Sustainability in Tech part two: The cost of generative AI, the questionable value of COP and more
The second part of CRN’ s landmark sustainability event leaned into the role of social value and the practical routes for partners to make a positive impact
The second part of the summit kicked off with a presentation by Jigsaw24 founder Roger Whittle, highlighting the urgency of the climate crisis and the imperative for channel partners to act.
Read on for our recap of the morning sessions.
Good COP, bad COP, COP out
PIctured: Roger Whittle
Like a police officer guiding people back on track, global COP conferences aim to steer countries toward climate responsibility.
At SiT, Roger Whittle, CEO and founder of Jigsaw24, laid out the stakes, the setbacks, and the reasons for optimism as the world moves toward net zero.
Whittle noted recent challenges, highlighting that the last three COP hosts—Egypt, the UAE, and Azerbaijan—are all petrol states, raising questions about the summit's effectiveness.
However, he expressed hope for COP30 in Brazil, led by "strong environmentalist" president Lula, and potentially COP31 in Australia or the Pacific Islands.
Despite political resistance, such as the "siren voices" in the UK questioning climate action, Whittle remains confident in the country's green trajectory.
He pointed to achievements like 52 per cent of electricity generated from renewables in 2024 and the closure of the last coal-fired power station.
But success requires more than optimism. Whittle explored five key factors shaping the future of sustainability:
Trump 2.0: While Donald Trump remains dismissive of climate concerns, Whittle stressed that "Trump isn't president of the world."
Global momentum continues, with 145 countries—covering 90 per cent of emissions—committed to net zero.
Tech: Renewable energy technologies are becoming more accessible globally. Pakistan, for instance, went from zero to 12 per cent renewable energy in just two years.
Costs have plummeted too, with solar panels now priced at just $0.27 per watt and EV batteries at a fraction of their 1990s cost.
China: With an 80 per cent market share in solar panels and 65 per cent in wind turbines, China is positioning itself as a green powerhouse.
And if western democracies fail to invest in renewables, Xi Jinping’s government is not making the same mistake.
"The world won't follow the West; it will follow China," warned Whittle.
FOMO and Capitalism: Capitalists go where the profits are, and Whittle believes net zero is "the industrial opportunity of the 21st century," already creating jobs and economic growth.
Unstoppable Progress: From typewriters to TikTok, history shows there's no going back. "Progress is unstoppable," Whittle concluded.
"Sustainability must be at the centre of it."
2025 AI: Saviour or polluter? Uncovering the environmental costs of tech's biggest revolution
Sustainability in Tech Summit audience
The panel on AI’s environmental impact tackled a pressing question: can AI's benefits justify its soaring energy demands?
"Right now, AI accounts for about 4 per cent of global datacentre usage," said Rich Kenny, managing director at Interact.
"That’s up 800 per cent from two years ago, and projections suggest it could hit 30 per cent by 2030."
He highlighted the environmental burden of generative AI: "It's brute force—heavy GPU usage, heavy water usage, heavy energy usage."
The panel discussed the stark contrast between generative AI and task-specific AI.
"Frugal AI, as we call it, is being used for crop yields and deforestation mapping," Kenny explained.
"Unlike generative AI, which often creates digital noise with high environmental costs, these smaller models deliver real-world benefits."
Microsoft UK’s sustainability lead, Lewis Richards, raised concerns about AI's data hunger. "Most embodied carbon in datacentres sits in SSDs and HDDs, not AI," he said.
"But AI can exacerbate data sprawl if we don't manage it responsibly." Microsoft recently launched a public dashboard ranking AI models by sustainability.
"We need to think beyond the West," Richards said.
"Most models are trained in English. If we want AI to benefit everyone, we need diverse datasets."
Collaboration emerged as a key theme. Lenovo’s global sustainability director, Virginie Le Barbu, described how the company set up a responsible AI committee to assess environmental impact.
"This year, we joined the Coalition for Responsible AI," she said.
"The goal is to unite governments and industry to create sustainable AI standards."
The panel agreed that while AI has transformative potential—from climate modelling to efficient supply chains—its growth must be carefully managed.
"AI isn't a magic bullet," Kenny warned.
"You need a clear problem to solve, not just an AI project for the sake of it."
"Pandora's box is open," Richards concluded.
"Now it’s about using AI with ownership and purpose—so we don’t burn the planet along the way."
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The Missing ‘S’ in ESG
From l to r: Sam Walby, Nigel Pask, Cheryl Moore, Kelsey Rees
While environmental sustainability often dominates ESG conversations, the SiT panel on the topic made one thing clear: the 'S' for social impact is just as crucial.
