Sustainable Digital Infrastructure
Sustainable Data Centre Services
- The University uses a combination of on-campus infrastructure and externally hosted cloud services to support its digital services.
- Our primary cloud provider is Microsoft Azure, which hosts services including OneDrive and SharePoint.
- We also maintain smaller research-focused environments within Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Oracle Cloud.
- The University continually reviews opportunities to reduce the environmental impact of these services through improved data management and efficient use of cloud storage.
- Reducing unnecessary stored data helps lower storage requirements, reducing both operational costs and environmental impact.
- Digital Technology Services has established a working group to identify opportunities to reduce unnecessary cloud storage and encourage good data housekeeping practices across the University.
Reducing Website Data Transfer
- The University continually improves the efficiency of its websites to reduce unnecessary data transfer, improve user experience and minimise the environmental impact associated with digital services.
- Over time, websites naturally accumulate redirects when pages are moved, replaced or removed. Long redirect chains increase the number of server requests required before a user reaches the correct page, increasing processing time and energy consumption.
- The University's websites are designed using caching and indexing technologies.
- Rather than generating every webpage dynamically from the database for each visitor, frequently accessed content is served from cached and indexed versions where appropriate.
- This reduces server processing, improves page loading times and lowers the energy required to deliver web content.
- The University continues to review opportunities to improve website performance and reduce unnecessary digital resource consumption.
Sustainable Procurement
- Environmental sustainability is considered throughout the procurement of digital infrastructure and technology services.
- As part of the University's procurement process, suppliers are asked to provide information relating to their sustainability policies and wider social value commitments.
- This enables the University to understand suppliers' environmental practices and identify opportunities to support the University's sustainability objectives.
- Digital Technology Services also contributes to the development of technical and non-functional requirements (NFRs) used during technology procurements.
- The University continues to review opportunities to strengthen environmental requirements within procurement processes for digital infrastructure.
Reducing Electronic Waste
- The University operates a dedicated Device Lifecycle service supported by a specialist team to maximise the lifespan of University-owned IT equipment.
- Our approach includes procuring devices with strong sustainability credentials, purchasing devices with a manufacturer support life of at least five years, resetting and reusing devices throughout their supported lifespan, and responsibly recycling equipment through our approved recycling partner where reuse is not possible.
- The University also provides a free collection service for unwanted IT equipment, allowing devices to be assessed for reuse before recycling.
- Where digital devices reach the end of their useful life, the University follows the waste hierarchy by prioritising reuse before recycling wherever possible.
Digital Sustainability Guidance
The University has produced guidance to help staff and students minimise the environmental impact of their everyday digital activities. The guidance encourages practical actions that collectively reduce energy consumption, unnecessary digital storage and digital waste while supporting effective teaching, learning, research and professional services.
Topics include: reducing unnecessary digital storage, sharing links instead of large email attachments, switching off devices when not in use, reducing unnecessary printing, avoiding digital waste, and using technology more efficiently.
📄 Download the Digital Sustainability & AI Guide (PDF)Responsible Use of Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence is becoming an increasingly important tool for learning, teaching, research and professional services. Rather than discouraging AI use, the guidance encourages thoughtful and proportionate use by helping users select the most appropriate digital tool for each task. The University's guidance supports staff and students to use AI responsibly, efficiently and with an awareness of its wider environmental, ethical and societal impacts.
The guidance includes: choosing AI only where it adds genuine value, writing efficient prompts, reducing unnecessary AI usage, understanding environmental impacts, maintaining human oversight, and checking outputs for accuracy and bias.
📄 Download the Digital Sustainability & AI Guide (PDF)+ Read our Digital Emissions Policy
The University of Reading is committed to reducing the environmental impact of its digital infrastructure and continually improving the efficiency of the technologies that support our teaching, research and professional services.
The University operates its own data centres on its academic campuses. All University electricity supplies are REGO (Renewable Energy Guarantee of Origin) certified, helping to minimise the carbon footprint associated with our digital infrastructure. The University strives to continually reduce its energy consumption through its ISO50001 certified Energy Management System. This includes identifying opportunities to improve energy efficiency and reduce energy consumption across our digital infrastructure, exploring new technologies that support sustainability, and considering the whole-life carbon footprint of the products and services we procure.
As part of this approach, the University seeks to ensure that digital devices reaching the end of their useful life follow the waste hierarchy, prioritising reuse wherever possible before responsible recycling.
Where the University uses externally hosted digital services, their associated greenhouse gas emissions are measured and reported through the University's comprehensive Scope 3 emissions reporting, which is published annually within the Annual Environmental Sustainability Report. This policy is supported by the University's wider activities to improve website efficiency, reduce unnecessary digital storage, promote sustainable procurement and encourage staff and students to adopt more sustainable digital practices.