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  • About
  • The Global ETD Search service is a free service for researchers to find electronic theses and dissertations. This service is provided by the Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations.
    Our metadata is collected from universities around the world. If you manage a university/consortium/country archive and want to be added, details can be found on the NDLTD website.
201

Greenhouse gas mitigation through healthy diets: Technical and political potentials

Zech, Konstantin M. 20 December 2017 (has links)
Agriculture causes large parts of global Greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE), with livestock contributing the greatest share. Livestock-based foods are thus associated to higher GHGE than plant-based foods. Additionally, they are harmful to health when consumed in excess. The focus of this work lies on determining the potential to reduce agricultural GHGE when healthy diets and lower meat intakes were adopted in the EU. lt is also examined how much feed crops and pastures would become available for the production of biofuels. An emission tax and an emission trading system are also examined. To assess the complex interactions in the agricultural sector, a modified version of the European Forest and Agricultural Sector Optimization Model (EUFASOM) is used. The results show that a halved meat intake could reduce agricultural GHGE by a quarter and biofuel production could increase eightfold. The political instruments lack effectiveness though. The GHG tax has a low impact on nutrition and roughly 50% emission leakage. Emission trading has only a moderate effect on nutrition and over 100% emission leakage.:1 Introduction 2 Goal and scope definition 3 Methodology 3.1 Overview 3.2 Spatial resolution 3.3 Products under consideration 3.4 Base data 3.4.1 Base quantities 3.4.2 Base prices 3.4.3 Base areas 3.4.4 Demand elasticities 3.5 Production processes 3.5.1 Crop production 3.5.2 Pasture production 3.5.3 Plant oil production 3.5.4 Biofuel production 3.5.5 Sugar production 3.5.6 Livestock production 3.6 EUFASOM – Theoretical foundation 3.7 EUFASOM – Demand and supply functions 3.8 EUFASOM – Model description 3.8.1 Objective function 3.8.2 Identity and convexity constraints 3.8.3 Product balance 3.8.4 Land use restrictions 3.8.5 Nitrogen balance 3.8.6 Further accounting equations 3.9 Calibration 3.10 Integration of scenarios 4 Scenarios and results 4.1 Scenario 1: Technical potential of healthy diets 4.1.1 What are healthy diets? 4.1.2 Implementation of healthy diets 4.1.3 Scenario 1.1: Healthy diets with constant calorie intake 4.1.4 Scenario 1.2: Healthy diets with restricted calorie intake 4.1.5 Scenario 1.3: Healthy diets with restricted ruminant meat intake 4.1.6 Discussion on the potentials of healthy diets 4.2 Scenario 2: Greenhouse gas emission taxes 4.3 Scenario 3: Redistribution of emissions taxes as biofuel subsidy 4.4 Scenario 4: Emissions trading scheme for agriculture 4.4.1 Scenario 4.1: GHGE-cap on agricultural production 4.4.2 Scenario 4.2: Combined GHGE-cap on agricultural production and net-imports 4.4.3 Scenario 4.3: GHGE-cap on agricultural production and generation of allowances through producing biofuels 4.4.4 Scenario 4.4: GHGE-cap on agricultural production and imports and generation of allowances through producing biofuels 4.4.5 Discussion on ETS 5 Summary and conclusion References List of Figures List of Tables List of Abbreviations Annex 1 Base Solution Annex 2 Process parameters and associated information Annex 3 Lists of model variables, process parameters, equations and sets Annex 4 Demand elasticities Annex 5 Derivation of specific energy and protein demand of livestock Annex 6 Further assumptions for the livestock sectors
202

Desarrollo de una herramienta integral de gestión de gases de efecto invernadero para la toma de decisión contra el cambio climático a nivel regional y local en la Comunitat Valenciana

