Green AI Summit Concludes with Major Steps Toward Sustainable Development
The Green AI Summit 2024 concluded with notable success, drawing a distinguished lineup of speakers and experts who shared insights on AI’s role in sustainable development. Held at Harvard University, the summit was organized by the Green AI Institute, with sponsorship from SeaWARRDD and support from partners including the Harvard Extension School Sustainability Student Club, Boston AI Forum and Climate Leaders Program at Harvard.
The event began with an Opening Ceremony featuring keynote addresses from prominent figures. Jerry Huang, Founder and President of the Green AI Institute, presented a vision for Global Collaboration on AI Environment Governance and introduced the White Paper on Global Artificial Intelligence Environmental Impact.
Jerry Huang, President of Green AI Institute
The summit opened with esteemed experts in AI and sustainability who presented pioneering perspectives on leveraging technology for environmental progress. Professor Junwei Cao from Tsinghua University discussed the integration of AI with energy infrastructures to improve efficiency and resilience, while Professor Suchi Gopal from Boston University emphasized the significance of geographic and environmental considerations in reducing the ecological footprint of data centers.
Suchi Gopal, Professor of Earth and Environment, Boston University
Professor Jason Mohaghegh and Amal Aldaej examined the ethical complexities and societal impacts of advanced AI. Collectively, these speakers set a visionary tone for the summit, underscoring AI's transformative potential in addressing global sustainability challenges.
Jason Mohaghegh, Associate Professor of Comparative Literature, Babson College
Amal Aldaej, Senior Advisor, International Affairs, National Center for Vegetation Cover Development
Paulo Carvao of Harvard Kennedy School explored the challenges and opportunities AI faces in driving sustainability forward. Building on these themes, Professor Zhaohao Ding offered strategies for sustainable energy management in data centers,
Paulo Carvao, Senior Fellow, Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government at the Harvard Kennedy School
In the Keynote Address, Professor Ayse Coskun highlights the surge in energy demand due to AI workloads in data centers, with strategies like demand response to balance power. Data centers can optimize energy usage by forecasting, scheduling workloads, and engaging in power markets to reduce costs and energy strain on the grid
Ayse Coskun, Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering & Systems, Engineering, Boston University
Professor Tiwari discusses sustainable AI development, focusing on the importance of accurately measuring carbon footprints across AI infrastructures. His work underscores the need for coordinated sustainability metrics and carbon-aware practices, advocating for “lean AI” models and strategies to optimize GPU usage and reduce carbon emissions
Devesh Tiwari, Associate Vice Provost for Research Computing, Office of the Provost, Northeastern University
Professor Andrew A. Chien of the University of Chicago, speaking online, presented a vision for balancing AI power needs with environmental sustainability through flexible, grid-aware operations. Chien highlighted the concept of “Zero Carbon Cloud,” in which adaptable, virtualized data centers prioritize renewable energy sourcing by sharing data in real-time with power grids. By optimizing power usage and minimizing emissions, his model aimed to decouple data center growth from environmental strain, addressing the dual demands of carbon and water sustainability in modern cooling systems. This keynote collectively emphasized the potential of strategic, coordinated actions between data centers and power grids to drive meaningful change in sustainable AI infrastructure
William Eckhardt Distinguished Service Professor, Computer Science, The University of Chicago
The summit’s panels provided a platform for focused discussions on specific challenges and innovations. In Panel 1: AI and Data Center Environmental Impact Forum, experts such as Professor Ram Rajagopal from Stanford and Professor Shaolei Ren from UC Riverside, alongside ProfessorAyse Coskun, Tamar Eilam from IBM and Manav Goel from Meta, examined sustainable computing advancements for high-performance computing and AI infrastructure.
The SeaWARRDD team presents their coastal monitoring technology to enhance climate resilience, focusing on advanced data collection for hurricane forecasting. Their solution combines data from multiple sources to improve disaster response accuracy, addressing the pressing need for real-time environmental data.
Rick Cole, Founder and President of RDSEA
The Panel 2: AI-Driven Solutions for Sustainable Development panel brought together experts including Professor Sean Lubner, Professor Xinghua Li, Eric Fang and Aidan Regan to discuss AI applications in sustainable agriculture, urban planning, and energy management. Moderated by Professor Suchi Gopal, the panel demonstrated AI’s potential in tackling climate resilience and supporting UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Panel 3: Safety, Ethics, and Regulation of AI, moderated by Jialuo Zhang, addressed the ethical considerations and regulatory requirements for AI in environmental protection. Contributors included Professor Jason Mohaghegh, Yanli He, Phuong Ho and Ahmad Antar, who discussed fairness, transparency, and accountability in AI-driven sustainability solutions.
In Panel 4: Entrepreneurship in AI and Sustainable Development, young entrepreneurs including Lei Wu, Paul Lam, Jyotirmaya Patro and Jacob Tomas, moderated by Alex Kozyr, shared how they are driving sustainability through technological innovation and green entrepreneurship.
The “AI and Sustainability Key Findings” presentation underscored the powerful role of youth in shaping a sustainable future. Highlighting research from Dr. Yankai (Luke) Jiang of Northeastern University, Dr. Baolin Li, and Ph.D. candidate Pengfei Li from UC Riverside, the session showcased the innovative ways young leaders are advancing environmental goals through AI. Each speaker brought forward projects on sustainable machine learning, trustworthy AI systems, and tech-driven environmental solutions, demonstrating how technology, creativity, and activism can together address global sustainability challenges. The panel emphasized the critical need to empower the younger generation, whose passion and forward-thinking approaches are key to tackling complex environmental issues and inspiring further action towards a greener future.
The Sustainable Development Leadership Challenge was a highlight of the summit, empowering young leaders including Zhaowen Gu, Yu Wang, and Pradipthi Bammidi to present AI-driven projects addressing environmental challenges. These initiatives showcased youth-driven innovation, with projects in underwater robotics, biodegradable material discovery, and precision agriculture.
The summit’s Closing Ceremony featured remarks from Bruce Zou, Manav Goel, and Karen Clopton, who emphasized the importance of global collaboration in advancing sustainable AI practices. The event concluded with a networking session, fostering connections among industry leaders, researchers, and young innovators dedicated to a more sustainable future.
We would like to extend our special thanks to all the members and volunteers of Green AI Summit. For more information, please visit the official website of Green AI Institute: greenai.institute. For media enquiry, please reach out to contact@greenai.institute for further assistance.
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We would also love to invite you to our second Green AI Summit in April 2025.
Members of the Green AI Summit Organizing Team
