• by Gavin O'Malley  @mp_gavin, December 1, 2008

The Think Eco-Logical initiative, a program supported by IT professionals across multiple industries, has launched to educate enterprises and organizations on combining environmental concerns with intelligent business management.

The core theme of the Think Eco-Logical movement addresses both the environmental side of IT sustainability imperatives, and the economics of achieving environmental efficiencies.

The program is the brainchild of the Business Performance Management Forum in partnership with Rackable Systems, a built-to-order server and storage solutions provider, Intel, and the Global Renewable Energy and Environmental Network.

Through original content, collective opinion and contributions from industry influencers and associations, Think Eco-Logical will attempt to create a reservoir of intellectual capital for organizations dealing with the challenges and business opportunities that surround environmental responsibility.

"Think Eco-Logical cuts through the eco-hype by going deep into vertical markets to uncover real-world business drivers and pain points specific to those industries and offering impactful best practices that can be implemented today," said Donovan Neale-May, executive director of the BPM Forum.

The IT market is highly supportive of the term Think Eco-Logical and its message, according to a pilot survey conducted by the Business Performance Management Forum of more than 200 IT professionals.

A full 96% of respondents agreed that it is a strong campaign theme for energy reduction, and 85% identified data center energy conservation as a high priority. Eighty-four percent, meanwhile, associated cost-saving benefits with the term Think Eco-Logical.

"Through this initiative, we will continue to elevate market awareness on how to improve data center productivity while reducing costs and environmental impact," said George Skaff, vice president of marketing at Rackable Systems.

According to consultancy group McKinsey & Company, in the U.S. alone, "growth in electricity used by data centers between now and 2010 will be the equivalent of 10 new power plants. Without efforts to curb demand, current projections show worldwide carbon emissions from data centers will quadruple by 2020."

Think Eco-Logical will examine multiple vertical industries, starting with digital media and entertainment as well as Internet and eCommerce.