Lorenzo Sáez, Edgar 21 March 2022 (has links)
Tesis por compendio / [ES] Actualmente, los responsables de tomar decisiones contra el cambio climático carecen de herramientas para desarrollar inventarios de emisiones de gases de efecto invernadero (GEI) con suficiente rigor científico-técnico y precisión para priorizar e invertir los recursos disponibles de manera eficiente en las medidas necesarias para luchar contra el cambio climático. Por ello, en esta tesis se expone el desarrollo de un sistema de información territorial y sectorial (SITE) para monitorear las emisiones de GEI que sirva como herramienta de gobernanza climática local y regional. SITE combina las ventajas de los enfoques metodológicos descendente o top-down (de arriba hacia abajo) y ascendente o bottom-up (de abajo hacia arriba), para lograr un enfoque híbrido innovador para contabilizar y gestionar de manera eficiente las emisiones de GEI. Por tanto, en esta tesis se definen los diferentes desarrollos metodológicos, tanto generales como específicos de sectores clave del Panel Intergubernamental de Cambio Climático (IPPC) (edificación, transporte, sector forestal, etc.), un desarrollo informático para la parte de SITE que se ejecuta del lado del servidor, que de ahora en adelante denominaremos back-end del sistema, y siete implementaciones como casos de estudio representativos, a diferentes escalas y aplicados sobre diferentes sectores. Estas implementaciones a diferentes escalas y sectores demuestran el potencial del sistema como herramienta de apoyo en la toma de decisión contra el cambio climático a nivel regional y local. Las diferentes implementaciones en casos piloto representativos, tanto a nivel regional en la Comunitat Valenciana como a nivel local en municipios grandes (València) y medianos (Quart de Poblet y Llíria) muestran el potencial de adaptación territorial y sectorial que tiene la herramienta. Las metodologías desarrolladas para los sectores específicos de tráfico rodado, edificación o sector forestal, ofrecen cuantificaciones con una resolución espacial con gran capacidad de optimizar las políticas locales y regionales. Por tanto, la herramienta cuenta con un gran potencial de escalabilidad y gran capacidad de mejora continua mediante la inclusión de nuevos enfoques metodológicos, adaptación de las metodologías a la disponibilidad de datos, metodologías concretas para sectores clave y actualización a las mejores metodologías disponibles derivadas de actividades de investigación de la comunidad científica. / [CA] Actualment, els responsables de prendre decisions contra el canvi climàtic no tenen eines per aconseguir inventaris d'emissions de gasos d'efecte hivernacle (GEH) amb prou cientificotècnic rigor, precisió i integritat per invertir els recursos disponibles de manera eficient en les mesures necessàries contra el canvi climàtic. Per això, en aquesta tesis se exposa el desenvolupa un sistema d'informació territorial i sectorial (SITE) per monitoritzar les emissions de GEH com a eina de governança climàtica local i regional. Aquest sistema combina els avantatges dels enfocaments metodològics descendent o top-down (de dalt a baix) i ascendent o bottom-up (de baix a dalt), per aconseguir un enfocament híbrid innovador per comptabilitzar i gestionar de manera eficient les emissions de GEH. Per tant, en aquesta tesi doctoral es descriuen els diferents desenvolupaments metodològics, tant generals com específics de sectors clau del Panel Intergovernamental contra el Canvi Climàtic (edificació, transport, forestal, etc.), un desenvolupament informàtic per al back-end del sistema i set implementacions com a casos d'estudi representatius, a diferents escales, amb els diferents enfocaments metodològics i aplicats sobre diferents sectors. Això queda descrit en sis capítols. Aquestes implementacions a diferents escales i sectors demostren el potencial del sistema com a eina de suport en la presa de decisió contra el canvi climàtic a nivell regional i local. Les diferents implementacions en casos pilot representatius, tant a nivell regional a la Comunitat Valenciana com a nivell local en municipis grans (València) i mitjans (Quart de Poblet i Llíria,) mostren el potencial d'adaptació territorial i sectorial que té l'eina. Les metodologies desenvolupades per als sectors específics de trànsit rodat, edificació i forestal, ofereixen quantificacions amb una resolució espacial amb gran capacitat d'optimitzar les polítiques locals i regionals. Per tant, l'eina compta amb un gran potencial d'escalabilitat i gran capacitat de millora contínua mitjançant la inclusió de nous enfocaments metodològics, adaptació de les metodologies a la disponibilitat de dades, metodologies concretes per a sectors clau, i actualització a les millors metodologies disponibles derivades de activitats de investigació de la comunitat científica. / [EN] Currently, regional and local decision-makers lack of tools to achieve greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions inventories with enough rigor, accuracy and completeness in order to prioritize available resources efficiently against climate change. Thus, in this thesis the development of a territorial and sectoral information system (SITE) to monitor GHG emissions as a local and regional climate governance tool is exposed. This system combines the advantages of both, top-down and bottom-up approaches, to achieve an innovative hybrid approach to account and manage efficiently GHG emissions. Furthermore, this thesis defines the methodologies developed, a computer proposal for the back-end of the system and seven implementations as representative case studies at different scales (local and regional level), with the different methodological approaches and applied to different sectors. Thus, these implementations demonstrate the potential of the system as decision-making tool against climate change at the regional and local level as climate governance tool. The different implementations in representative pilot cases, both at the regional level in the Valencian Community and at the local level in large (Valencia) and medium-sized municipalities (Quart de Poblet and Llíria) demonstrate the potential for territorial and sectoral adaptation of the system developed. The methodologies developed for the specific sectors of road transport, building and forestry, offer quantifications with a spatial resolution with a great capacity to optimize local and regional policies. Therefore, the tool has a great potential for scalability and a great capacity for continuous improvement through the inclusion of new methodological approaches, adapting the methodologies to the availability of data, specific methodologies for key sectors, and updating to the best methodologies available in the scientific community. / Lorenzo Sáez, E. (2022). Desarrollo de una herramienta integral de gestión de gases de efecto invernadero para la toma de decisión contra el cambio climático a nivel regional y local en la Comunitat Valenciana [Tesis doctoral]. Universitat Politècnica de València. https://doi.org/10.4995/Thesis/10251/181662 / TESIS / Compendio
203

