Proofing the Future: "If it's not green, it won't get funded"
“We focus on ensuring the long-term health of DRI by addressing efficiency, security, environmental, and financial challenges to create a sustainable DRI ecosystem.”
The sessions are outlined below with suggested discussion points that may be addressed
09:30 - 10:15 Lifecycle Management and Shared Infrastructure
PANEL SESSION
Goal: Address sustainability in the hardware lifecycle and collaborative facilities.
Discussion Points:
- What should be done with life-expired HPC clusters—repurpose, recycle, or retire?
- How can shared regional or national HPC facilities reduce environmental impact and cost?
- Should sustainability metrics (energy use, efficiency) be embedded in grant proposals and business cases?
- What role does procurement play in reducing lifecycle emissions?
Chair: Martin Turner, University of Manchester
Panellists: online Andrew Turner (University of Edinburgh), Dave Love (University of Manchester), Heather Kelly (University College London), James Byrne (University of Exeter), Sam Haynes (Quadram Institute), Simon Burbidge (DiRAC)
10:15 - 10:45 REFRESHMENT BREAK
10:45 - 11:30 Policy, Governance, and Accountability
PANEL SESSION
Goal: Define governance frameworks and accountability for environmental impact.
Discussion Points:
- What role should governments play in enforcing sustainable practices for research computing?
- Should institutions restrict the size of LLM models or prioritise HPC usage for projects with societal impact?
- How would reporting estimated CO₂ impact on every HPC job submission influence researcher behaviour?
- How do we hold researchers accountable for environmental cost versus research value?
Chair: Matt Probert, University of York
Panellists: Alex Owen (Queen Mary University of London), Ben Yarnall (UKRI), Michael Bearpark (Imperial College London), Santiago Molina (ESRC), online Stephanie Thompson (University of Birmingham)
11:30 - 12:00 REFRESHMENT BREAK
12:00 - 13:00 Ethical and Sustainable Industry Partnerships
PANEL SESSION
Goal: Define principles for partnerships that align with societal and sustainability goals.
Discussion Points:
- How can we ensure industrial collaborations genuinely benefit society?
- Should partnerships include industries with controversial reputations (e.g., fossil fuels)? What criteria should guide decisions?
- How does industry involvement affect the long-term accessibility and sustainability of research outputs?
- How do we prevent partnerships from reinforcing exclusionary practices or “old boys’ networks”?
Chair: Bharti Gupta, University of Manchester
Panellists: Ben Yarnall (UKRI), Emily Collins (University of Manchester), online Emma Barnes (University of York), Oscar Seip (University of Manchester)
13:00 - 14:00 LUNCH
14:00 - 15:00 Answering funding calls exercise
Facilitator: Alan Real, Durham University & Tobias Weinzierl, Durham University
Online Facilitators: Stewart Clark, Durham University & Polly Eccleston, Bristol University
15:00 - 15:30 REFRESHMENT BREAK
15:30 - 16:15 Answering funding calls exercise
Facilitator: Alan Real, Durham University, Tobias Weinzierl, Durham University
Online Facilitators: Stewart Clark, Durham University & Polly Eccleston, Bristol University