Cisco has highlighted five ways IT is driving sustainability and environmental protection across organizations. Marking World Environment Day, observed every year in June, the company has noted that supporting sustainability targets may prove to be IT’s most important mission yet.

Cisco’s own sustainability goals are among the highest in any industry. But with its vast global scope of customers and partners, the company’s biggest impact is in helping other organizations reach their goals by equipping their IT departments with technologies that are more efficient, observable, circular, and thanks to AI smarter.

Here are five ways IT teams can enable organizations in the region to become more sustainable.

Smarten your buildings
Building operations account for a whopping 26 percent of energy-related emissions globally, which is why reducing this demand is essential. With solutions like Power Over Ethernet (PoE), IT can play a major role in this regard. By consolidating electric power and data networks, PoE prevents the energy loss from converting DC-powered devices to AC power. At the same time, Cisco turns the network into an Internet of Things (IoT) super sensor that constantly monitors and optimizes energy usage, temperature, lighting, air quality, and other factors. This allows IT to transform even older buildings into great spaces for workers and the planet alike. 

Modernize your data center
Data centers are notoriously power-hungry, often representing 10 to 50 times the energy per floor space of a typical office building. Modernizing data centers can go a long way in supporting organizations’ sustainability goals. For example, Cisco’s UCS-X Series is 54 percent more energy-efficient than previous generations. 

Observe your impact
To optimize their assets, organizations need real-time observability of their functions. A Cisco network upgrade includes solutions like Nexus Dashboard, Cisco Intersight, and Cisco’s Control Hub which add acute visibility into energy consumption across networks and devices. And AI is making these features more intuitive, predictive, and automated. 

Get circular
The volume of e-waste cluttering landfills is rising five times faster than documented e-waste recycling, so it’s imperative that IT leaders embrace circular economy principles. Cisco makes it easy by facilitating returns for end-of-use products at no cost and reusing or recycling more than 99 percent of them. 

Stimulate your goals
In addition to being good for the planet, organizations are increasingly realizing that sustainable practices make smart business sense. But according to an IDC study, while 63 percent of companies view sustainability as a business priority, only 37 percent have formulated clear targets and goals. The Cisco CX Sustainability Priority Assessment Service sets goals tailored to each organization’s needs and capabilities along with concrete strategies to achieve them. 

Mohannad Abuissa, Head of Engineering at Cisco Middle East & Africa, commented: “Today, IT has come a long way to support growth, innovation, and employee satisfaction. And with help from Cisco, it can go even further by supporting a more sustainable future for us all. Because the stakes are high, and we all need to work together to preserve a healthy planet for future generations.” He added: “Cisco leverages its sustainability solutions, combined with its power of scale, to minimize the environmental impacts of its customers, suppliers, and partners, empowering them to play an active role in the global journey to net zero.”