Cross-scale drivers of greenhouse gas emissions and local solutions for climate change mitigation

Landholm Haight, David Milan 11 March 2022 (has links)
Um das 1,5°C Ziel zu verhindern, müssen bis 2020 die globalen anthropogenen CO2 Emissionen Sektor-übergreifend ihren Spitzenwert erreichen und bis 2050 auf Netto-Null-Emissionen sinken. Der AFOLU Sektor hat einen Anteil von 23% an den globalen Treibhausgasemissionen (THGE). Neben der Möglichkeit THGE zu vermeiden, bietet die Implementierung von Klimaschutzmitigation auch Synergien um die Ernährungssicherheit, Nährstoff- und Wassereffizienz zu verbessern sowie Landdegradation umzukehren. Eine kritische Bedeutung hat die Abholzung von tropischen Waldflächen durch die mehr als ein Drittel der Emissionen im Bereich des AFOLU entsteht. Vor diesem Hintergrund werden vorliegend, mit Fokus auf die Abholzung in der tropischen Zone, die indirekten Auslöser der THGE innerhalb des AFOLU untersucht. Diese Auslöser werden zunächst auf einer globalen Skala analysiert, wobei die Rolle der Variabilität von Preisveränderungen international gehandelter Waren und weiterer sozio-ökonomischer Indikatoren auf regionale Waldumwandlungsprozesse betrachtet wird. Anschließend analysiert diese Arbeit den Aspekt des Waldverlustes im Zusammenhang mit politischer Instabilität und bewaffneten Konflikten. Zudem werden regionale Lösungen zur Mitigation in weiteren Sektoren adressiert. Insbesondere wird die Möglichkeit zur THGE-Einsparung in silvopastoralen Systemen untersucht um das Zusammenspiel zwischen intensiver Viehbewirtschaftung und der Kohlenstofffixierung besser zu verstehen. Darüber hinaus werden regionale Lösungen mit Hilfe von Basisorganisationen bzw. gemeindebasierten Initiativen (CBI) zur THGE-Einsparung in den Bereichen Energie, Nahrungsmittel, Transport und Abfall erforscht. Diese Arbeit liefert vielfältige Beiträge zum Verständnis der indirekten Auslöser von Abholzung und den damit verbundenen THGE innerhalb der tropischen Zone, sowie zur Förderung lokaler Lösungen für die sektorübergreifende THG-Minderung. / Global anthropogenic CO2 emissions from different sectors must peak in 2020 and reach net zero by 2050 in order to reach the 1.5°C target. The AFOLU sector represents 23% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In addition to its mitigation potential, the implementation of solutions in this sector also holds the synergistic potential of enhancing climate change adaptation, improving food security, nutrient and water efficiency, and reverting land degradation. Tropical deforestation is of particular importance within the AFOLU sector, representing over a third of its emissions. Against this backdrop, this thesis examines the underlying drivers of GHG emissions in the AFOLU sector, with a particular emphasis on tropical deforestation. These drivers are explored, firstly, at a global scale by addressing the role that changes in price of internationally-traded commodity products and other socio-economic variables exert on regional forest conversion. Secondly, this work examines the relationship between tree cover loss and a very under-researched driver of tropical deforestation, namely extreme political instability and armed conflict. Motivated by the urgency of climate change impacts, this thesis also explores local solutions for climate change mitigation across different sectors. In particular, the GHG mitigation role of silvopastoral systems, a type of agroforestry system, is examined to further understand the interplay between livestock intensification and carbon sequestration. In addition, more broad, local-scale solutions are examined across the energy, food, transport, and waste sectors by addressing the GHG mitigation potential of grassroots organizations, also known as community-based initiatives (CBIs). This thesis provides manifold contributions, not only to further understand some of the underlying drivers of deforestation and associated GHG emissions in the tropics, but also towards the advancement of local solutions for GHG mitigation across sectors.
204

