In this episode of Environment Variables, host Chris Adams is joined by Tammy Sukprasert, a PhD student at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, to dive deep into her research on carbon-aware computing. Tammy explores the concept of shifting computing workloads across time and space to reduce carbon emissions, focusing on the benefits and limitations of this approach. She explains how moving workloads to cleaner regions or delaying them until cleaner energy sources are available can help cut emissions, but also discusses the challenges that come with real-world constraints like server capacity and latency. Together they discuss the findings from her recent papers, including the differences between average and marginal carbon intensity signals and how they impact decision-making. The conversation highlights the complexity of achieving carbon savings and the need for better metrics and strategies in the world of software development.