Carbon Footprint of one’s own Shelter
Subject
Building Services
,Climatology
,Academic Year
1'st Year
,2'nd Year
,Complexity Level
Beginner
,Content tags
Carbon Footprinting
,Environmental Impact of Architecture
,Sustainable Building Design
,Activity Type
Numerical Exercise
,Activity duration
< 30 mins
,Objective:
To calculate carbon footprint of one’s own house
Outcome:
Students will start understanding carbon footprint and know of the impact their own house and lifestyle creates on the environment.
Requirements:
Online Carbon Footprint Calculator
Prerequisites:
Fundamental knowledge of Carbon Footprint
Procedure:
Step 1: Introduce the basic mathematical calculation of carbon footprinting in the class
Carbon Footprint: Activity X Emission Factor
where,
Carbon Footprint unit = metric tons of CO2e
Activity = Pattern of food, energy consumptions, transportation usage, etc
Emission Factor = Relevant default emission factor of each activity
Step 2: Each student can conduct carbon footprinting for their own house using an online footprint calculator. Some of the suggested calculators are referred to in the references.
Step 3: Initiate a discussion in the class to facilitate sharing of the results and the learnings, some of the prompt questions suggested are:
- How many metric tons does their house produce? It would be interesting to know what is the maximum and minimum tons of carbon within the class and the kind of lifestyle that it pertains to?
- Which component or activity caused the maximum carbon?
- How would they reduce the carbon footprint, if they are willing to?