Markdown Version | Session Recording
Session Date/Time: 18 Mar 2025 06:00
# sustain
## Summary
The first meeting of the SustainRG after chartering in January. Chairs Ali, Eve, and Michael presented the group's goals, scope, and research areas. Key discussions revolved around defining the internet's footprint, network architecture implications, and the role of the group in connecting research with practical implementation in the IETF. Presentations covered life cycle assessments of ICT, energy proportionality in networks, and insights from the Dagstuhl Seminar on Greening Networking.
## Key Discussion Points
* **Group Introduction and Charter:** The chairs outlined the group's focus on long-term research with a networking impact, emphasizing experimentation, evidence-based findings, and avoiding policy advocacy. Initial focus is on characterizing the internet's footprint.
* **ICT Life Cycle Assessment:** Yucca Manor highlighted the need to consider the entire life cycle of ICT equipment, from production to end-of-life, beyond just energy consumption during the use phase. Manufacturing emissions can be significant, especially for devices with short lifecycles. Renewable energy sources are not all equal in terms of emissions.
* **Energy Proportionality:** Yucca Manor discussed the ongoing debate about whether networks are energy proportional and argued that, while fixed networks may lack energy proportionality, cellular networks exhibit it due to the data-driven design.
* **Sustainable Network Architecture:** Yari and Suresh presented guidelines for protocol designers and network architects, focusing on scaling, measurement, transport protocols, equipment lifetimes, and encodings. Managing the impact on the rest of the network when powering off devices is crucial.
* **Dagstuhl Seminar on Greening Networking:** Dirk Kutscher shared insights from the seminar, emphasizing the need for a broader perspective beyond networking, considering applications, systems, and the interaction of network systems with energy sources. Misconceptions around energy-saving measures need to be addressed through careful analysis.
* **Climate Change Adaptation:** A discussion was had about the need to adapt the internet to the already occurring impacts of climate change.
* **Role of AI:** Use of AI was proposed in proactive detection of energy consumption in networks.
## Decisions and Action Items
* **IAB Adoption of Architecture Guidelines:** Goal to publish architecture guidelines on the IAB stream as an informational document.
* **Call for Papers for AANRW:** Encourage everyone to submit to the AANRW with deadline of April 15th.
* **Focus on Research Questions:** The group will prioritize identifying and debating research questions before jumping to solutions.
* **Engage Stakeholders:** Invite diverse stakeholders into the conversation to get different perspectives.
## Next Steps
* Release the Dagstuhl Seminar report.
* Continue discussion and contribution through the sustained mailing list and e-impact mailing list.
* Queue up a presentation from the sustainable subsea networking community for a future session.
* Explore potential synergies with the Green WG and other relevant groups at the IETF.