DiscussionIdeas
From Wiki
[edit] Energy Camp: An unconference for you, by you
This page is where you should give people an idea of the session(s) that you may end up proposing at Energy Camp. But first, if you're not sure how things will work at Energy Camp and how to create and edit pages on this wiki, then read on. If you're an old hand at unconferences and are ready to offer some ideas for some discussions (and you know how to edit wiki pages), then click the edit tab above, scroll to the bottom and add some discussion topics (along with brief descriptions) to this page.
[edit] Open space basics
Energy Camp will be conducted Open Space style (more about Open Space and unconferences can be found here). After a few general presentations, there will be a General Assembly where attendees will propose discussions that they're interested in leading. Attendees will line up for their turn at the microphone, propose a discussion and, on a whiteboard that lists all of the available rooms and timeslots in grid fashion, slot their proposed discussion into one of the available room/times. Details about the proposed discussion will be written in magic marker on a piece of paper and taped into an available slot on the grid (this way, they're easily moved).
To get an idea of what the discussion grid will look like, check out the images on the Camp Agenda for Mashup Camp 1. For Energy Camp, there will be 4 different rooms and 3-4 different time slots which means there'll be opportunity for many different discussions to take place.
[edit] Principles of Open Space
There are several principles of Open Space:
- Whoever comes are the right people.
- Whatever happens is the only thing that could have.
- Whenever it starts is the right time.
- When it is over, it is over.
- Document your session.
[edit] The Law of Two Feet
Unconferences also follow the the Law of Two Feet: If during the course of the gathering, any person finds themselves in a situation where they are neither learning nor contributing, they must respectfully use their two feet and go to some more productive place.
And Be Prepared to Be Surprised.
And amazed.
[edit] Discussion ideas
Below is a list of probable/proposed discussions. At the end of each description is a link to a detail level page where you can get more information, indicate your interest in attending the discussion, and flesh out the topic in more detail with other attendees. However, in some cases, the proposed discussion is neither listed yet or the detail level pages are not setup yet. So, feel free to add to this wiki. If you click on a link for which a page hasn't been created, it will take you to a page that you can start to edit (if you are one of the people who proposed a topic, feel free to start the detail level page associated with that topic and get the conversation going!).
Note: We've had a few people use the discussion tab along the top of the wiki interface to enter a proposed discussion. Be sure to click the edit tab at the top of this page. This will put you into the edit mode for this page. Then, scroll to the bottom and enter your discussion idea.
Check out the Start new pages tab for getting started when it comes to logging in and creating or editing pages on this wiki.
In no particular order, here are some proposed discussion topics. If you're adding a topic, please bracket the topic with four "=" signs to designate a new section heading (e.g., ====MyTopic====), and add your name so we know who proposed the topic.
[edit] Green Computing Beyond The Data Center
Luke Aulin
Many organizations tend to focus their green IT initiatives on their data centers, but the fact is that there are far more desktop computers in existence that are wasting power. Here’s an opportunity to explore and discuss best practices for desktop computer energy management that will not interfere with user or IT needs.
[edit] Doing Green with the Lights On!
Tim Johnson [1]
What I think we should catalog is all the ideas that can be implemented to save energy without having to resort to publicity stunts like turning the lights off for an hour. That's not sustainable. But there have to be plenty of ideas, formed out of communication and sharing opportunities like Energy Camp, where we look at the system as a whole and find ways to take waste out of the system, and have the resulting savings go to more productive endeavors.
[edit] Encouraging Alternatives to Business Travel
Peter Brockmann [2]
The idea is that if a business trip could be replaced by an audio conference we would. There's something about face-to-face meetings that are worth the cost and hassle of using airplanes and the driving we do to get to/from airports for business. Is video conferencing a reasonable substitute for what might have been a face-to-face meeting? There are social and expectation-level issues at stake to make this a viable option for most organizations. How can we kick-start the culture shift away from business trips?
[edit] The Key to Management is Measurement - How Can we do a Better Job of Managing IT Energy Usage
April Dunford [3]
There is a saying that "you can't manage what you can't measure" yet many IT professionals have no way to determine the energy consumption of the individual pieces of their infrastructure. Published vendor energy data is often confusing because it doesn't take usage into account. Can we build better, easy to use tools that measure energy usage? Should we pressure vendors to make better statistics available? Should there be a standard (like EnergyStar)for equipment beyond the desktop such as servers, switches, handsets, etc.?
[edit] Help! My Company is an Environmental Nightmare!
April Dunford [4]
Do the people at your company print out email? Does your boss not understand the meaning of the word "duplex"? Do your suggestions to reduce energy consumption remain unheard over the sound of cooling fans? There are many companies who have started to become green from the bottom up. What is the best way to start a green movement at a company that doesn't give a darn?
[edit] Are Companies Ready to Consider Some 'Crazy' Ideas to Improve Data Center Energy Efficiency?
Jay Fry [5]
We (Cassatt) just published a survey that said 59% of respondents (IT & facilities folks) would consider turning off servers when they are idle. This gave us some hope that people are willing to put aside conventional wisdom and standard IT operating procedure to deal with energy efficiency issues. Are others seeing this sort of interest and flexibility, and how do you best make the case to management to do something a little out of the ordinary? Pure ROI? 'Green' appeal? What other 'crazy' ideas are worth considering?
