Green Hosting for WordPress: How Sustainable Can Web Hosting Be?

Everyone is talking about climate protection. When you run a website or an online shop, you consume a lot of resources. We want to take countermeasures - with our climate positive hosting for WordPress & WooCommerce. About the chances and limits of ecological web hosting offers.

"If the Internet were a country, it would have the sixth largest power consumption on our planet" - this is how it describes a Documentation of the ZDF. There are various studies on how much electricity is actually needed. One thing is clear: Web hosting devours energy - and causes considerable CO2 emissions.

Does a faster web cause more waste?

This not only affects the servers themselves, on which your WordPress or WooCommerceproject. The infrastructure of a data center also requires a lot of resources, from air conditioning and administration to emergency power generators. As a hosting and software provider, we need electricity for:

• Technical infrastructure
• office equipment, cleaning
• Office supplies and marketing
• Food
• Mobility/travel

Not to mention the fact that the path of your information through the Internet also costs energy. And if you understandably want to offer your customers a particularly fast portal, you use a high-performance web hostingbut which consumes more energy. Services like ecograder.com show you how sustainable the web design but also that of hosting your website is.

Carbon neutral? Climate positive!

Green hosting cannot make the required energy expenditure obsolete. But it can provide a balance. In principle, there are three options to do this:

1. Ensure that the electricity used comes from sources that are as "clean" as possible
2. Support projects that minimize CO2 emissions
3. A generally sustainable corporate philosophy

RAIDBOXES uses all three options for its Green Hosting, as we want to do more for the common good step by step. See our workshops on the subject. With our programs for renaturation, we not only work climate-neutrally, but climate positive. More on that in a moment.

If you want to extensively test host with usthen you are actively contributing to climate protection. In very concrete terms this means:

1. trees for the Eden Reforestation Projects

We have done a lot of research to find a partner who provides CO2 compensation with added value. For each WordPress site or any WooCommerceshop you host with us, we will plant a tree for you. We will work with Eden Reforestation Projects (short: Eden) together. The non-profit organisation works in regions that are particularly affected by climate change and global deforestation.

According to Eden, it has planted over 300 million trees since 2004, in 5 countries with a total of 82 projects. We at RAIDBOXES Eden have added over 54,000 trees so far - thanks to our customers.

Eden relies on local residents or workers for its projects, which are paid for by the donations. This is another reason why we chose Eden Reforestation Projects. The organisation makes an active contribution to the fight against poverty:

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2. climate positive project work

In addition to reforestation, we support the initiative Get Mads. It invests in climate-friendly projects that are selected according to strict criteria - including the United Nations Convention to Combat CO2 Emissions. The projects Get Mads is committed to focus on developing countries. This additionally promotes their social and economic growth.

Through the partnership alone, we RAIDBOXES currently offset 40.48 tonnes of CO2 every month by funding Get Mads certified carbon and plastic offset projects. Here are some examples of what this means in terms of CO2 savings according to Get Mads:

• Compensation of 7700 plastic bottles that pollute the seas
• 43 return flights from London to Los Angeles
• Removal of over 300,000 straws or 38,500 disposable plastic cups from the landfill
• More than 160,000 car kilometres driven

Further information on the initiative can be found on the Project page of Get Mads.

3. green electricity from hydropower

RAIDBOXES uses 100 percent electricity from hydropower. We are aware that not all green electricity is the same. That is why we pay attention to the following framework conditions with our partners:

• The electricity comes entirely from plants that generate energy from hydropower. Hydropower electricity, which is remunerated under the EEG, is not included.
• Our electricity is produced exclusively in Germany.
• The criteria are TÜV-certified and are checked annually.

4. sustainable management

Besides the compensation for a Green hosting we are gradually implementing a corporate philosophy that focuses on sustainability in all areas. These include the following points:

• Goals that do not focus on maximizing profits, but on the benefits for our customers and society. See our vision on the topic Open Source and equal opportunities.
• Environmentally conscious products and materials for our office, sustainable food to supply our employees.
• Employee stock option plans and concept of the Holacracy . Read more Why there are RAIDBOXES no more bosses. Support of home office and remote work.
• Fundraising campaign of the team, for example for disadvantaged families.
• Internal workshops, for example on Non-violent communication (GRP).

We continue to work on meeting our social responsibility. And we hope that the models mentioned will find numerous imitators.

Pictures: Markus Spiske, Taylor Vick, Samuel Zeller @Unsplash