Energy saving opportunities in residential buildings: insights from technological and building energy code perspectives

Li, Bo 21 September 2020 (has links)
The residential building sector plays an important role in combating climate change in Canada. Many energy efficiency solutions along with new building energy standards have been implemented to improve building energy performance. However, their effects on energy saving and GHG emissions reduction vary due to the complexity of the building systems and the variability of their operational conditions. This work quantifies such variability in both energy efficiency devices and building energy standards implementation, respectively. The first study in this dissertation assesses the energy savings from sensible heat recovery in a residential apartment suite in various locations across Canada. A series of detailed building energy performance models are developed in TRNSYS. The HVAC system’s annual energy consumption is simulated and the results are compared with and without HRV for each climate zone. The results show the heating energy savings of employing the HRV vary from 17 to 34% depending on the winter climatic conditions; while, the building cooling energy use can be increased due to the undesired thermal recovery occurring in the HRV during the cooling season. The second study investigates the free cooling potential of outside air in various Canadian cities. A series of thermal models developed using BEopt 2.8 for a hypothetical single-family house with various window-to-wall ratios and building aspect ratios simulates hourly building cooling load profiles. The free cooling potential is analyzed by comparing the maximum available and the actual usable free cooling for various building features and different climates. The results indicate that, although free cooling is widely available in most areas of Canada during the summer and shoulder seasons, only 17-42% of such free cooling is usable without the use of thermal storage. The last study examines the effects of two building energy standards - the BC Step Code and the Passive House criteria - on reductions in residential household space heating GHG emissions under different enforcement scenarios. The space heating energy and the GHG emissions are estimated using the forecast growth of single detached households for the period from 2020 to 2032. The results show that the space heating GHG emissions can be reduced by 77% and 89%, respectively if the BC Step Code or the Passive House criteria is implemented in Canada. It is also found the impacts of energy code on GHG emission mitigation are less significant in regions where the carbon intensity of the dominant heating fuels is low. / Graduate
205

Quantification of emissions in the ICT sector – a comparative analysis of the Product Life Cycle Assessment and Spend-based methods. : Optimal value chain accounting (Scope 3, category 1)

