Data & Policy (2020), 2: e14 doi:10.1017/dap.2020.12 TRANSLATIONAL ARTICLE What is the resource footprint of a computer science department? Place, people, and Pedagogy I. S. Mian, D. Twisleton and D. A. Timm Department of Computer Science, University College London, London, United Kingdom *Corresponding author. Email:
[email protected] Received: 03 December 2019; Revised: 19 June 2020; Accepted: 27 June 2020 Keywords: rejuvenate and (re)integrate the natural and built environments; rematerialising the information society; resource- constrained computing, computation, and communication; responsible research and innovation; zero waste institution; environmental accounting; waste reduction; data centre management; IT infrastructure lifecycle; environmental policy Abstract Internet and Communication Technology/electrical and electronic equipment (ICT/EEE) form the bedrock of today’s knowledge economy. This increasingly interconnected web of products, processes, services, and infrastructure is often invisible to the user, as are the resource costs behind them. This ecosystem of machine-to-machine and cyber- physical-system technologies has a myriad of (in)direct impacts on the lithosphere, biosphere, atmosphere, and hydrosphere. As key determinants of tomorrow’s digital world, academic institutions are critical sites for exploring ways to mitigate and/or eliminate negative impacts. This Report is a self-deliberation provoked by the question How do we create more resilient and healthier computer science departments: living laboratories for teaching and learning about resource-constrained computing, computation, and communication? Our response for University College London (UCL) Computer Science is to reflect on how, when, and where resources—energy, (raw) materials including water, space, and time—are consumed by the building (place), its occupants (people), and their activities (pedagogy).