In the run-up to the Copenhagen climate summit, now barely one month away, we're starting to see many more stories on how IT can play a role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions -- what has come to be known as "Green IT 2.0."

This week, with another U.N. environmental summit taking place in Spain, is no different. The International Telecommunications Union is calling on policymakers to recognize green IT's beneficial impact and help spur investment in clean technologies. Cisco is doing its part to apply green IT to the climate summit as well; the company has announced a Global Climate Change Meeting Platform, tying 100 TelePresence locations to the Copenhagen summit. And Greenpeace has released the second iteration of its Cool IT Challenge scorecard, dinging pretty much every IT company for not being proactive enough on climate action. (See also my colleague Preston Gralla's response to the launch of the scorecard: "Greenpeace Misses the Boat with Its Green IT Campaign."

Last but certainly not least, I had to privilege of sitting in on a webcast with some of the leaders of The Green Grid, discussing ways that simple data center efficiency practices can cut energy use by 20 percent. You can read my writeup here: "Simple Data Center Best Practices Can Cut Energy Use by 20 Percent."

This report highlights how The Green Grid and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency were able to use simple, low-cost best practices in one data center to achieve a 20 percent increase in energy efficiency, saving $15,000 per year in energy costs.

This report from ChemSec and Clean Production Action highlights the innovations driven by electronics manufacturers that have removed toxics like bromine and chlorine from high-tech gadgets.

In this web conference, Peter Winters, President of Haddock Research & Branding, presents research results and detailed analysis from the study. The focus of the web conference is U.S. business travelers.