Ian Chew

CEO at GreenieWeb

Speaker

Ian Chew is the sole Founder of Greenie Web - a Singapore ClimateTech startup that decarbonizes digital infrastructure. He is a pioneer in the decarbonization of the digital world and is the first in Asia to have carried out such work.

Ian’s story has also been extraordinary – having started his journey in digital sustainability as a passion project back in 2009.

At present Greenie Web is a leading voice in advocating for low-carbon code and the decarbonization of digital infrastructure – beginning with websites. His startup, Greenie Web, is one of 7 startups globally to be selected for the highly competitive X-Hub incubation program administered by Deloitte for the Japanese government.

Greenie Web was also selected for the Info-Media Development Authority (IMDA Singapore) Pixel Incubator and the Singapore Management University BIG Incubator. He has clients from the education sector to the maritime sector.

Ian’s deep knowledge in the field has been picked up by the Asian Development Bank where he was appointed a resource person who is the subject matter expert and consultant for an ADB project on digitalization for green and inclusive growth

Ian is also the chairperson of the 29 by 29 Global Digital Sustainability Initiative. As the name of the initiative suggests, the initiative was launched in support of COP 29 to encourage capacity development of youths and young adults in sustainable digitization. Masterclasses have thus benefitted educational institutes from the University of Tempere in Finland to the University of Cape Town in South Africa and Cabramatta High School in Australia. After a successful inaugural run in 2023, the program is back this year with the aim to achieve a larger positive impact.

Ian launched the Global Youth Alliance for Sustainable Digitization and already has a sign-up list of more than 2270 youths worldwide, ranging backgrounds from computer science to political science.

Ian’s thought leadership in the area is recognized across industries and countries. Ian has been invited to speak at - United Nations Global Indigenous Youth Summit on Climate Change (global event)

– where he represented the voices of digital natives to share about sustainable digitization

- Wiki Finance Expo (a premier blockchain focused event in Singapore)

- Medical Fair China (one of the largest medical exhibitions in China)

- API Days in Melbourne (the leading technology conference in Australia)

- 5 th Economist Brownbag Session (at The Economist Asia-Pacific Headquarters for the global economist sustainability and energy personnel)

He has also been guest lecturer for digital sustainability for post-graduate degree courses and courses on continuing education for adult learning at Singapore Management University. He has also actively involved students from the local community in sustainability challenges to increase awareness and build capacity in this area; with Greenie Web being used a case study for MBA students from the National University of Singapore.

Press Coverage Links: The Star (Malaysia): https://cdn.thestar.com.my/Content/StarPicks/Issues/2A38FFF5-167D-4450- 98F9-CBBB71FBA827.pdf (Page 6)

China Water Risk (Hong Kong based think-tank): https://chinawaterrisk.org/opinions/greenie-webdecarbonizing-websites/

The National (United Arab Emirates – Abu Dhabi) https://www.thenationalnews.com/business/future/2023/11/22/does-the-web-have-a-carbonfootprint-problem/

Green IO Podcast (France): https://podcloud.fr/podcast/greenio/episode/numero-17-techsustainability-in-singapore-with-ian-chew-et-thibaut-meurgue-guyard

Times of India (28 by 28 Program): https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/28-by-28-program-tobuild-digital-sustainability-capacity-among-students-from-28-universities-before-cop-28- conclusion/articleshow/105317018.cms?from=mdr

The Straits Times (Singapore): https://www.straitstimes.com/multimedia/graphics/2023/12/datacentres-environmental-challenges/index.html?shell (Provision of Expert Opinion