Industry leaders from Rigby Group, Converge Technology Solutions, and RM Plc came together to discuss why businesses must integrate social values into their sustainability strategies to drive meaningful, long-term impact.
"S is actually people," said Sheryl Moore, director of sustainability at Converge Technology Solutions.
"We all live in communities, we all work, and that’s what social sustainability is really about. It’s about people – your employees, your local community, and your supply chain."
The panel underscored how social value initiatives have evolved beyond corporate social responsibility (CSR) into strategies that foster stronger communities and workforces.
Sam Walby, Head of Sustainability and EDI at RM Plc, noted that businesses are often doing more than they realise.
"A lot of companies are already making significant social contributions – they just don’t recognise it. It’s about pausing to capture and amplify the great work that’s already happening."
Nigel Pask, head of sustainability at Rigby Group, distinguished between social value and social contribution.
"Social value is about enhancing opportunities for others. Social contribution might be volunteering or community projects.
“Both matter when building a robust, sustainable strategy," he explained.
He proudly highlighted Rigby Group's recent commitment: "We've announced a £3m investment over three years with Aston University and other partners to bridge the digital skills divide."
The conversation turned practical as the panelists discussed how businesses can take action. Moore described how Converge Technology Solutions partnered with local authorities to hire long-term unemployed individuals, an initiative that not only filled staffing gaps but also provided lasting community impact.
"Some of those summer hires became permanent staff," she said.
"It’s about making purposeful business decisions that benefit everyone."
Walby encouraged smaller companies to start small: "Find a passionate millennial or intern to track what you’re already doing.
“You’d be surprised how much social value is happening organically."
The panel concluded that social impact isn't a distraction from core business goals – it's an integral part of building resilient, future-focused companies.
"Don't be afraid of social value," said Moore. "If you care about your people, you're probably already doing more than you think."
Muted but mighty: The subtle shift in corporate sustainability
In one more highlight of the afternoon, Computacenter’s sales enablement director for Europe Clare Parry-Jones explored the discord between regulatory disclosure requirements and ‘greenhushing’ - when organisations downplay their sustainability messaging.
“Greenhushing is being used to describe how some organisations are going quiet about their sustainability efforts, maybe because of fear of political pressure, and in some cases, it's because they don't want to get tarred with the greenwashing brush.”
She added that organisations are finding ESG a complex topic to navigate.
“We're not necessarily experts in the field, but what we are finding is there’s an imperative that we've got to start doing things now.
“You might think that greenhushing means people are stopping doing things, that they're taking a step back. But in my experience that's simply not the case. They're just not amplifying it, and they're not talking about it. That doesn't mean they've stopped doing anything.
“So it could be that their messaging has changed or is silenced, but they're still getting on with it.”
Sustainability has moved beyond being a side project for a lot of organisations. It is no longer a branding exercise, but a business imperative.
“We've got regulations, stakeholder expectations, both internal and external, and of course, the bottom line.
“But if you look at the regulations, at CSRD and CSDDD, they're European regulations. It's a prime example of how transparency is really important, and we're all being held accountable.”
Parry-Jones warned audience members that being UK-based doesn’t mean they escape the regulatory boundaries.
“Computacenter and a significant number of our customers, and those customers out for our North American business that are headquartered in North America will absolutely be caught by this.
“And if you're not caught by it, but you work with customers that are, you will definitely be held to the spirit of the regulation.
“So, I think it's interesting when we start to think about is this compliance only? Is it a regulation for regulations sake?”
This transparency and regulations are being used to springboard and embed what companies are doing in the organisation, Parry-Jones said.
“So, some businesses may decide to dial down their public messaging. Some may have not done an awful lot of it in the first place, but sustainability remains central to the operations.
“And why? Not just because it's a good thing to do, but because it's good for business.
“You all know that having good sustainability practices in your business gives you stronger, healthier profitability, better employee retention in that battle for talent that we're all fighting and a word that's been used quite a lot - trust.
“That’s something I see reflected in the conversations I'm having with customers every day.”
Parry-Jones highlighted how greenhushing exemplifies just how tricky the balance can be.
“While we're speaking up but avoiding accusations of overstatement and holding back to minimise what we're all frightened of, which is criticism.
“But we see this as an opportunity and a chance for businesses to focus on a lot of what's been said today, which is that action over words, to demonstrate the impact, rather than merely talking about it and taking the action that creates real value and not just a green tick.
“As the sustainability conversation continues, let's remember quiet doesn't mean inactive. Businesses are innovating. They're embedding circular economy models. They're adopting cutting edge technology and creating value for themselves, their stakeholders and the planet.”