HAC3 Accelerating Emission Reduction
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HAC3 Accelerating Emission Reduction of Environmental Impacts within Humanitarian Action
Researchers collaborate to enhance carbon footprint analysis for humanitarian aid, calculating emission factors and optimizing supply chains through comprehensive Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs). - Researchers use Life Cycle Assessments (LCAs) to determine real impact of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in supply chains and in specific sectors such as energy, textiles or transport. However, there is currently a lack of complete LCAs done in the context of procuring, transporting and disposing of essential humanitarian aid items in the field. To fill this gap, the team will, in collaboration with peers, calculate emission factors for selected humanitarian aid items known to contribute significantly to GHG footprints; outline key parameters to consider optimizing decarbonization of humanitarian supply chains; feed these factors into an open-source database specially-developed for the humanitarian sector, which will be maintained in the future by the Climate Action Accelerator (CAA). Learn more about the project here.
Credits Main Image: ICRC/Ana Mulua/27.06.2022
Dr. Cara Tobin is an environmental engineer specialized in sustainable and circular innovations. She is a lead mentor and Board Member for start-ups with the reduction of their carbon / water footprints and the quantification of impact metrics. In her scientific role, she has supported the development of carbon emission calculation tools for the United Nations. As a former founder, she led the development of a blended climate finance platform that helped to secure over USD 330 million of financing for low carbon / resilience building projects and technologies. Cara is passionate about the application of innovations supporting the water/energy/food nexus, biodiversity and sustainable tourism.
As leader of the EPFL EssentialTech’s Humanitarian Division, Greg works at the interface of research and humanitarian action. He is leading several large-scale partnerships between EPFL and the ICRC (Engineering for Humanitarian Action), the UNHCR (The Geneva Technical Hub) and the Graduate Institute (The Future of Humanitarian Design). He is also developing executive trainings for humanitarian practitioners on the responsible use of technology in humanitarian setting, as well as about cybersecurity in the sector. Prior to working at EssentialTech, he led the Innovation Coordination at MSF (Doctors Without Borders) Switzerland, aimed at harnessing the power of medical, humanitarian and digital innovations to meet the needs of patients and others affected by disasters. He previously worked several years as a manager for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in various regions affected by armed conflicts (Afghanistan, Colombia, Central African Republic, Cote d'Ivoire) and later as Deputy Director for the Antenna Foundation, an NGO that incubates innovative solutions to meet the basic needs of people living in poverty. He is the co-founder and current President of the Board of Watalux SA, a social startup developing innovation for safe water and better hygiene in hospitals, and Board Member of SwissSolidarity, a leading Swiss philanthropic foundation. He holds a PhD in Life Science from the University of Lausanne (Switzerland).
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