Serverless Development on AWS

Chapter 10. Sustainability in Serverless

Let everything you do be done as if it makes a difference.

William James

Before you start reading this chapter, think about or write down three things related to your understanding of sustainability.

While speaking at a serverless conference in Europe, I (Sheen) asked the audience what sustainability meant to them. Their answers were:

• Having a green environment

• Reducing carbon footprint to ensure a sustainable future for our planet

• Using natural resources sensibly so that they can be replenished

A university researcher was traveling to developing countries to collect data for her work, which required visiting remote villages and interacting with various people from local communities. Here is what some of them said to her about their understanding of sustainability:

• Fetching drinking water from afar is a daily struggle. Every day will be good if there is a sustainable way to bring water close to our dwellings.

• Access to hospitals and medical facilities to lead a healthy life for human families and livestock.

• We need support to run our local school, so our children and future generations have better life choices.

A news reporter was making a documentary on how the COVID-19 pandemic had affected people’s family lives and what sustainability measures they thought were necessary. Their responses were varied. For example:

• A mother of three young children said the pandemic lockdown taught her to consider financial sustainability ...