Green Has Many Hues
Several days ago, we announced that two customers, Castle Rock School District and The Cardiovascular Group, are using the network to not only drive down costs and ramp up collaboration efforts, but to also champion environmental sustainability goals. It’s heartening to see organizations of all sizes and from all industries taking the green initiative seriously. Increasingly, as we see the power of the network in meeting green goals, it leads us closer and closer to adopting and understanding the value of the smart grid.
The smart grid is essentially a 21st-century re-imagination of the current electrical grid. With a smart grid based on the IP network, benefits are shared by utilities and the general public. Utilities, for example, gain operational efficiency and a platform for new services. For the general public, the smart grid enables choice and control over energy consumption, as well as energy efficiency and a better environment. Truly a win-win situation.
But for smart grid to take off, we need cross-industry and cross-functional partnerships to come together. One of our partners, for instance, is SolarWinds, a company that just went IPO recently. While the New York Times reported that SolarWinds has nothing to do with either solar or wind, it’s still an important part of the green equation – just like Cisco. To really solve today’s problems, we need to realize that it’s not just those who specialize in the problem that can solve it. It takes innovation and commitment and that can come from anywhere.
Posted by Marie Hattar at 10:45AM PST
Hsa Aug 17, 2009
It’s not only important for the environment to start really investing in green technologies but it is actually very cost-effective. So I agree that it is definitely a win-win situation.