Students and staff at the University of the West of England (UWE) can now see the real-time, monthly and annual carbon emissions associated with every building on the different campuses in and around Bristol. Our prototype carbon and energy visualiser has been improved to give faster and smoother operation and also allow viewing on smart phones, tablets and full-sized screens.
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UWE has made a commitment to reduce absolute carbon emissions by 22.5% and a 50% relative reduction of energy by 2020 (over 2005 baseline). This means that no matter how many buildings, or students, are at UWE Bristol overall carbon emissions must be reduced. The university is on course to meet this ambitious target but to reach it everyone on campus needs to be aware of the challenge and actions they can take to help.
“This is a really practical tool for our colleagues and students here at UWE Bristol, helping people make a connection between their day-to-day actions and carbon reduction. The beauty of the visualiser is it will work for staff, students, academics and also the thousands of visitors to the University every year. The potential for impact in meeting our commitment of a 50% carbon reduction is significant.”
“It is hard to act on a problem when its cause is invisible. Building managers and building users both understand the importance of energy efficiency and reducing greenhouse gas emissions, but only building managers have a feel for the scale of the problem and the impact of changing behaviour. This visualiser helps make emissions real for building users, which is the first step to proper engagement with the problem.”