Rajesh Jha, Abhishek kumar January 2022 (has links)
Considering the rapid increase in the ICT (Information & Communication Technology) products in use, there is a risk of an increase in GHG emissions and electronic waste accumulation in the ICT sector. Therefore, it becomes important to account for the emissions in the ICT sector in order to take steps to mitigate them. There are several methods put forward under ETSI, ITU-T, GHG protocol, etc., which can be used to measure the emissions in the ICT sector. Two such methods are Product Life Cycle Assessment (PLCA) and Spend-based, which are used in this study to account for scope 3, category 1 emissions in the ICT sector. Scope 3, category 1 emissions are released during the raw material acquisition and part production phase of the ICT product’s life cycle and account for a major portion of the overall emissions. As the ICT sector is a very huge field of study in itself, two ICT products, namely smartphones and laptops, are considered in this study to calculate their overall scope 3, category 1 emissions. A list of influential components in smartphones and laptops is defined to be included in the Excel Management Life Cycle Assessment (EMLCA) tool to calculate the scope 3, category 1 emissions. A comprehensive comparison between PLCA and Spend-based methods is also studied during the process of calculating their emissions. These observations are then used to make critical analyses and compare the two methods under results and discussions based on various parameters described under them. Both the methods were found to be suitable for calculating the emissions, with some uncertainty, although the Spend-based method was a quicker approach to do so. The PLCA method, although more complex, was found to be more suitable for ICT product eco-design. Both methods required a different set of primary data and were sensitive to various components in smartphones and laptops. This study illustrates the parameters that affect PLCA and Spend-based methods and discusses the pros and cons of them depending on the situations they are used in.
206

Effects of Network Degradation On Energy Consumption of Mobile Cloud Gaming

Thapa, Ashmita January 2022 (has links)
Cloud gaming over mobile networks enables players to play high-resource consuming games on low-end devices with various intrinsic restrictions such as limited battery lifetime and computational capacity. For mobile cloud gaming(MCG), the remaining battery level on the device is one of the critical factors that affect the sensitivity of user satisfaction. Thus, an android application is developed to measure the energy consumption of mobile devices that measure the power consumption of the device such that the obtained values correspond with the specific network conditions and users. The collected values are studied to identify if the energy consumption of the device is impacted by the network degradation that might occur during MCG in cellular networks. Results demonstrate that the energy consumption is at its highest when packet loss is 45% at 2ms RoundTrip Time (RTT) delay. Moreover, a qualitative study on the perceived Quality of Experience (QoE) of MCG over mobile networks is conducted and its impact on the energy consumption of the device is investigated where 31 users play a cloud-based First Person Shooter (FPS) for approximately 2 hours each. The results demonstrate the existence of the relationship between energy consumption and perceived QoE whereas negates the hypothesis of the existence of the relationship between QoE and CPU resources. In addition, to make comparisons of energy consumption of MCG with online mobile gaming (OMG), another test is carried out where each user plays another non-cloud-based FPS game and it is found that MCG is more efficient than OMG under the least energy-consuming network condition (2ms RTT delay) by 33.3% and the most energy consuming network condition (45% packet loss at 2ms RTT) by 32.7% in 4G cellular network.
207

Short-Time Temporal Changes of CH4 Fluxes in Different Tropical Tree Species : In-situ research regarding methane emissions from inundation-adapted Amazonian tree species in Jardim Botânico do Rio de Janeiro.

Athley, Emelie January 2023 (has links)
Methane (CH4) is guaranteed to affect climate change and is essential in rising temperatures. Scientists have known for over two decades that wetlands emit CH4 to such an extent that it affects our climate. Tropical trees that grow in wetlands tend to emit or act as a conduit of CH4, to the extent that it has a negative environmental impact. However, until this study, no one has examined whether wetland species growing in another environment have the same effects. Hence, this thesis aimed to collect data from wetland-adapted tropical trees in a non-wetland environment, namely the Botanical Garden in Rio de Janeiro. The results showed a difference in the sampling height of the stem, namely that a decrease in emission is seen with an increased height. All the species except one (Pseudobombax munguba) showed both assimilation and emission from the day-to-day measurements of CH4, which speaks for the trees acting both as a sink and a source of CH4. This suggests that the species are more robust than the environmental stressors in a non-wetland environment. Previous studies have found that increased CH4 emissions can be seen with different meteorological parameters. The results presented in this thesis show the opposite, that some species tend to emit less or assimilate more CH4 during days with increased rainfall, humidity, and temperature.
208

