Sustainable infrastructure

Infrastructure choices determine a significant portion of your product's environmental impact, yet these decisions often happen early in development when sustainability isn't prioritized. Cloud providers vary dramatically in their energy sources and efficiency. AWS, Google Cloud, and Azure all publish sustainability reports, but their actual carbon intensity differs by region and service type. A product hosted in Virginia might run on coal power while the same setup in Oregon uses hydroelectric energy.

Evaluate providers during initial setup when switching costs are low. Google Cloud and Azure have committed to carbon-neutral operations, while AWS offers renewable energy matching in select regions. Review their sustainability dashboards to compare actual renewable energy percentages rather than just offset claims. Consider serverless architectures and edge computing to reduce data transfer distances, though these add complexity.

Moving infrastructure after launch is expensive, so make informed decisions early. If you've inherited infrastructure, optimize within current constraints by consolidating services, eliminating unused resources, and selecting greener regions for new deployments. Use tools like Cloud Carbon Footprint to monitor emissions across your infrastructure. Small changes like moving storage to regions with better renewable energy can reduce impact without major migration projects.