Footprints in the cloud: the hidden cost of IT infrastructure

The purpose of this paper is to examine the hidden carbon footprint of corporate big data infrastructures and provide guidance for communicators responsible for corporate ESG and reputation.

It is based on a subjective view of the literature on this topic, selecting relevant examples.

The authors found that consciousness within corporations of the carbon footprint of their own information technology infrastructures is low and only a few companies have a strategy for identifying it.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first treatment of this subject from the perspective of the corporate owner of ESG and reputation.