Environmental impact of computing and bioinformatics
Trainer: Loïc Lannelongue
Overview: From genetic studies and astrophysics simulations to AI, scientific computing has enabled amazing discoveries and there is no doubt it will continue to do so. However, the corresponding environmental impact is a growing concern in light of the urgency of the climate crisis, so what can we all do about it? Tackling this issue and making it easier for scientists to engage with sustainable computing is what motivated the Green Algorithms project. Through the prism of the GREENER principles for environmentally sustainable science, we will discuss what we learned along the way, how to estimate the impact of our work and what hurdles still exist. It will also be a chance to highlight how the new Green DiSC certification framework can support scientists and institutions in making their research more sustainable.
Learning outcomes
By the end of this session, you will be able to:
- Describe how computational biology has an impact on the environment
- Recall some actions scientists can take to reduce their environmental impact
Materials:
The trainer has delivered a similar lecture for an EMBL-EBI webinar, available on our on-demand website. If you are interested in watching it, you can do so here, under the “Watch video”:
Please note that this webinar was recorded on 22 November 2022. Refer to the slides provided as part of the course materials for the most up-to-date content.