A Foucauldian–Fairclaughian Discursive Analysis of the Social Construction of ICT for Environmentally Sustainable Urban Development – the Case of European Society

Bibri, Simon Elias January 2013 (has links)
ICT has become so deeply embedded into the fabric of European society – in economic, political, and socio-cultural narratives, practices, and structures – that it has been constructed as holding tremendous untapped and inestimable potential for instigating and unleashing far-reaching societal transformation, addressing key societal challenges, and solving all societal problems. It has recently been seen, given its ubiquity, as a critical driver and powerful catalyst for sustainable urban development due to its potential to enable substantial energy savings and GHG emissions reductions in most urban sectors, especially buildings. However, related to this ubiquity, there are also a lot of visions (of limited modern applicability), hopes, myths, fallacies, and oxymora, which applies for the environmental subsystem of information society where debates focus on whether ICT can advance environmental urban sustainability. There are intricate relationships and tradeoffs among the multidimensional effects of ICT for the environment that flow mostly from the use and application of ICT – e.g. energy efficiency technology - throughout the urban sphere. Regardless, the technological orientation and framing of the sustainable city and the green economy has gained dominance in European society and become prevalent in what has come to be identified or known as the discourse of ICT for sustainable urban development (ICT4SUD). The aim of this study is to carry out a critical reading of the social construction of ICT4SUD, the underlying ideology about the ICT potential in advancing environmental urban sustainability. To achieve this aim, a Foucauldian-Faircloughian discursive approach is employed to examine the selected empirical material. This approach consists of nine stages: (1) surface descriptors and contextual elements; (2) historical-diachronic dimension; (3) epistemic and cultural frames; (4) discursive constructions and discourses; (5) social actors and framing power; (6) discursive strategies; (7) discursive mechanisms; (8) political practice, knowledge, and power; and (9) ideological standpoints.As a scholarly discourse, ICT4SUD is inherently part of and influenced by economic, societal, and political structures, and produced in social interaction. ICT4SUD is thus neither paradigmatic nor value-free, but rather socio-politically situated. It is shaped by cultural frames that are conventionalized by European society and attuned to its values, and it is a matter of a pre-intellectual space where ICT and sustainability constitute salient defining factors of the dominant configuration of knowledge, institutions, and material forces of European society. Indeed, ICT4SUD is impacted by earlier representations of reality and how they were reproduced in relation to the significance of discursive constructions of ICT and sustainability issues in the broader context of European culture. Moreover, the ICT4SUD discourse plays a major role in (re)constructing the image of the ICT industry as a social actor and in defining its identity and relation with other constituents of society, in that it is relocated new roles and attributed new societal missions. The dominant framing of the reports is clearly the one advanced by the ICT industry: it is constituted into the main definer of the represented reality. Further, positioning the ICT industry as the driver of the low-carbon city/economy aids the construction of an image of leadership in creating a low carbon society. The reports’ construction of energy efficiency technology is a powerful legitimation of the ICT industry’s views and actions. In addition, the ICT4SUD discourse is exclusionary, namely a number of facts and issues pertaining to structural, indirect, and systemic effects of ICT and the associated rebound effects are left out, concealed, or neglected. Also, the discourse is inclined to be deterministic, i.e. it postulates that ICT, supported by policy, will achieve SUD while it falls short in considering social behaviour and socio-economic relationships. It moreover tends to be rhetorical – that is, it promises environmentally SUD without really having a holistic strategy to achieve that goal. Furthermore, given the scientific discourse and the legitimation capacity of computing, climatology, and sustainability indicators, one can subsume a range of social and political effects under the category of discourse mechanisms through which ICT4SUD operates, which both show the power of discourse and potentially empower the ICT industry and its cohorts. There are different justifications for the development of energy efficiency technology in relation to decision-making processes. Plus, politics, as a consequence of its interaction with ICT4SUD, forces, though different mechanisms, the emergence and development of the ICT4SUD discourse, which is, simultaneously, influenced by the power/knowledge relations established in European society that bounds or expands its success. Finally, as to ideological reproduction, the ICT4SUD discourse reconstructs cultural claims, conveys ideological messages, and reproduces and legitimizes power structures.
209

