Environment Variables

Hosts Kate and Tzviya are joined by Anne Faubry and Tim Frick to explore the EU’s Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition (EmpCo) directive and what it means for sustainability claims. They discuss the challenges of preventing greenwashing, improving transparency around product durability and repairability, and measuring the environmental impact of digital services. The conversation also looks at planned obsolescence, the need for more democratic input into technological decisions, and how communities and policymakers can hold technology companies accountable for their environmental impact.

Learn more about our people:

• Kate Goldenring: LinkedIn | Website
• Tzviya Siegman: LinkedIn | Website
• Anne Faubry: LinkedIn | Website
• Tim Frick: LinkedIn | Website

Find out more about the GSF:

• The Green Software Foundation Website 
• Sign up to the Green Software Foundation Newsletter

News:

• Sustainable consumption - European Commission [03:03]
• EPREL [15:05]
• Ecograder [17:39]
• Stop Planned Obsolescence [24:38]
• B Corp New Standards [26:14]
• CSRD directive [29:29] 
• The Rise and Fall of the Artificial State by Jill Lepore [36:31]
• The 9th Northwest Power Plan [46:53]
• Draft Ninth Northwest Power Plan 
• Data Center Playbook - Alliance for the Great Lakes [55:29]
• Digital Greenwashing Guide - Mightybytes 

If you enjoyed this episode then please either:

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• Follow and rate on Spotify
• Watch our videos on The Green Software Foundation YouTube Channel!
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TWiGS host Valeria speaks with Claire Fletcher Harris about keeping people and communities at the centre of technology, especially as AI rapidly changes how we work. They discuss the importance of critical thinking, understanding the environmental and social impacts of digital infrastructure, and making AI use purposeful. Claire also shares practical GreenOps ideas and advice for getting involved in open-source sustainability communities.

Learn more about our people:

• Valeria Salis: LinkedIn | GitHub | Website
• Claire Fletcher: LinkedIn | GitHub

Find out more about the GSF:

• The Green Software Foundation Website 
• Sign up to the Green Software Foundation Newsletter

Resources:

• At OS Day 2025 by Schrödinger Hat , me and Claire FH said that one of the slides contained an Easter egg | Valeria Salis [00:03:49] 
• Valeria Salis & Claire Fletcher-Harris - From shy contributor to (kinda) confident community leader [00:10:38 ] 
• The Human Element Is The Real AI Revolution | Forbes [00:39:05]

Events:

• Green Agentic AI with Headroom (November 3 at 6:30 pm CET · Karlsruhe · Hybrid) [01:17:27]
• Cloud Native Sustainability Month: Barcelona Edition (November 3 at 6:30 pm CET · Barcelona) [01:17:39]
• Cooling Without Compromise (November 5 at 4:00 pm CET · Virtual) [01:17:52]

If you enjoyed this episode then please either:

• Follow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts
• Follow and rate on Spotify
• Watch our videos on The Green Software Foundation YouTube Channel!
• Connect with us on Twitter, Github and LinkedIn!

Chris Adams speaks with climate advisor Helen Neal about the growing regulations around environmental claims, including the EU’s Empowering Consumers for the Green Transition (EmpCo) Directive. They explore why greenwashing often results from poor communication between sustainability, marketing and legal teams, and how businesses can make credible, evidence based claims without falling into greenhushing. Helen also introduces her IMPACT framework and Zena Review, a tool designed to help businesses identify potential risks in their sustainability messaging.

Learn more about our people:

• Chris Adams: LinkedIn | GitHub | Website
• Helen Neal: LinkedIn | Website

Find out more about the GSF:

• The Green Software Foundation Website 
• Sign up to the Green Software Foundation Newsletter

Resources:

• EmpCo Directive [01:09] 
• What does the EU EmpCo Directive mean for my Green Web Foundation badges or my verification? | Green Web Foundation [26:19] 
• Zena - AI Sustainability Review [31:42] 
• Apple unveils its first carbon neutral products [40:12] 
• AWS can help reduce the carbon footprint of AI workloads by up to 99% [43:18] 
• Software Carbon Intensity (SCI) specification | ISO [43:32] 
• Ecology | infomaniak [46:27] 
• Impact Report | infomaniak [46:39] 
• GSF Policy Working Group 
• GSF Policy Working Group Issue #192 

If you enjoyed this episode then please either:

• Follow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts
• Follow and rate on Spotify
• Watch our videos on The Green Software Foundation YouTube Channel!
• Connect with us on Twitter, Github and LinkedIn!

This Week in Green Software, Dr. Nick Souter from the University of Sussex explores how researchers can reduce the carbon footprint of scientific computing without compromising research quality. He shares practical ways to measure and optimise the energy use of fMRI data processing, including how removing unnecessary steps from a pipeline can cut emissions by around 50%. The conversation also examines responsible AI use, sustainable data storage, and how certification initiatives can make sustainability a standard part of scientific research.

