Greenhouse Gas Accounting for IT Infrastructure and Software

Digital technology drives the modern world, but our servers, networks, and devices leave a significant environmental footprint. Understanding how to measure and report these emissions is the first step toward building a sustainable digital future. This course equips you with the essential frameworks to calculate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions specifically for IT operations. You will learn to navigate Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions as they apply to data centers, cloud computing, and user devices, enabling you to design actionable sustainability reports for your organization. What you'll learn: - Understand the core principles of greenhouse gas accounting and the global GHG Protocol standards. - Categorize IT emissions into Scope 1, Scope 2 (purchased electricity), and Scope 3 (value chain and cloud services). - Calculate the carbon footprint of cloud computing resources using modern cloud sustainability metrics. - Analyze the lifecycle emissions of enterprise hardware from manufacturing to disposal. - Apply green software engineering concepts to optimize code and architecture for energy efficiency. - Develop basic carbon accounting reports and practical reduction strategies for IT departments. You will start with foundational climate science terminology and accounting standards before moving into practical methodologies for calculating emissions across hardware and cloud environments. Through written scenarios and step-by-step exercises, you will practice translating raw IT usage data into clear carbon metrics. This course is designed for IT professionals, system administrators, software developers, and sustainability coordinators new to carbon accounting, with no prior experience in environmental science required. Start reading today to build the skills needed to lead green IT initiatives in your organization.