Innovative technology can influence business and the environment, while having a clear impact on society as well. For a technology company like Microsoft, that’s the promise of applying technology to address environmental challenges. The Guardian is introducing a new online hub that looks squarely at technology innovation and implementation from a social standpoint, while this week Forbes looked at how the smart grid is increasingly becoming a reality for U.S. utilities and consumers. Read on to learn more about how IT is reshaping how people are using energy and resources, ultimately reducing their footprint on the world.

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On World Environment Day we have an opportunity to reflect on the progress made toward decreasing our environmental footprint and the environmental impact of our products. At Microsoft, we’re committed to developing software and technology that helps people and organizations reduce their impact on the environment, and today we’re proud to announce that Internet Explorer continues to be the most energy-efficient browser on Windows 8.

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One of the things we strive to do on this blog is to showcase efforts across the company where we are making progress advancing environmental sustainability at Microsoft while also recognizing where there’s still work to do. One area where there’s a lot...

Last week we spent some time on Twitter with the Microsoft Windows team discussing “green PC’s”. There are a lot of opportunities to reduce the amount of energy that PC’s and monitors consume while operating, and to also support more environmentally-friendly...

With innovation in the energy sector and advances in Big Data, the potential for improving energy efficiency is continuing to achieve new levels. One concept, dating back to the 1890s, uses electricity to liquefy air by cooling it down, which can make for an innovative approach of storing energy. The Financial Times also reported this week on how the elements of city infrastructure can be improved with the help of wireless sensors. Read on to learn more about technological innovations in efficiency.

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