Learn more about our people:

• Aditya Manglik: LinkedIn | GitHub | Website
• Dr. Nick Souter: LinkedIn | Website

Find out more about the GSF:

• The Green Software Foundation Website 
• Sign up to the Green Software Foundation Newsletter

News:

• Comparing the carbon footprint of fMRI data processing and analysis approaches | Dr. Souter et al. [06:46] 
• Green Algorithms Calculator [09:10] 
• Green Algorithms Dashboard [12:05] 
• Ten recommendations for reducing the carbon footprint of research computing in human neuroimaging | Imaging Neuroscience | Dr. Souter et al. [14:23] 
• Measuring and reducing the carbon footprint of fMRI preprocessing in fMRIPrep | Dr. Souter et al. [17:25] 
• https://www.software.ac.uk/GreenDiSC [24:29]

Events:

• Green Agentic AI with Headroom (November 3 at 6:30 pm CET · Karlsruhe · Hybrid) [28:47] 
• Cloud Native Sustainability Month: Barcelona Edition (November 3 at 6:30 pm CET · Barcelona) [28:57] 
• Cooling Without Compromise (November 5 at 4:00 pm CET · Virtual) [29:07]

If you enjoyed this episode then please either:

• Follow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts
• Follow and rate on Spotify
• Watch our videos on The Green Software Foundation YouTube Channel!
• Connect with us on Twitter, Github and LinkedIn!

Host Chris Adams speaks with Anita Schüttler about certifying green software and the role of standards in making software sustainability more mainstream. They discuss Germany’s Blue Angel certification, Anita’s work on the Holmes search software, and how recognising software’s environmental impact can encourage more sustainable design across the technology industry.

Learn more about our people:

• Chris Adams: LinkedIn | GitHub | Website
• Anita Schüttler: LinkedIn | Website

Find out more about the GSF:

• The Green Software Foundation Website
• Sign up to the Green Software Foundation Newsletter

Resources:

• Token & CO2 Dashboard | Neuland [01:28]
• Bundesverband Green Software [08:51]
• How Hungry is AI? | Jacob et al. [22:22]
• Sustainable AI Group launches CLEER [27:59]
• Blue Angel for Software | Blauer Engel [34:31]
• EmpCo Directive: Everything You Need to Know Now | CSR Tools [34:57]
• HOLMES by neuland – The flexible Search Accelerator [40:47]
• Ecodesign Award | Bundespreis [41:36]

If you enjoyed this episode then please either:

• Follow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts
• Follow and rate on Spotify
• Watch our videos on The Green Software Foundation YouTube Channel!
• Connect with us on Twitter, Github and LinkedIn!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This Week in Green Software, Valeria and Adi explore the sustainability challenges of agentic AI and six ways developers can make AI workflows more efficient. They also discuss the new SCI for Web update, green regions and cloud sustainability, and the upcoming changes to the Greenhouse Gas Protocol and ISO carbon accounting standards.

Learn more about our people:

• Aditya Manglik: LinkedIn | GitHub | Website
• Valeria Salis: LinkedIn | GitHub | Website

Find out more about the GSF:

• The Green Software Foundation Website
• Sign up to the Green Software Foundation Newsletter

News:

• The Economics of Green and Efficient Agentic AI | GSF [02:19]
• A July SCI for Web update - defining a new standard for carbon measurement in web applications | Green Web Foundation [10:09]
• Carbon Emissions from Cloud Storage: An Empirical Analysis toward Actionable User Practices for Sustainable Storage | HotCarbon [18:50]
• GHG Protocol Announces Key Standard Development Updates [28:25]

Events:

• CNCF TCG Environmental Sustainability [37:04]

If you enjoyed this episode then please either:

• Follow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts
• Follow and rate on Spotify
• Watch our videos on The Green Software Foundation YouTube Channel!
• Connect with us on Twitter, Github and LinkedIn!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hosts Kate and Tzviya speak with consultant and technologist Pascal Joly about AI sustainability, observability, and tools for making smarter choices about AI usage. The conversation also explores the ITU’s Greening Digital Companies report and what its findings reveal about the growing energy and emissions of the digital sector before discussing the growing energy demands of the IT sector and recent sustainability reporting from major technology companies.

Learn more about our people:

• Kate Goldenring: LinkedIn | Website
• Tzviya Siegman: LinkedIn | Website
• Pascal Joly: LinkedIn | Website

Find out more about the GSF:

• The Green Software Foundation Website
• Sign up to the Green Software Foundation Newsletter

News:

• It Climate Ed [00:11]
• Sustainable AI - From Impact to Implementation by Pascal Joly on Maven [02:50]
• AI model efficiency selector | IT Climate Ed [06:38]
• AI CEOs say they need to slow the pace of development. But will they? | The Guardian [19:21]
• AI Energy Management Alliance (AEMA) [24:16]
• Emerald AI, Google and NVIDIA Launch Alliance to Advance Flexible AI Data Centers
• Greening Digital Companies 2026 | ITU [29:26]
• EV Ep151 - The Week in Green Software: The AI Water Management Challenge with Masheika Allgood [40:38]

Events:

• Climate Week NYC 2026 | September 20-27 [37:04]
• SF Tech Week | October 5-11 [38:58]
• Green IO London 2026 | Sustainable Tech Conference | September 30 - October 1 [39:56]
• Designing a Standard for OpenTelemetry (October 5 at 5:00 pm CEST · Virtual) [40:16]

