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What is Your Time Worth?

Learn why every second counts and get practical tips to manage your time effectively from the very best in Formula 1. Prioritise tasks, leverage your team's skills, and make every moment count. Dive in and navigate your career like a pro!

We Not Me

Explore the Apollo 13 mission and learn how teamwork, communication, and cognitive diversity drive success. Discover strategies to build trust, manage conflict, and leverage diverse perspectives. See how effective collaboration can elevate your performance.

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Latest Steps

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What is Your Time Worth?

Learn why every second counts and get practical tips to manage your time effectively from the very best in Formula 1. Prioritise tasks, leverage your team's skills, and make every moment count. Dive in and navigate your career like a pro!

We Not Me

Explore the Apollo 13 mission and learn how teamwork, communication, and cognitive diversity drive success. Discover strategies to build trust, manage conflict, and leverage diverse perspectives. See how effective collaboration can elevate your performance.

View more

Ready to get started?

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Why Carbon Matters

Why Carbon Matters

David Carlin

Net Zero Data Specialist

Get real about how data can drive change, from the invention of the life-saving seatbelt to tracking your carbon footprint. This Step breaks it down, showing how tracking small everyday actions, like your coffee or commute, can make a big difference.

Get real about how data can drive change, from the invention of the life-saving seatbelt to tracking your carbon footprint. This Step breaks it down, showing how tracking small everyday actions, like your coffee or commute, can make a big difference.

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Why Carbon Matters

9 mins 16 secs

Key learning objectives:

  • Understand the importance of data in the climate and sustainability transition

  • Outline the need to track and measure carbon calories in order to combat climate change

  • Understand the concept of carbon reduction measures

Overview:

The evolution of the seatbelt shows how data can drive progress over time, with decades of analysis and public awareness leading to its widespread use. In this Step, David Carlin explains how carbon literacy is just as vital for the sustainability transition. Measuring carbon emissions allows us to make better choices, whether about our daily habits or larger business decisions. By understanding carbon’s impact, learners will see how they too can contribute to decarbonisation, step by step, starting with small, manageable changes.

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Summary
What is the significance of data in the sustainability transition?

Data is central to the sustainability transition, much like how it played a pivotal role in the development of the three-point seatbelt. The story of the gradual adoption of the seatbelt shows how years of data gathering and analysis influenced public perception and legislative action, and ultimately saved lives. In the battle against climate change, data is equally crucial for driving progress and transforming societal practices. It’s through the measurement and analysis of carbon emissions that we can effectively plan for a more sustainable future.

What are carbon calories, and why should we track them?

Carbon is at the heart of climate change, and we “consume” it in almost every aspect of life, often without realising. Carbon calories are a way of understanding our impact by measuring the amount of carbon dioxide or other greenhouse gases emitted through our activities. Everything from the food we eat to the transportation we use leaves a carbon footprint. By tracking carbon calories, much like we track food calories, we can make more informed decisions to reduce emissions, both in our personal lives and at larger organisational levels.

How does measuring carbon emissions help us reduce them?

Measuring carbon emissions is the foundation of any effort to reduce them. Just like you need to know how many calories you’re consuming to manage your diet, you need accurate carbon data to know where reductions can be made. Tools like Life Cycle Assessments (LCA) measure carbon across the entire process, from production to disposal. For example, a morning coffee contributes around 350g of carbon dioxide equivalent, but that figure includes everything from growing the beans to disposing of the cup. By understanding these measurements, businesses and individuals can identify the main sources of emissions and make targeted efforts to decarbonise.

The opinions and viewpoints expressed in this video are those of the creator and do not necessarily reflect the views of any affiliated organisations.

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David Carlin

David Carlin

David Carlin led the creation of the UNEP FI's Risk Programme, working with over 100 financial institutions to explore the risks and opportunities presented by climate change and the transition to net zero. He also conducts research at the intersection of climate, nature and finance and is a contributor to Forbes and a senior associate at Cambridge’s Institute for Sustainability Leadership. David is also an advisor to governments, firms, and solutions providers as he helps them to explore how they can integrate sustainability and climate-readiness into their strategies and operations.

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