TOKYO, -- The country's leading tech companies showcased their innovations and green strategies at the recent CEATEC electronics show.

Unless your IT department is run by an ultra-conscious greenie, there are probably steps towards energy efficiency that you can take in the new year. While these New Year's IT resolutions cost time and money, they are a worthwhile investment in the long run.

Expect 2009 to be a breakout year for Green IT, with it taking a central role not just in IT departments, but in the enterprise as a whole. The economic meltdown, a big new stimulus package, and advances in technology will all combine to put green IT directly at the center of how corporations operate.

The past year has brought a sea change in the world of IT, with big changes underway in every aspect of computers' lifecycles, as well as increasing awareness of the power of the computer age to address larger environmental issues.

Despite the overall economic meltdown, there's good news for IT pros with green smarts --- your job skills will most likely be in demand next year, and you're not as likely as others to hurt by the economic crisis.

Robert Metcalfe, inventor of the Ethernet and founder of networking company 3Com, says that if green tech is ever to take off, it needs to learn the lessons of IT and the Internet.

Dell has taken a hard shot at Apple's ads proclaiming the MacBook to be green, has criticized Apple for misleading advertising, and says Apple isn't really a green company at all. In fact, Dell says in a blog, "Apple hasn't stated any goals, just made claims, which as far as we can tell, are not accurate."

OAKLAND, Calif. -- Virtualization to be replaced by the cloud and telework? Culling toxics from products and boosting takeback? Power management over hardware upgrades? No matter what shape it takes, experts agree that green IT will figure prominently in the new year.

PORTLAND, Ore. -- Adding more momentum to the green IT movement, the Green Electronics Council has joined forces with EcoLogo to make it even easier to certify and promote electronics that are energy efficient, easily recyclable and free of toxic chemicals.

The deepening recession won't slow the pace of Green IT initiatives, and may in fact increase their pace. So says a just-released report from Forrester, which finds that Green IT has begun to take a central place in mainstream IT practices.

IBM applies its computing expertise -- and the idle processing power of 400,000 civilians -- to explore ways to make rice fields more productive by analyzing the grain's proteins and come up with higher-yield and more nutritious strains.

Wonder which IT suppliers have the best green records? According to Ceres, an environmental and public interest investment coalition, IBM Dell, and Intel are at the top. And the technology industry in general is more environmentally responsible than other industries.

The Sony VGN-SR290PDB laptop is the lucky recipient of the 1000th EPEAT (Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool) label.