Five considerations for more sustainable databases

Sustainability is increasingly an integral part of any corporate strategy, in part due to new ESG guidelines. In this blog, Gerard Zuidweg highlights how these guidelines require companies to make transparent and improve their environmental, social and governance impacts.
He shares a conversation with a client about its sustainability policy and explores how database consultants can contribute to sustainability goals, with a focus on environmental impact, social responsibility and governance in the IT sector.
We recently received a call from a customer asking if we, as one of their IT partners, could provide insight into our sustainability policy. This led to an interesting conversation about this topical and important topic, where it also became clear that there are still many issues. So for us, this was a great opportunity to delve into the ESG guidelines and sustainability, and explore where we as database consultants can play a role.
The ESG guidelines aim to encourage companies to make transparent and improve their impact on the environment (Environment), social aspects (Social) and governance practices (Governance).Under this directive, as of 2024, large and listed companies that meet specific criteria – more than 250 employees, turnover > 40 million euros and balance sheet total > 20 million euros – must report in detail on sustainability, social responsibility and good governance objectives and activities.
Companies’ IT environment plays a crucial role in these reports, as IT processes and systems can directly influence a company’s environmental and social impact. Companies must report on a wide range of issues about their IT environment, including data center energy consumption, carbon emissions, e-waste management, data privacy and security, digital inclusivity, community impact, IT governance and compliance, ethics and transparency, and supplier management. We explain these aspects in more detail below.
Companies must report the total energy consumption of their data centers and IT infrastructure, including both on-premises data centers and leased cloud services. In addition, they must indicate what percentage of their energy consumption comes from renewable sources. This helps assess the sustainability of their energy supply.
Companies must report both direct and indirect CO2 emissions, including emissions from their own energy generation and suppliers’ energy consumption. They must also describe measures taken to reduce CO2 emissions, such as energy-saving programs and investments in more efficient technologies.
Companies should report how they handle electronic waste (e-waste), including recycling and safe disposal of obsolete IT equipment. In addition, information on programs for reusing and refurbishing IT equipment is relevant.
Bedrijven moeten hun beleid en praktijken op het gebied van gegevensbescherming en privacy rapporteren, inclusief maatregelen om klantgegevens te beschermen tegen cyberdreigingen. Ze moeten ook het aantal en de aard van datalekken of beveiligingsincidenten rapporteren, evenals de genomen maatregelen om deze te voorkomen en aan te pakken.
Rapportage over hoe IT-systemen en -diensten toegankelijk zijn voor diverse gebruikersgroepen, inclusief mensen met beperkingen, is essentieel. Bedrijven moeten ook initiatieven voor opleiding en bijscholing van medewerkers op het gebied van digitale vaardigheden en IT-competenties beschrijven.
Bedrijven moeten IT-gerelateerde projecten beschrijven die de gemeenschap ten goede komen, zoals onderwijsprogramma’s, digitale-inclusie-initiatieven en vrijwilligerswerk.
Companies should report their IT governance policies and procedures, including how they ensure IT systems comply with laws and regulations. They should also describe the frequency and results of IT audits and controls, as well as actions taken in response to findings.
Companies should ensure transparency in their IT management, including decision-making processes and accountability mechanisms. They should also describe mechanisms for accountability for IT-related decisions and investments, including stakeholder engagement.
Companies should provide information on the sustainability performance of their IT suppliers and how it is assessed and managed. Policies for ethical procurement of IT hardware and services, including working conditions and environmental impact at suppliers, should also be described.
In the course of the conversation with the aforementioned client, it emerged that, as a relatively small supplier, our sustainability policy may not be particularly relevant, but our area of expertise is all the more so. For example, from our profession as database consultants, we can help formulate and implement ESG guidelines. For example, think about mapping KPIs on database-related topics such as storage, memory and CPU. But above all, as database consultants, we can use our knowledge and expertise to help achieve these goals and reduce the footprint of the database environment, while also saving on operational costs. How we do that, we are happy to explain in a subsequent blog.