Janruary 2, 2025
7 min read
Bogey Dragon
Luca, a kind and brave boy from a poor family, encounters a fiery dragon who can’t breathe fire due to a bogey stuck in its nose.
Articles
I'm passionate about green software, mental health and leadership
September 24, 2024
9 min read
The Cost-Carbon Paradox - Why Cost Saving !== Carbon Reduction
How can the problem with sustainability be money and the solution be money at the same time? I discuss the paradox of complaining that organizations put profit above people and the planet while, at the same time, we advocate that reducing costs reduces carbon. It doesn't add up, and we need nuance to the debate.
July 31, 2024
4 min read
Jevons paradox and greening software—why increasing efficiency makes sense
I discuss the Jevons paradox in the context of software efficiency, questioning whether making software more efficient will lead to increased usage and emissions. I argue that, similar to how making food healthier doesn’t necessarily lead to overeating, making software with a low Software Carbon Intensity (SCI) score doesn’t inherently drive overconsumption.
June 10, 2023
13 min read
My 6-year journey with psychedelic medicine
I first tried Ayahuasca, a psychedelic tea, six years ago to help with depression. I've since consumed it dozens of times at ceremonies around the world. Psychedelics have been shown to help with depression, PTSD, ADHD, autism, and chronic pain. This is my story, how I learned about psychedelic medicine, the science, and personal experiences from all my journeys.
May 3, 2021
6 min read
Carbon proxies - Measuring the greenness of your application
This article explains the challenges in measuring carbon emissions of software applications and proposes using carbon proxies, which are easier to measure, to optimize for carbon efficiency. The article highlights the importance of selecting the right metrics to measure and optimize for, with examples of carbon proxy metrics for a basic multi-page website architecture.
November 9, 2020
8 min read
Carbon-Aware vs. Carbon-Efficient Applications
Carbon-aware applications are considering the carbon cost of their software and using eco-modes to reduce emissions while not compromising user experience. They proxy for carbon emissions by following a resource chain and may incorporate demand shaping for further efficiency. By adopting sustainable engineering practices, developers can make their software more environmentally friendly.
August 31, 2020
8 min read
Do you want to be powered-by renewables? The answer is no.
Microsoft plans to have a 100% supply of renewable energy by 2025, but this doesn't mean that the carbon intensity of the electricity used doesn't matter. Sustainable software engineering is an emerging discipline that aims to build carbon-efficient applications. There are eight principles to sustainable software engineering, with the first three emphasizing the goal of reducing carbon emissions and the importance of considering the carbon intensity of electricity.
August 17, 2020
4 min read
Two philosophies of Sustainable Software Engineering
Learn about the emerging discipline of Sustainable Software Engineering, which is at the intersection of climate science, software, hardware, electricity markets, and data center design. This article discusses the core set of competencies needed to define, build, and run sustainable software applications, along with the 2 philosophies of SSE.
May 18, 2020
4 min read
Sustainability focussed sessions at Microsoft Build 2020
Microsoft's largest developer conference Build is going online this year, becoming free and turning into a 48 hour live stream. I am one of the anchors covering the EMEA timezone on day one and this is the list of sustainability focussed sessions that I am hosting.
February 16, 2020
15 min read
Take the Green pill and I'll show you how deep the rabbit hole goes
A clear, easy to digest and regurgitate 15 min guide to climate change. I cover the science and why we believe climate change is man made? What's causing it and the impacts on animals, plants and humanity? What we are doing about it as a society and what it means to be Green? HINT: The Green future isn't one of less, it's one of more, much more.
December 24, 2019
6 min read
5 Tips For New Managers
I used to lead EMEA Regional Cloud Advocacy at Microsoft. I went from having 0 reports to 14 and from managing one stakeholder to dozens across five regions. Also, we just had a beautiful baby boy, I had a lot on my plate and I needed to get efficient with my time fast. Some things I'm proud of, some things I could have done better. These are my top 5 tips if you are in the same position as I was.
August 27, 2019
4 min read
How to write a CFP?
This is my step by step guide to writing a response to a Call For Papers (CFP). The technique worked for me, it works for the speakers I now mentor, it can work for you. Start here and then sprinkle a bit of your own beautiful creative self over it.