Microsoft wants to create eco-friendly software programs that let users precisely measure their own carbon footprints as part of this strategy.

The relevance of green programming in addressing climate change issues and fostering environmental responsibility within the software development business is illustrated by this example of how a large technology corporation understands its importance.

Globally, sustainability and green programming have drawn a lot of interest due to growing awareness of climate change, environmental deterioration, resource shortages, economic advantages, and pro-environment government laws. The shift to sustainable practices is now universally acknowledged as being essential for a brighter future for both people and the environment.

References

[1] “10 Recommendations for Green Software Development | GSF.” [Online]. Available: https://greensoftware.foundation/articles/10-recommendations-for-green-software-development.

[2] “A look at how we’re building more sustainable hardware.” [Online]. Available: https://blog.google/products/devices-services/a-look-at-how-were-building-more-sustainable-hardware/.

[3] “Green coding / Eco-design : Reduce environmental impact – ALTEN France.” [Online]. Available: https://www.alten.com/techtrends/green-coding-eco-design-the-environment-at-the-core-of-digital/.

[4] “(24) Green Coding: Creating sustainable software for a greener future | LinkedIn.” [Online]. Available: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/green-coding-creating-sustainable-software-greener-bhattacharya/.

[5] “Scientists are highlighting the importance of green coding technology.” [Online]. Available: https://www.innovationnewsnetwork.com/scientists-highlighting-importance-green-coding-technology/20550/.

[6] “Green coding: What is it and why is it important?” [Online]. Available: https://stlpartners.com/articles/sustainability/green-coding-what-is-it/.