Systems and methods for environmental impact assessment for online collaboration environments

A computer system that monitors real-time environmental impact of a distributed computer system, the computer system including one or more processors, one or more data-storage devices, and machine-readable instructions stored in the one or more data-storage devices that when executed using the one or more processors controls the computer system to preform operations comprising:

• receiving power metrics from metrics sources, the power metrics representing power usage by resources of the distributed computer system;
• determining environmental impact metrics that represent amounts of CO2 emissions created by the distributed computer system based on the power metrics and stored emission factors corresponding to energy sources supplying the resources;
• comparing the environmental impact metrics with a predefined CO2 emissions benchmark that distinguishes acceptable and excessive emissions levels;
• in response to determining that the environmental impact metrics exceed the predefined CO2 emissions benchmark, generating a prompt identifying at least one corrective action predicted to reduce the CO2 emissions;
• and
• outputting, during an active virtual-meeting session, for display to a participant of a virtual meeting a user interface that concurrently displays:
• (i) environmental impact indicators derived from the environmental impact metrics representing resource usage of the distributed computer system;
• and
• (ii) the prompt identifying the at least one corrective action predicted to reduce the CO2 emissions created by the distributed computer system;
• and
• in response to acceptance of the prompt, automatically executing a remedial measure that reduces the CO2 emissions created by the distributed computer system.

A non-transitory computer-readable medium encoded with machine-readable instructions that when executed using one or more processors of a computer system control the one or more processors to execute operations comprising:

• receiving power metrics from metrics sources, the power metrics representing power usage by resources of a distributed computer system;
• determining environmental impact metrics that represent amounts of CO2 emissions created by the distributed computer system based on the power metrics and stored emission factors corresponding to energy sources supplying the resources, including computing CO2 emissions of the resources used by the distributed computer system based on the power usage by the resources;
• comparing the environmental impact metrics with a predefined CO2 emissions benchmark that distinguishes acceptable and excessive emissions levels;
• in response to determining that the environmental impact metrics exceed the CO2 emissions benchmark, generating a prompt identifying at least one corrective action predicted to reduce the CO2 emissions created by the distributed computer system;
• and
• outputting, during an active virtual-meeting session, for display to a participant of a virtual meeting a user interface that concurrently displays:
• (i) environmental impact indicators derived from the environmental impact metrics representing resource usage of the distributed computer system;
• and
• (ii) the prompt identifying the at least one corrective action predicted to reduce the CO2 emissions created by the distributed computer system;
• and
• in response to acceptance of the prompt, automatically executing, by the monitoring server, a remedial measure that reduces the CO2 emissions created by the distributed computer system.