Just how green is green IT? That's a question we address two different ways this week. The first way IT can help green companies is through energy and cost savings, and according to a new benchmarking report released by the Climate Savers Computing Initiative, those savings are huge: Since 2007, the IT industry has cut its greenhouse gas emissions by more than 32 million metric tons -- equivalent to taking nine coal-fired power plants offline, and saving $2 billion a year in energy costs.

Those savings are just over half of Climate Savers' goal of reducing IT-related emissions by 54 million tons by next year, and would help cut back the industry's estimated 2 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions.

The second way that IT is making the world greener is through innovations that enable more efficient operations well beyond the data center -- the smart grid and building energy management are two of the areas with the most potential here. But as Pierre Delforge writes this week, just because IT has the ability to reduce emissions from the other 98 percent, businesses and policymakers should let the industry off the hook in making energy efficiency job #1. Read more here: "Will the Rise of IT Help or Hurt the Planet?"

Also this week: How the financial reform law will stem the tide of "blood tin" and other conflict materials, India announces plans for a $35 laptop, and reaching beyond the low-hanging fruit at eBay.

This report from Info-Tech highlights nine green IT initiatives that can help small businesses improve efficiency and save costs.

Join Waste Management’s Jim Hall and Caterpillar’s Jim Blass in conversation with Joel Makower, Executive Editor of GreenBiz.com, in an exploration of how companies are achieving zero waste. You’ll hear a first-hand account of Caterpillar’s pursuit of zero waste at its facility in Aurora, Illinois, and insight into the bottom-line impacts of a typical zero-waste program.