Sustainable Clouds: interview with Software Architect Steef
Yuma helps organizations innovate successfully by empowering them with modern software technologies. However, we cannot separate the work we do from the impact we have on the world. We are working on that collectively in various ways, both in terms of social engagement, sustainability, and diversity & inclusion. In this article, we dive into the sustainability of IT architectures.
With the expertise we have, we can and want to work hard for a better world. We like to give our colleagues the freedom to contribute their own ideas and projects. For this interview, we spoke with Steef Burghouts about his experiences and ambitions regarding software development & sustainability.
Steef is a Software Architect within Yuma. A few years ago, he started with Accelerate, a training program to fast-track the tech leaders of the future. During this program, his ambition to make social impact was sparked. Since then, Steef has added a variety of interesting projects to his name. His interest lies in sustainability and climate in combination with technology.
Climate change issues in IT
Steef’s interest in social impact projects has grown over the past two years. When asked why he has a greater focus on this, he answered:
"As part of our commitment to sustainable IT, we’ve taken meaningful steps to align our digital practices with our environmental values. One of the first actions we took was optimizing our website. This led to the deletion of outdated and unused content, which helped reduce unnecessary use of storage. To ensure that our digital presence reflects our sustainability goals, our website is hosted by a green provider and runs on green energy, as shown by the Green Web Check created by the Green Web Foundation."
Steef’s mission? To create awareness about the CO2 emissions of IT and the effect it has on the climate. The CO2 emissions of the IT industry are less visible and less measurable than for example aviation. As a result, IT’s impact on the climate sometimes doesn’t get enough attention during climate discussions. However, research indicates that the global IT industry is responsible for two to four percent of global CO2 emissions. By 2040, it is estimated to be between six and 14 percent.[1] This amount is comparable to the total emissions from aviation, so it is about time for some changes.
One reason that the IT has such high CO2 emissions is because of the continuous running of entire IT landscapes. This is where a major gain can be made, both in terms of CO2 emissions and financially. To achieve this, Steef is working on a tool for mapping the climate impact of IT architectures. Within IT, security gets attention in almost every project and conversation, so why not talk more often about sustainability?
Obviously, it’s easier said than done: starting the conversation with each client about sustainability and the impact of their IT landscape. This takes time and money. Fortunately, we have more colleagues like Steef who see the importance of this development. They test different methods during their work with customers, with the objective to pragmatically come up with a new approach.
More impact using smart systems at Milieudefensie
In 2022, Steef introduced Milieudefensie (Dutch for “Environmental Defense”) as a customer to Yuma. Milieudefensie has a big impact on the climate policy of the Netherlands, for example by filing lawsuits against big players like Shell. For these lawsuits, Milieudefensie makes many WOO (Wet Open Overheid, Dutch for “Open Government Act” requests to the Dutch government. Milieudefensie receives the answers to these requests as images, of which certain parts cannot be shared publicly and are taped off. The requests sometimes consist of thousands of pages of images, which are not easily searchable. Milieudefensie had to search these requests page-by-page, which took an awful lot of time.
What have our colleagues done for Environmental Defense? Yuma has developed a document system that converts the images of WOO requests into text and makes them searchable. This makes it possible to search through the thousands of pages of images in a targeted manner through which useful information is found sooner. Milieudefensie saves more than 1 FTE per month by doing this. They can now use this time to make even more impact.
What Yuma has done for Milieudefensie is in line with the role we want to play more often. Milieudefensie showed us the value of making an impact. Steef explains why he finds this customer so important:
“I think Milieudefensie is a good organization because they are constantly looking very pragmatically at how they can make an impact. Moreover, it is very clever how they have filed and won various cases against, for example, the Dutch government and powerful companies. I sent Milieudefensie an email and asked what their challenges are and how we can help them. Their focus is not on IT, but good IT facilities do make their work easier. So it was a natural choice to use our knowledge and expertise there.”
We hope to take more steps to make our sustainability mission more known by sharing resources, advocating for sustainability and sharing our experiences and learnings.
Despite some successes, our journey is still ongoing. One of our goals is to convert all website images from .jpg format to the more sustainable .webp format, which reduces file sizes without sacrificing quality.
Looking ahead, we’re also exploring the possibility of adjusting our website’s loading times based on carbon intensity, an approach that could further reduce energy use during periods of high carbon emissions. These challenges remind us that sustainability is a continuous process, one that requires creative problem-solving and a commitment to long-term goals.
Sustainability in IT isn’t a destination—it’s a journey. At Yuma, we’re committed to continuing this journey, learning from challenges, and sharing our insights along the way.
We’d love to hear your thoughts or collaborate on sustainable IT solutions. Feel free to reach out to our experts to discuss how we can work together to build a greener digital world.
[1] ABN-AMRO. 2021. Verduurzaming van IT.
Charlotte Brouwer
Ready to start shaping the business of tomorrow?[email]