Open-Source Carbon Footprint Estimator: Development and University Declination

Clément Auger, Benoit Hilloulin, Benjamin Boisserie, Maël Thomas, Quentin Guignard and Emmanuel Rozière
Additional contact information
Clément Auger: Civil Engineering and Mechanics Research Institute (GeM), Ecole Centrale de Nantes, UMR CNRS 6183, 1 Rue de la Noë, 44300 Nantes, France
Benoit Hilloulin: Civil Engineering and Mechanics Research Institute (GeM), Ecole Centrale de Nantes, UMR CNRS 6183, 1 Rue de la Noë, 44300 Nantes, France
Benjamin Boisserie: Association Bilan Carbone (ABC), 41 Rue Beauregard, 75002 Paris, France
Maël Thomas: Datagir, Agence de la Transition Ecologique, 20, Avenue du Grésillé, BP 90406, CEDEX 01, 49004 Angers, France
Quentin Guignard: Association Bilan Carbone (ABC), 41 Rue Beauregard, 75002 Paris, France
Emmanuel Rozière: Civil Engineering and Mechanics Research Institute (GeM), Ecole Centrale de Nantes, UMR CNRS 6183, 1 Rue de la Noë, 44300 Nantes, France

Sustainability, 2021, vol. 13, issue 8, 1-15

Abstract: Anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions need to be cut to limit climate change. Thus, universities, in the same way as citizens and companies, are starting to raise awareness about this issue and to take action to reduce their carbon footprint. Centrale Nantes, a French “Grande école”, initiated a low carbon transition with the calculation of the 2018 carbon footprint of the university. This report presents an individual carbon footprint estimator developed within the scope of the university, based on the new open-source French national simulator called “Nos Gestes Climat” proposed by ABC (Association Bilan Carbone (Association for the implementation of Carbon footprint assessment)) and ADEME (French Environment and Energy Management Agency). Development context and important features of the national version are described. Then, to meet university user’s expectations, feedback from a panel of testers has been collected in order to guide the declination development and promote good practices ensuring user engagement. The transparency of the data model, the accurate explanations, the variety of actions have been found to be key success factors for the development and the adoption of such a simulator. Results also suggested that users are keen to involve themselves in the university initiative to reach carbon neutrality.

Keywords: carbon footprint calculator; low carbon university; individual actions; environmental impact; sustainability awareness (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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