Lord, Carolynne and Friday, Adrian and Priest, Chris and Bird, Caroline and Jackson, Adrian and Widdicks, Kelly and Kayumbi, Gabin and Lambert, Simon (2023) Learning from the Big Picture : Applying Responsible Innovation to the Net Zero Research Infrastructure Transformation (ARINZRIT). UNSPECIFIED.
Abstract
The ARINZRIT project focused on mapping the social and cultural factors driving the need for Digital Research Infrastructure (DRI) in the UK. From interviews with carefully selected stakeholders, and analysis of the usage data from specific high performance computing resources over the past 10 years, this report highlights how current cultural and academic practices including a lack of policy and tools for decision making are impeding the path to net zero. We offer diagrammatic representations of interacting forces (‘causal loop diagrams’) that show how existing practice leads to growth of DRI and its resulting environmental footprint through inefficiency, redundancy and a confluence of existing processes. We conclude with our recommendations for these stakeholders to address net zero more effectively by stimulating a necessary cultural shift in all areas in response to the climate emergency.