Quality of Data in Scope 3 Sustainability Reporting for the Mining and Extractive Industry

Bratan, Dastan, Jacob, Steve Anthony January 2024 (has links)
Climate change is the most pressing environmental challenge of our time, with global temperatures rising and extreme weather events becoming more frequent. The corporate sector, particularly large industrial entities, faces increasing scrutiny due to its significant contributions to global emissions. This thesis examines Scope 3 emissions reporting within the mining and extractive industries, focusing on data quality and comparing Nordic and international practices.    Using a self-developed theoretical model of logic, concepts, metrics, and tools, this research investigates how these industries report their Scope 3 emissions and identifies gaps in current practices. The study utilizes an abductive approach, combining both inductive and deductive methods, supported by a mixed-method combined of empirical data from publicly available sustainability reports and an online questionnaire, targeting mining and extractive companies and sustainability managers.   Key findings reveal considerable variability in how companies report Scope 3 emissions, with Nordic companies often lagging behind their international counterparts despite strong sustainability credentials. Data quality concerns, including issues of accuracy, completeness, and timeliness, undermine stakeholders' ability to make informed decisions. Additionally, the research highlights diverse tools and methodologies employed by companies, noting that the lack of clear guidelines often hinders their effectiveness.   This thesis contributes to a deeper understanding of Scope 3 emissions management, emphasizing the need for standardized and effective reporting practices.
210

<b>GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS AND TIME-USE PATTERNS UNDER WORK FROM HOME: AN ACTIVITY-BASED INDIVIDUAL-LEVEL MODEL</b>

Hongyue Wu (19183129) 20 July 2024 (has links)
<p dir="ltr">Work from home (WFH) moves work into home life, reshaping the residential, workplace, and commuting activities, which further impacts greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Although existing work has explored individual time-use patterns under WFH, there is a lack of complete consideration of diverse activities, their durations and timelines, as well as the comparisons with traditional life at home and Work in Office (WIO). Also, existing studies have examined GHG emissions under WFH, while individual-level estimation using activity-specific data covering all major activities is lacking. In particular, limited studies explored individual time-use patterns and quantified activity-based emissions for the construction workforce. Therefore, this dissertation aims to (1) develop an activity-based individual-level model to estimate GHG emissions under WFH, (2) compare individual time-use patterns and activity-based GHG emissions between traditional life at home, WFH, and WIO to understand how WFH affects work, life, and the environment, especially for the construction workforce, and (3) propose activity-based decarbonization strategies to reduce GHG emissions. By employing the proposed model, high-resolution calculations of individual time-use patterns and activity-based emissions were achieved, revealing major activities’ durations and timing and highlighting major contributing activities to emissions under WFH. When shifting from traditional life at home to WFH, individuals reduced sleeping and leisure hours to incorporate work activity, resulting in an 11.34% reduction in GHG emissions. When comparing WFH to WIO, individuals reduced work and commuting time to include more cooking and leisure activities at home, mitigating GHG emissions by 29.11%. Demographic groups and climate regions showed different results mainly because of the varied work and household duties and the characteristics of regions. In addition, the construction workforce reduced GHG emissions by 13% and 46% under WFH compared to traditional life at home and WIO, respectively. Compared to the general public, the construction workforce had more reduction in work and commuting hours and associated emissions when shifting from WIO to WFH. The findings could help envision how WFH influences work, life, and the environment as well as assist both individuals and policymakers in achieving decarbonization and adopting low-carbon living during the work arrangement transition, which could contribute to sustainable development.</p>

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