3 April 2008

Entering dawn of green

By Jim Pinto

For decades, environmentalists have warned of the coming climate crisis, but the alarms were largely ignored. Now we are starting to see signs of the destructive potential of global warming.

Sadly, the solutions offered by “green” activists—curbing pollution, using less energy, rejecting technology, and returning to a simpler way of life—are unappealing to most. Asking the world’s wealthiest and advanced societies to turn their backs on abundance is fruitless.

Humans pollute because our industrial systems leave no options. Homes, high-rises, factories, freeways, and power plants were developed before there were any ideas about pollution and global warming. The consequences of our progress were not grasped.

Consider the automobile. It is an ecological disaster that contributes to polluted atmospheres, oil-slicked oceans, and Middle East wars. As the enormity of these problems start to really sink in, markets will emerge for sensible alternatives. Today, a Toyota Prius burns far less gasoline. Tomorrow, there will be vehicles that consume no fossil fuels and emit no greenhouse gases. Progress is indeed being made toward a better, more sustainable future.

Some of the Indian software majors are planning for long-term growth in this arena. They see “clean-tech” software and systems as the next big opportunity. This is the programming and monitoring for thousands of global companies, which will be launching the drive to become carbon neutral, more energy efficient. They see this need as inevitable—a safe bet rather than a strategic risk. Becoming more energy efficient is a profit opportunity beyond just satisfying regulators, or image improvement.

The idea is to use energy-related software to reduce material costs, simplify logistics, drive down electricity charges, and shorten supply chains. As large companies start to do this, it will require a lot of data management, which is what Bangalore-based Infosys and others focus on. They think the opportunity is huge, and they intend to provide the leadership that will satisfy the demand.

Will this new clean-tech demand be satisfied from forward-thinking developers in the U.S. or Europe? Or, will the technology leadership come from places like India?

Hey, if you are looking for a good stable-growth career, green consultants, green designers, and green builders are all going to be in huge demand.

Related links:

• Tom Friedman – The dawn of E2K in India:
  http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/07/opinion/07Friedman.html
• Wired – The Next Green Revolution:
  http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/14.05/green.html

Behind the byline

Jim Pinto is an industry analyst and founder of Action Instruments. You can e-mail him at jim@jimpinto.com or view his writings at www.JimPinto.com. Read the Table of Contents of his book, Pinto’s Points, at www.jimpinto.com/writings/points.html.