Energy Web, WattTime, and Green Software Foundation Unveil Open-Source Carbon-Aware Nomination to Green Decentralized Computing
Zug, Switzerland & Oakland, CA — April 3, 2025 — Energy Web, a global nonprofit building open-source Web3 technologies for the energy transition, WattTime, an environmental tech nonprofit providing real-time grid emissions data, and the Green Software Foundation (GSF) today announced the launch of Carbon-Aware Nomination, an open-source system for scheduling computing workloads based on electricity carbon-intensity. This first-of-its-kind solution leverages GSF’s Carbon-Aware SDK, blockchain technology, and live emissions data from WattTime to ensure that applications run when and where power is cleanest, drastically reducing the carbon intensity of computing workloads.
A New Standard for Carbon-Aware Compute
Carbon-Aware Nomination combines Energy Web’s decentralized computing platform with WattTime’s Automated Emissions Reduction (AER) data feeds and GSF’s Carbon-Aware SDK, allowing any batch job or flexible workload to automatically “chase” the lowest-carbon energy available. Instead of running immediately or in a fixed location, a task can be delayed or relocated — for example, executing at night in a region with abundant wind energy — with the entire decision process orchestrated and verified on the Energy Web X blockchain. Unlike traditional cloud computing tools, this system provides cryptographic proof of the carbon emissions caused, giving enterprises and developers unprecedented transparency into the sustainability of their IT operations.
“Our community has been looking for ways to cut IT emissions without sacrificing performance or trust,” said Mani Hagh Sefat, CTO of Energy Web. “Carbon-Aware Nomination delivers that by leveraging decentralization. By partnering with WattTime and integrating GSF’s Carbon-Aware SDK, we’re injecting the best real-time data into an open, trustless network of computing resources. The result is a game-changer — any organization can now ensure its workloads run with the lowest possible carbon impact, and they can prove it. We’re excited to open-source this tool and work with others to scale it up; this is about creating a new norm for green computing across the industry.”
Collaboration Across Climate-Tech Innovators
WattTime’s leadership echoed the significance of this collaboration.
“This partnership demonstrates how data and technology can come together to fight climate change in new domains,” said Gavin McCormick, WattTime co-founder and Executive Director. “Energy Web’s innovative use of our emissions intelligence, coupled with the Green Software Foundation’s Carbon-Aware SDK, ensures that even computing workloads can automatically prioritize clean energy. We’re thrilled to see Automated Emissions Reduction principles expanding into cloud and blockchain infrastructure. By giving organizations the power to run tasks when renewables are abundant, Carbon-Aware Nomination turns climate intention into action.”
The Green Software Foundation (GSF), which has been advancing sustainability in software development, also sees this as an important milestone. “GSF’s mission is to reduce the environmental impact of software, and integrating our Carbon-Aware SDK into decentralized compute systems represents a major step toward that goal,” said Asim Hussain, Executive Director of Green Software Foundation. “By working with Energy Web and WattTime, we’re proving that sustainability can be a core part of modern computing — measurable, verifiable, and open-source.”
An Open-Source Future for Climate-Smart Computing
The Carbon-Aware Nomination system is fully open-source, with documentation and developer tools provided by Energy Web. Companies and developers can integrate it into cloud workflows, decentralized applications, or scheduling software to begin reducing the carbon emissions of their operations. Because the solution runs on a public blockchain, any sustainability claims are transparent and auditable by third parties.
This initiative also aligns with broader efforts by the tech sector to cut emissions: recent studies estimate that data centers and networks account for over 1% of global electricity use, and industry leaders are keen to mitigate this impact.
By launching Carbon-Aware Nomination in collaboration with WattTime and the Green Software Foundation, Energy Web aims to foster an ecosystem of climate-smart computing. The three organizations plan to engage cloud providers, enterprises, and researchers in adopting the approach. This joint effort showcases the power of cross-sector partnerships, bringing together blockchain-based decentralization, real-time environmental intelligence, and software-driven carbon-aware scheduling.
Energy Web, WattTime, and GSF invite interested partners to join the initiative, contribute to the open-source codebase, and collectively drive a new era of sustainable digital infrastructure.
About Energy Web
Energy Web is a software company developing open-source technologies to accelerate the energy transition. Its decentralized solutions leverage blockchain to create innovative market mechanisms, empowering energy companies, grid operators, and businesses worldwide. (www.energyweb.org)
About WattTime
WattTime is an environmental tech nonprofit that empowers all people, companies, policymakers, and countries to slash emissions and choose cleaner energy. Founded by UC Berkeley researchers, we develop data-driven tools and policies that increase environmental and social good. During the energy transition from a fossil-fueled past to a zero-carbon future, WattTime ‘bends the curve’ of emissions reductions to realize deeper, faster benefits for people and planet. Learn more at www.WattTime.org.
The Green Software Foundation (GSF) is a nonprofit organization under the Linux Foundation. It aims to create a trusted ecosystem of people, standards, tooling, and best practices for building green software and hardware. Members of the GSF represent a balanced mix of for-profits, nonprofits, and academia from around the globe and include several Fortune Global 500 firms. The Foundation operates by consensus.
Three Working Groups, including Software Standards, Hardware Standards, and Policy, and two Committees, Green AI and Developer Relations, currently oversee the Foundation’s ongoing projects. (www.greensoftware.foundation)
