[LINK] Computers Off Campaign Launch

[Tom Worthington]

The Computers Off Campaign was launched in Sydney 
today at 10am 
<http://www.computersoffaustralia.org/>. This 
aims to educate people users on how to reduce 
their carbon footprint by enabling power 
management on their computers. Appended is the 
media release and the text from the slides of the 
launch presentation  are at 
<http://www.tomw.net.au/blog/2008/06/computers-off-launch.html#presentation>.

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      For immediate release

     MEDIA RELEASE

     ** Pictures available on request **

     Computers Off Australia’ Campaign & 
Labelling initiative launched to encourage 
Australians to save the environment
 one computer at a time!

     SYDNEY – Monday 30 June, 2008 – Australians 
can now make a real, tangible and ‘easy’ 
difference to our environment – on a national and 
global scale – by turning off their computers 
when not in use. The not-for-profit ‘Computers 
Off Australia’ campaign and labelling initiative, 
officially launched today in Sydney, Australia, 
has been developed to encourage Australians to 
implement power management practices on their 
computers – at home and in the workplace - and in 
doing so, save carbon emissions and our planet!

     According to Mark Winter, Founder of 
Computers Off Australia, “I realised about seven 
months ago when I told my two youngest children 
that we were going to wash the car and they got 
into the car, ready to drive to the carwash 
rather than grab a bucket and sponge as I would 
have done when I was a kid, that the world is a very different place today.”

     “Moreover, it really hit home to me that if 
we don’t start making a difference now, in every 
seemingly ‘little’ way we can, our children are 
going to have an even bigger problem with the environment than we have today.”

     “ Soon after, I read in a Gartner report 
that the ICT industry accounts for approximately 
2% of global carbon dioxide emissions, which is 
equivalent to the emissions of the aviation 
industry. I knew then where I could start
 and 
the idea for Computers Off Australia was born,” he added.

     The objectives of the ‘Computers Off’ 
campaign are to form part of a new development of 
practical programs being offered by the 
Information and Communication Technology industry 
to improve energy efficiency and deal with global 
climate change. This initiative also supports an 
industry-wide target to achieve a 50 per cent 
improvement in Australia’s and global computer energy efficiency by 2010.

     The Computers off ‘label’ has been created 
to act as the computer industry’s guide to help 
individuals, business and government quickly and 
easily identify those organisations that are 
doing their part to reduce their power 
consumption and are in turn reducing their CO 2 emissions.

     Industry associations including the (AIIA) 
Australia Information Industry Association and 
the (ACS) Australian Computers have provided 
their endorsements and support behind this campaign and labelling initiative.

     “ The opportunity for us here in Australia 
is to lead by example and show the rest of the 
world that we can achieve something that we 
probably didn't think possible. By coming 
together and turning our computers off when they 
are not being used, not only can we can make a 
real difference, we can leave our children’s 
children with a habitable planet. Then, our plan 
is to take this initiative to the rest of the globe,” Mr Winter concluded.

     Check out the Computers Off commercials – www.youtube.com/computersoff

     Come on Australia, start turning your computers off when not in use
     and implement new ways to save energy and the environment!

     -ends-

     For media information or a media interview 
with Mark Winter, Founder of ‘Computers Off Australia’, please contact:

     Kerryn Nelson
     Managing Director
     Big Mouth Marketing Communications P/L
     Ph: + 61 3 9558 3122 E: kerryn.nelson(a)bigmouth.net.au

     Did you know?

     People don’t generally leave their 
televisions on all day while they are at work or away on holidays,
     yet across Australia, millions of work 
computers are on all night – wasting energy, 
costing businesses, places of learning and the 
government over one billion dollars in electric 
generation costs and contributing to global climate change.

     According to a Gartner Report, the global 
Information and Communications Technology 
industry (ICT) accounts for approximately 2% of 
global carbon dioxide emissions, which is 
equivalent to the emissions of the aviation industry.

     According to a recent report by the 
Department of Environment and Water Heritage , 
there are now more than 16 million PCs within 
government departments, institutions and 
businesses and approximately 8 million PC in Australian homes.

     If Australian home users, businesses and the 
government start to turn of their computers when 
they are not in use and implement automated power 
management, they will collectively save in excess 
of $1.3 billion ($1,332,407,232) per annum and we 
will reduce our carbon emissions by 7,938,926 tonnes per annum!

     This is equivalent to taking 1,373,517 cars 
off the road, planting 2,165,260 trees and 
8,882,715 homes that would be lit for a year with 
the energy saved by power management (at 12c electricity cost per kWh).

     How BIG an impact can you make by turning off your computer?

     By turning off your computer each night when 
you leave work for a year you will help save as much energy as it takes:

         *          to run a clock radio for 1,392 weeks
         *          to make 9,280 bags of microwave popcorn
         *          to wash 464 loads of washing
         *          to use your blow dryer for 5,568 hours
         *          to vacuum for 464 hours
         *          to produce 3,480 plastic bags
         *          to run your microwave 24 hours a day for a week
         *          to boil your kettle for 24 hours a day for 268 days

     By turning off your computer tonight when 
you leave work you will save as much energy as it takes:

         *          to run a clock radio for over 3 weeks
         *          to make over 20 bags of microwave popcorn
         *          to wash over 1 load of washing
         *          to blow dry your hair over 12 times
         *          to vacuum for over 1 hour
         *          to light a 100 watt light bulb for over 10 hours

     By turning your computer off tonight when 
you leave work will save approximately 100kgs of 
coal from being used - that’s a saving of over about 120kgs of CO 2 emissions.

     What is the ‘Computers Off Australia’ Campaign and Labelling Initiative?

     The objectives of the ‘Computers Off’ 
campaign and labelling initiative are a part of a 
new development of practical programs being 
offered by the Information and Communication 
Technology industry to improve energy efficiency 
and deal with global climate change.

     The Computers Off campaign is a simple, yet 
important initiative which is designed to educate 
business, government and home users about how we 
can all help reduce Australia’s carbon footprint 
by implementing power management practices on our work and home computers.

     The Computers off ‘label’ has been created 
as the computer industry’s guide to help 
business, government and individuals quickly and 
easily identify organisations that are doing 
their part to reduce their power consumption and 
in turn reducing their CO 2 emissions.

     To find out more about how you can get 
involved, visit www.computersoff.org


     To find out more about how you can get 
involved, visit www.computersoff.org

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  ps: Robin Eckerman wants the Government solar rebate restored. ;-(



Tom Worthington FACS HLM tom.worthington at tomw.net.au Ph: 0419 496150
Director, Tomw Communications Pty Ltd            ABN: 17 088 714 309
PO Box 13, Belconnen ACT 2617                      http://www.tomw.net.au/
Adjunct Senior Lecturer, Australian National University