Poll: Is being green an important part of your Web design work?

Haha being green as being part of our web design. This caught my eye.

Well im not too sure to what extent we can do that but maybe one day, when carbon credits are freely traded, maybe web design companies can purchase them so that effectively after taking away all the carbon dioxide we emit during the course of our work (air conditioning, transportation etc), we can still contribute to the environment by spending a portion of our profits on carbon credits.

my 2 cents

I think the whole carbon credits idea is a waste of time!
I primarily look for performance and value per dollar, rather than saving the penguins and hugging a tree at a cost.
I’ll give to many good causes but unfortunately I am not a big fan of the “green” taxes being imposed under various so-called “Save the Planet” campaigns.

@Dazza, I do agree the whole tree-hugging thing (and a lot of other movements) seem to go too far because some people have way too much time and money on their hands.

On the other hand when there are reasonable ways for us to affect our impact on the environment, we should take advantage of them.

Steve Warriner

I agree that if there is a way to achieve the same or better end result at a lesser cost to the environment then its definately the way to go.
But all the Green ideas I have seen either costs ridiculaous amounts of extra money, or have significant impact on the end outcome. IE Less power, Less water less service, less usage etc etc etc
Unfortunately it seems like an open licence to charge more, simply call it GREEN. IE Some hosting services, motor vehicles, computer equipment.

Being green is important part of Web design… yes it is important….
But the problem is that mostly hosting company don’t published that they GREEN Web Hosting ….
But it advisable that we should patronize green web hosting….

Yes I recycle and I don’t want to see rivers polluted, but so far the only advantage I see to being green is lining Al Gore’s pockets. He’s gone from being a nobody to worth over 100 million since pulling this massive scam. Europe has already tried the cap and trade and it’s just another way of taking money from one group the the socialist Green party doesn’t like and giving to who they feel is worthy.
Most of our clients are small companies who worry about being driven out of business by the green regulations so they sure aren’t asking for it.
By the way, check out a great story on the BBC’s web site: “what happened to global warming?”

Personally I think “green” web design is taking it a bit too far. I agree, “green” is the new buz term. Unfortunately, it’s turning people off to the fact that there are little things that we all can do to make a difference. It disgusts me to hear someone say “I don’t care about saving the penguins, just value per dollar”. But at least we can all understand why the rest of the world see’s us as selfish pigs. PS – Global warming is occurring, pretty much proven science. Those who chose not to believe it are those who chose to pass the problem on to our children. It’s all about “ME” “NOW”.

It is exciting to see that some web hosting and web design/development are “going green”. A green lifestyle is one where we make as many choices as possible in support of sustainability. I, for one, am thrilled that Jennifer took the time to interview Trey Garner of Green Geeks. I am currently considering moving from my current reseller company to a new one. In addition to being green, Green Geeks also offer unlimited storage and hosting, although I admit I am a bit skeptical about how they can do that without overselling. Jennifer, do you recommend personally Green Geeks as a reputable, reliable,hosting/reseller company with good customer service? (Deteriorating customer service is the main reason I an considering a move.)

I have had this page up in a tab for weeks, waiting for time to write my thoughts on the topic.

Grow up, ecologists! Consumers are not the problem. Carbon credits is nothing more than a way to punish humans for the ignorance of the past. They cost humans and contribute nothing. Carbon credits is the immature brainchild of knuckle-walkers with limited brainpower who make no real contribution to actually improving life with positive contributions to societies and their economies.

Global warming is a cyclic occurrence on our earth produced by our sun’s solar flares, radiation, and magnetism.

Everything living on earth has carbon molecules. We are carbon-based lifeforms. Should we restrict herd sizes and human reproduction? Oops, too late! Moreover, the entire global quantity of the element, carbon, is part of many different compounds, including fossil fuels.

As humans, we are able only to move carbon molecules from compound to compound and location to location. We actually can not add carbon to the earth or its atmosphere by our actions. Claiming otherwise implies we are able to create carbon from nothing or other elements, or that we gather them up in huge containers and throw them into the air like tossing a shovelful of dust, or that carbon molecules are lighter than the gases that comprise our atmosphere. Actually, carbon is heavier than gases and many liquids, like water, and does not fly or float well, unless it is used in the structure and skin of aircraft or boats or it is broken into microscopic particles.

Are there ways that humans spew carbon into the atmosphere? Certainly. Coal-powered plants, not hydroelectric or nuclear plants, spew carbon as do vehicles that expel hydrocarbons as byproducts of combustion and people who heat their homes with coal or oil without emissions restriction. Other carbon-spewers include diesel trucks and heavy equipment such as earth-movers. Automobiles, SUVs, and domestic / lightweight trucks must meet emissions requirements, these days; therefore, they produce the least hydrocarbons even in commuting traffic. I lived in Los Angeles in the 1960s and know what real smog is like because there were days when we could not see downtown Los Angeles from 10+ miles away. That smog built up because Los Angeles is in a basin surrounded by mountains that hold aging air and its contaminants for days and, if there are no winds strong enough to push the contaminated air out of that basin, weeks. Back then, industrial factories were as guilty of air pollution as unrestricted vehicle emissions. But times have changed and our factory and vehicle emissions have been greatly reduced, except for diesel engines used in trains, heavy equipment, trucks, some automobiles, tractors and other farming equipment, and–here it is again–factories.

What happens to the hydrocarbons and other forms of carbon emitted into our atmosphere? It falls to the earth, including that which gets trapped in clouds and other moisture in our atmosphere because it eventually falls to the earth along with the various forms of precipitation.

Do I care whether our Web sites or their hosts are “environmentally green?” No. What I care about is how much electrical power their servers and peripherals consume because the hosts pass the costs on to us. The problem comes when they buy newer, less power-consuming equipment and fail to pass the savings on to us, thus increasing their profit margin and holding ours down.

If anyone is truly concerned about our earth’s atmosphere, they should get heavily involved in protecting the rain forests. There, atmospheric contaminants are captured by leaves and other fauna and washed to the earth by the rains. Another worthwhile environmental effort is planting and protecting large grass-, tree-, and shrub-filled parks within cities because they greatly help reduce air pollution within those cities.

If anyone wants to truly “go green,” they should lead a revolution eliminating all technology, reversing all the effects of the industrial revolution, and even forcing the 6+ billion peoples of the earth to return to hunting and gathering. Ridiculous, right? Rather, if you like our modern technology, quit whining and faulting everyone but yourself, get a degree in engineering, and find better ways to manufacture, use less harmful materials to fabricate products, and produce less ecologically-damaging products and services for all consumers.