Climate emissions calculation for the ZHAW Green Impact Book
Solution concept for the carbon footprint and implementation since 2017
At a glance
- Project leader : Matthias Stucki
- Deputy of project leader : Michael Götz
- Project team : Francesco Bortoluzzi, Sebastian Bradford, Regula Keller, Marco Linpinsel, Silvan Wanner
- Project budget : CHF 100'000
- Project status : ongoing
- Funding partner : Internal (ZHAW Sustainable / GIB Ressortforschung)
- Contact person : Matthias Stucki
Description
The Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW) aims to achieve sustainability goals across various levels. To support ecologically sustainable operations, the Green Impact Book (GIB) is introduced, outlining targets in mobility, energy, and resources. ZHAW Sustainable coordinates the implementation of the sustainability strategy at the university.
As part of the GIB implementation, the strategic program ZHAW Sustainable commissions departments to conduct research projects to further develop the GIB and address gaps in data collection, implementation, and reporting of GIB goals, measures, and indicators. The Life Cycle Assessment Research Group at the Institute for Environment and Natural Resources (IUNR) is tasked with developing solutions for calculating ZHAW's carbon footprint and assessing the climate relevance of various areas. These calculations are included in the 2023 Sustainability Report.
The project identifies the necessary data and quality required for accurate modeling and recommends procedures for emission calculations. ZHAW Sustainable provides the required foreground data on energy, mobility, resources, and waste to the Life Cycle Assessment Research Group. Using this data, a carbon footprint of ZHAW is created. The report details the data basis, developed solutions, and emission factors used, presents the results of the emission calculations, and offers recommendations for further improvement of the solutions.