Building Green Software

Chapter 12. The Green Software Maturity Matrix

I can only show you the door. You’re the one that has to walk through it.

Morpheus

The Green Software Maturity Matrix (GSMM) is a self-assessment tool from the Linux Foundation’s Green Software Foundation.

The GSMM is designed to help organizations understand how well they’ve already implemented green principles and processes and what to do next. It is part of the GSF’s campaign of raising the floor and the ceiling—lifting the behavior of the laggards on green tech and inspiring those doing OK to achieve more by showing what the leaders are up to.

Its intent is to give directions to a well-trodden path so we get the decisive benefit of shared progress on tools and services (see Figure 12-1).

Tip

Anyone can comment on or contribute to the project on GitHub. You don’t need to be a GSF member. Anne is the project lead, and she would be very happy to see you.

Note that the GSMM is focused on how, as part of their day-to-day working lives, software practitioners can reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It does not cover water use in DCs, species protection, or any other worthy environmental aim. As we currently understand it, those aims are mostly dictated by data center choice, and developers have little scope to improve on that choice later, particularly iteratively. So decide on your DC wisely.

Figure 12-1. The GSF’s Green Software Maturity ...