If you enjoyed this episode then please either:

• Follow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts
• Follow and rate on Spotify
• Watch our videos on The Green Software Foundation YouTube Channel!
• Connect with us on Twitter, Github and LinkedIn!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Producer Chris Skipper goes Backstage with Yi Ding and Hongliu Cao, chair and co-chair of the Software Water Intensity project, to discuss the development of the standard. They explore why water is a unique sustainability challenge, how data centres and semiconductor manufacturing contribute to water use, and the complexities of measuring water withdrawal, consumption, and stress. The conversation also looks at the challenges of data availability and how SWI could turn water impact into a practical metric for making better software and infrastructure decisions.

Learn more about our people:

• Chris Adams: LinkedIn | Website
• Yi Ding: LinkedIn | Website | Scholar
• Hongliu (Leo) Cao: LinkedIn | Scholar

Find out more about the GSF:

• The Green Software Foundation Website 
• Sign up to the Green Software Foundation Newsletter

Resources:

• Global Water Bankruptcy Report | United Nations [09:50]
• Software Carbon Intensity | GSF [14:43]
• SCI for AI | GSF [15:26]
• Not All Water Consumption Is Equal: A Water Stress Weighted Metric for Sustainable Computing (SCARF Paper) [18:07]
• Why AI’s Water Footprint Is Harder to Measure Than Carbon | Hongliu Cao [22:32]
• Different Clouds, Different Water Stories: Why AI’s Water Footprint Is Harder to Measure (Part 2) 
• Welcoming the Software Water Handbook | GSF 
• Software Water Handbook: A companion resource to the SWI specification | GSF
• Green Software Movement Platform | GSF  

If you enjoyed this episode then please either:

• Follow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts
• Follow and rate on Spotify
• Watch our videos on The Green Software Foundation YouTube Channel!
• Connect with us on Twitter, Github and LinkedIn!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

TWiGS hosts Kate and Tzviya are joined by Dave Masselink, founder of Compute Gardener, to discuss how software engineers can play a direct role in building a cleaner energy future. The conversation explores flexible computing, carbon aware workload scheduling, and the growing impact of AI on electricity demand, while highlighting practical ways developers can reduce emissions without sacrificing performance. They offer a grounded look at how better, flexible software decisions can support a more sustainable grid.

Learn more about our people:

• Tzviya Siegman: LinkedIn | Website
• Kate Goldenring: LinkedIn | Website
• Dave Masselink: LinkedIn | Website

Find out more about the GSF:

• The Green Software Foundation Website 
• Sign up to the Green Software Foundation Newsletter

News:

• EV Ep151 TWiGS: The AI Water Management Challenge with Masheika Allgood [08:24]
• Data centers are ready to negotiate flexibility for speed | Utility Dive [15:40]
• Sustainability Interoperability Layer for Operations (SILO) | GSF [25:47]
• Introducing Neuralwatt Cloud: Energy-Based AI Inference Pricing [33:23]
• How Gridware’s grid monitoring sensors won over a career lineman | Latitude Media [41:42]

Events:

• CNCF Environmental Sustainability Technical Community Group Meeting | 11 Aug 02:00 PM CEST (Virtual) [50:20]
• Green Software San Francisco Bay Area | Meetup | October 2026 (San Francisco) [50:40]

If you enjoyed this episode then please either:

• Follow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts
• Follow and rate on Spotify
• Watch our videos on The Green Software Foundation YouTube Channel!
• Connect with us on Twitter, Github and LinkedIn!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This Week, hosts Tzviya and Kate are joined by AI ethicist Masheika Allgood to discuss the growing environmental impact of AI data centres through the lens of water use. Drawing on a new case study from Georgia, the conversation explores how communities can better understand the local effects of AI infrastructure, why transparency and public engagement matter, and what policymakers, developers, and residents should consider before new data centres are built. 

Learn more about our people:

• Kate Goldenring: LinkedIn | Website
• Tzviya Siegman: LinkedIn | Website
• Masheika Allgood: LinkedIn | Website

Find out more about the GSF:

• The Green Software Foundation Website 
• Sign up to the Green Software Foundation Newsletter

Resources:

• When Will the Taps Run Dry? | AllAI [01:31]
• The AI Data Center Water Management Challenge: A Georgia Case Study | Taps Run Dry [03:51]
• The AI Data Center Water Management Challenge | Masheika Allgood [07:46]
• UN Open Source Week [14:09]
• Summit 26 - Unlock AI's potential to serve humanity [14:44]
• Wyoming tightens wastewater rules after Meta datacenter contractor flushed contaminated water | The Guardian [27:39]
• EV Ep141 TWiGS: Tokens, Water, and Transparency [42:16]

If you enjoyed this episode then please either:

• Follow, rate, and review on Apple Podcasts
• Follow and rate on Spotify
• Watch our videos on The Green Software Foundation YouTube Channel!
• Connect with us on Twitter, Github and LinkedIn!

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.