South Korea to become green IT world leader

South Korea is poised to become a world leader in green IT and other countries should follow its example, according to a new research note.

The Information Technology and Innovation Foundation said South Korea, Japan and Denmark are aggressively pursuing green technology. It added that countries like the UK and US should learn from its example.

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South Korea has a wide range of green government policies, strong executive leadership and substantial public funding, the research note said.

South Korea's president Lee Myung-bak says the country will follow a "low carbon, green growth" strategy. In July this year, the South Korean Committee on Green Growth announced a five-year plan to invest $87.7bn in its Green New Deal programme.

The money is set to be spent on various aspects of IT, including faster broadband networks and green technologies such as solar panels and hybrid cars.

The IT industry needs to play an important part in creating a green economy. It directly contributes to roughly 2% of greenhouse gas emissions, and could help non-IT related sources gain enhanced energy efficiency and productivity.

Green IT is not just about creating and using energy-efficient equipment, but also about the application of IT to create more efficient processes.

Many nations have begun to develop green IT strategies, seeking energy savings and increased economic output. The US especially, home to major players such as IMB, Google, Amazon and Microsoft, is currently in a position in which it could benefit from green computing.