Most countries in APAC do not yet have binding Green ICT standards and guidelines for the industry. However, the rising number of electronic gadgets in the Asia Pacific region and increasing concerns for environmental protection may force environmental accountability into future ICT standards.
Down under, voices will be heard on e-waste recycling as Australia and New Zealand collaborate on developing a joint standard for electronic waste (e-waste) processing. The two countries are seeking public opinions on this joint standard that will be implemented to ensure quality control of e-recycling projects—a service that has a large enough demand
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Most countries in APAC do not yet have binding Green ICT standards and guidelines for the industry. However, the rising number of electronic gadgets in the Asia Pacific region and increasing concerns for environmental protection may force environmental accountability into future ICT standards.
Down under, voices will be heard on e-waste recycling as Australia and New Zealand collaborate on developing a joint standard for electronic waste (e-waste) processing. The two countries are seeking public opinions on this joint standard that will be implemented to ensure quality control of e-recycling projects—a service that has a large enough demand to support private business endeavours.
Unlike Australia and New Zealand, which have advanced e-waste recycling systems, awareness of such services in less developed countries is just budding.
Nokia partnered with the
Park and Pollution Control Department of Thailand for a six-month long mobile-phone recycling initiative in Bangkok centres from March to September 2012. A similar project was carried out in Kuala Lumpur last October by Nokia to increase citizen awareness and participation in recycling e-waste.
Singapore adopts a different approach—based on monetary incentives—for the Green ICT agenda. The government just injected SGD100 million to continue the
Grant for Emergency Efficient Technologies scheme which has been financing businesses to adopt green technologies (i.e. smart meters to track energy usage) since 2008 through the same grant.
The next iteration of the
Asia Cloud Computing Association (ACCA) Cloud Readiness Index will be incorporating environmental standards for DCs as one of the attributes; other industry associations and government bodies are likely to follow suit to recognize and implement Green ICT standards more rigorously.
The Technology Research Project Corporate (TRPC) is a boutique consulting firm which focuses on the economics of telecommunications and information technology, particularly the policy and regulatory issues associated with national information infrastructure development, with an emphasis on the Asia Pacific region. More information can be found at www.trpc.biz.