A Day of Learning and Sustainability: Our Experience at AWS Game Day in Manchester
Version 1 Team: Shane Forde, Saim Rafiq, Nasra Mohammed, Vishakha Doshi
January 26th, Manchester
The Kickoff
The event started with a warm round of introductions, setting the stage for a day of enthusiastic learning and sharing. Discussions initiated by our hosts, Liam and Ben, dove deep into the AWS architectural framework, highlighting the pivotal role IT professionals play in crafting sustainable solutions on this platform.
Sustainability at the Forefront
A pivotal moment for us was learning about AWS’s initiative to recycle water used in their server farms, showcasing their commitment to sustainability. This discussion broadened our understanding of our role in assisting customers to make informed, environmentally friendly choices as AWS partners. We were struck by the evolving landscape of IT capabilities, where the focus is shifting towards services that can help reduce carbon emissions, in line with new regulations.
Teamwork and Hands-On Learning
The theme of the day was Sustainability and the game was no exception. There were a number of tasks set out for each team to handle. These were scored on points based on whether you could solve the issue but also how efficient the solution was. Negative points would be given for breaking or going in the wrong direction. For this Game Day, the primary focus was efficient use of resources, reducing carbon footprint and often with an increase in Sustainability we had to reduce operating costs. Our team took an agile approach to the day’s challenges. Despite being more familiar with the theory than the practical application of AWS services, the hands-on game was a perfect immersion exercise. It allowed us to better understand real-world problems and collaborate effectively to find solutions, particularly for a fictional company dealing with issues related to Unicorn rentals. This experience was invaluable in learning about AWS services like EKS, AWS Glue, Graviton instances, Auto-scaling, Cloud Watch, S3, and Lambda.
Personal Accounts and Key Takeaways
Vishakha Doshi
My key takeaways revolve around the insights gained into AWS’s sustainability efforts and the hands-on experience. For me, the day was about understanding the importance of making well-informed decisions to support both customers and the environment, with a special mention of the efficiency and performance benefits of Graviton instances. I came away from the day with a personal commitment to look at the projects that I work on through the lens of efficiency in our architecture.
Saim Rafiq
My day’s focus was on eco-friendly practices and really opened my eyes to the learning curve with AWS services such as Glue and Athena. It was a testament to the value of collaborative, hands-on learning in grasping the potential of cloud services for sustainable tech. My key takeaway is the importance of diving into new technologies and leveraging them for not just innovation but also for sustainability. It was a day well spent, blending fun with a sense of purpose and challenge to myself.
Nasra Mohammed
I spent my time diving deep into sustainability through practical tasks, like optimising storage and managing EC2 instances, it was incredibly insightful. Engaging with the AWS Carbon Footprint Toolkit, I gained valuable insights into assessing and minimising the environmental impact of our cloud infrastructure. My takeaway is the critical role of continuous monitoring and optimisation in achieving sustainability goals in our projects.
Shane Forde
My participation focused on optimising workload management for both sustainability and cost-effectiveness. By monitoring tasks and adjusting the capacity of instances, it highlighted the importance of sustainable resource management. Implementing CloudWatch alarms to scale instance capacity using spot instances, ensuring the system operated efficiently and only when needed for batch reports, scaling to zero otherwise. This approach minimised resource consumption and aligned with the emphasis on sustainable practice. My key takeaway is the use of resource management, knowing when there is a need to process data immediately and when it can be delayed for effective use of instance resourcing.
Conclusion
The AWS Game Day was a compelling blend of learning, teamwork, and a shared commitment to sustainability. It was a reminder of the critical role technology plays in shaping a sustainable future and the importance of integrating eco-friendly practices into our work. The experiences shared by our team members underscore the enriching learning environment provided by such events, fostering a deeper understanding of AWS’s capabilities and their implications for environmental sustainability.
We are immensely grateful for the opportunity to participate in this event and are excited to apply the insights gained to our projects at Version 1. A special thanks to Liam Sullivan AWS for reaching out to us and for the opportunity to participate in this event. The day was not only a step forward in our professional development but also in our journey towards contributing to a more sustainable world.
Many thanks,
The Version 1 Team at AWS Game Day
About the author(s)
Shane Forde and Saim Rafiq are AWS DevOps Engineers and Nasra Mohammed and Vishakha Doshi are Associate AWS DevOps Engineers here at Version 1.
