Title

AWS re:Invent 2022 - Water stewardship and renewable energy at scale (SUS211)

Summary

Will Hughes, the global lead for water sustainability at AWS, introduced AWS's new water stewardship goal and how AWS services are being used to scale impact.
AWS aims to be water positive by 2030, returning more water to communities than used in operations.
Strategies include using sustainable water sources like recycled water and rainwater harvesting, improving water efficiency, reusing cooling water, and supporting community water replenishment projects.
AWS has implemented a water use efficiency metric, achieving 0.25 liters per kilowatt hour, which is highly efficient compared to industry standards.
AWS uses IoT and cloud services to monitor water use and quality in real-time, ensuring efficient operations and safe water for community use.
Paul Reed, the GM for clean energy sustainability, discussed AWS's commitment to renewable energy and the Climate Pledge to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2040.
AWS is on track to power operations with 100% renewable energy by 2025, with over 380 renewable energy projects across 21 countries.
AWS developed REO (Renewable Energy Optimization), a machine learning-based cloud software, to manage and optimize solar, wind, and battery capacity globally.
REO uses AWS services to collect and analyze data, forecast energy production, and optimize energy dispatch, contributing to the efficient use of renewable resources.

AWS's commitment to water positivity and renewable energy demonstrates a significant shift towards sustainable practices in the tech industry, particularly for data center operations.
The use of AWS's own cloud and IoT services to monitor and manage water and energy resources showcases the potential of technology to address environmental challenges.
AWS's water use efficiency metric and the development of REO indicate a data-driven approach to sustainability, leveraging real-time analytics and machine learning for optimization.
The company's global reach and scale of operations mean that AWS's sustainability initiatives have the potential to create substantial positive environmental impacts.
AWS's approach to sustainability is multifaceted, addressing both direct operational impacts (such as data center cooling) and broader community and ecosystem impacts through replenishment and renewable energy projects.
The integration of AWS services into sustainability goals suggests a model for other companies to follow, using cloud computing and IoT for environmental stewardship.
AWS's progress towards its renewable energy goals and the early achievement of its 100% renewable energy target by 2025 reflects the growing feasibility and business case for renewable energy adoption at scale.