Skip to main content

LUP Student Papers

LUND UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

The Weight of the Cloud: Who Owns the Rain? Cloud Sustainability Beyond Metrics: Provider Transparency and Customer-Side Feasibility in SaaS Deployment Decisions

Ni Uanachain, Aoife Michelle LU (2026) In IIIEE Master Thesis IMEM01 20261
The International Institute for Industrial Environmental Economics
Abstract
The rapid expansion of cloud computing and AI-driven digital services is reshaping global digital infrastructure, while simultaneously intensifying concerns surrounding the energy use, carbon emission, and broader environmental impacts of data centres. Although hyperscale Cloud Service Providers (CSPs) increasingly position cloud computing as sustainable and energy-efficient, it remains unclear whether the sustainability information they disclose is sufficiently transparent, comparable, and actionable to support real-world deployment decision by cloud-dependent organisation. This thesis addresses the gaps by examining both the availability of cloud sustainability information and its organisational feasibility and applicability in practice.... (More)
The rapid expansion of cloud computing and AI-driven digital services is reshaping global digital infrastructure, while simultaneously intensifying concerns surrounding the energy use, carbon emission, and broader environmental impacts of data centres. Although hyperscale Cloud Service Providers (CSPs) increasingly position cloud computing as sustainable and energy-efficient, it remains unclear whether the sustainability information they disclose is sufficiently transparent, comparable, and actionable to support real-world deployment decision by cloud-dependent organisation. This thesis addresses the gaps by examining both the availability of cloud sustainability information and its organisational feasibility and applicability in practice.
The study adopts a qualitative, interpretative research design structured in two phases. Phase 1 focuses on evaluating the transparency, comparability, and decision relevance of sustainability disclosures from Amazon, Microsoft, and Google; Phase 2 investigated how such information is interpreted and acted upon within Neo4j, a mid-sized SaaS organisation chosen as case study.
The thesis contributes to literature by linking provider-level transparency with customer-side feasibility, demonstrating that the key challenges in cloud sustainability lies in the translation of fragmented information into actions. The study further providers practical recommendations for improving disclosure practices and enabling more effective sustainability integration in cloud-dependent organisations. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Ni Uanachain, Aoife Michelle LU
supervisor
organization
course
IMEM01 20261
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
Cloud Sustainability, Cloud Deployment Decision, Data Centre Environmental Impacts, Transparency, Bounded Rationality, Mid-Sized SaaS Firms.
publication/series
IIIEE Master Thesis
report number
2026:17
ISSN
1401-9191
language
English
id
9247299
date added to LUP
2026-08-10 10:27:45
date last changed
2026-08-10 10:27:45
@misc{9247299,
  abstract     = {{The rapid expansion of cloud computing and AI-driven digital services is reshaping global digital infrastructure, while simultaneously intensifying concerns surrounding the energy use, carbon emission, and broader environmental impacts of data centres. Although hyperscale Cloud Service Providers (CSPs) increasingly position cloud computing as sustainable and energy-efficient, it remains unclear whether the sustainability information they disclose is sufficiently transparent, comparable, and actionable to support real-world deployment decision by cloud-dependent organisation. This thesis addresses the gaps by examining both the availability of cloud sustainability information and its organisational feasibility and applicability in practice.
The study adopts a qualitative, interpretative research design structured in two phases. Phase 1 focuses on evaluating the transparency, comparability, and decision relevance of sustainability disclosures from Amazon, Microsoft, and Google; Phase 2 investigated how such information is interpreted and acted upon within Neo4j, a mid-sized SaaS organisation chosen as case study.
The thesis contributes to literature by linking provider-level transparency with customer-side feasibility, demonstrating that the key challenges in cloud sustainability lies in the translation of fragmented information into actions. The study further providers practical recommendations for improving disclosure practices and enabling more effective sustainability integration in cloud-dependent organisations.}},
  author       = {{Ni Uanachain, Aoife Michelle}},
  issn         = {{1401-9191}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  series       = {{IIIEE Master Thesis}},
  title        = {{The Weight of the Cloud: Who Owns the Rain? Cloud Sustainability Beyond Metrics: Provider Transparency and Customer-Side Feasibility in SaaS Deployment Decisions}},
  year         = {{2026}},
}