In recent years, data centers have been under increasing scrutiny for their energy consumption and carbon emissions, and with the demand for computing ever-increasing, the energy consumption of data centers has been growing rapidly.  In the past, the trend of “greenwashing” for data centers was emerging, where companies made exaggerated claims about environmental benefits of their products or services.  This has resulted in an emerging lack of trust among users, making it difficult to differentiate between sustainable data center materials and products and those with false claims.  Companies have engaged in greenwashing to attract environmentally conscious data center customers and improve their brand image, without actually making any significant changes to their environmentally damaging practices.  Doing this can be simply shifting what the company is already doing to building a careful plan and deceptive execution. 

Watch out for the following methods that a greenwashing company might use to deceive a data center company:

• Identify the target audience: understanding the demographic and preferences of the target audience is crucial in determining what type of environmental claims to make.
• Make vague and misleading claims: environmental claims should be worded in a way that sounds positive but is difficult to verify.  For example, using terms like "eco-friendly" or "sustainable" without providing any specific information or proof.
• Use eco-friendly symbols: using well-known eco-friendly symbols such as a recycling symbol or a leaf can help to create a positive image without any actual be environmental benefits.
• Focus on one aspect of a product: greenwashing often focuses on one small aspect of a product that has a positive environmental impact, while ignoring the larger environmental impact of the product as a whole.
• Disguise unsustainable practices: companies can disguise their unsustainable practices by highlighting one small change they have made, while ignoring the larger environmental impact of their overall operations.
• Use false certifications: False certifications and seals of approval can also be used to deceive consumers into thinking a product is environmentally friendly.

Therefore, it is important for companies to focus on actually reducing their environmental impact and seeing through false claims.  With the demand for sustainable and environmentally friendly data centers growing, the industry took notice.  Companies are investing more in renewable energy sources every year and implementing energy-efficient technologies to reduce their carbon footprint, and now that includes the proof behind each of their claims.  One example of this trend is the rise of data centers powered by renewable energy, which is becoming an increasingly cost-competitive while still showing that they are not greenwashing any of their sources, including verification from trusted 3^rd party sources.  

As greenwashing in the design and construction industry has waned, data centers have been at the forefront on this positive development for both the industry and the environment. With companies taking steps to reduce their carbon footprint and embrace sustainability with verified sources and certified products, the future of data centers looks bright and green.