Japan's 1st Green IT Expo

We all know that Japan is such a tech-driven country, whether its about robots, gadgets, cell phones or back-end data storage and securities. And now they're officially trying to go green with their gizmo world.

Yes, everyone appears to be jumping on the green bandwagon. Yet sometimes stamping brands with green badges sometimes appears to be only a marketing nod to current social trends and energy challenges. Yet, the first step is acknowledgment at least. At Japan's first official "Green IT Expo", I did find several booths that addressed issues of energy conservation by being audited to determine carbon footprints and taking necessary actions to minimize their environmental impact. But I also found a majority who didn't acknowledge the title of their expo in any way.

What I did find were lavish displays that featured showroom sets for entertainment productions to introduce or discuss the latest server or security package. At one was a full-on magic show complete with dancers! (I was asked to turn off the video camera before the magician appeared suddenly in a cage). Each booth also featured scores of women to hand out advertising brochures and collateral. Others were quietly stationed in and around the massive center patiently displaying their services, hardware and software.

Was it green? Yes and no, but it's a start.