Measuring and reducing the carbon footprint of cities

 

1. Who is Énergère ?

 

Énergère has been leader in the energy efficiency and greenhouse gas emissions reduction industry in Quebec for 25 years, with more than 600 large-scale projects to its credit in the institutional, municipal, commercial and industrial markets. Energère is particularly active in the field of smart cities, with projects carried out in more than 200 cities and municipalities in Quebec.

 

 

« It’s a powerful tool, a catalyst of data that helps us to provide even better support for our customers. »

Sean Teixeira, Sustainable Development Manager at Énergère

 

Sector : energy efficiency services

Location : Québec, Canada

Mission : improve the energy efficiency of private and public buildings through innovation

Specialisation : smart cities and energy performance of buildings

 

 

 

2. Problem and solutions

 

Énergère needed a platform that would enable them to calculate the carbon footprint of its partner cities and then put in place action plans to achieve their reduction targets. In particular, they were looking for:

• an easy-to-use platform for companies and municipalities;
• a flexible platform, allowing them to adapt to the different needs of each customer (municipalities, companies, etc.).

What’s more, as Jean Théroux, vice president of Énergère, pointed out, they also wanted to work with a partner who shared the same values of sustainability.

 

 

 

3. The challenges of the partnership

 

In addition to the time difference, the two partners were confronted with other challenges.

Firstly, the municipalities were at different stages of progress when it came to calculating their carbon footprint. Some had already measured their carbon footprint and needed a platform to encode the existing data. Others had carried out their entire assessment with Tapio via Énergère. The Tapio platform therefore had to adapt to the unique needs of each city.

Secondly, most municipalities follow the programme Partners for Climate Protection (PCC) . This programme brings together 500 municipalities across Canada and aims to give them the tools they need to combat climate change. These cities therefore had different carbon footprint benchmarks to those normally used by Tapio, which is based instead on GHG for Cities. The Tapio tool is designed to be highly modular, so it was able to integrate the new standards quickly and meet the needs of local authorities.

 

 

 

4. The strengths of the partnership

 

The partnership between Énergère and Tapio has proved a success, despite these peculiarities. The Énergère team’s experience of the platform has been very positive. In particular, our partner was pleased with the following features offered by our platform:

• Creation of simple, precise graphics that are easy for non-experts to understand;
• Development of reduction scenarios over time ;
• Creation of a landing page to communicate results publicly.

The Énergère team also appreciated Tapio’s responsiveness, as our team was always there to guide them whenever they needed help.

 

 

« Tapio is a comprehensive, intuitive and powerful platform that helps us calculate accurate carbon footprints. »

Jean Théroux, Vice President Growth and Innovation at Énergère

 

 

 

5. Why calculate the carbon footprint of municipalities?

 

According to the Geneva Environment Network, cities are responsible for around 75% of global greenhouse gas emissions. The main sources of emissions are transport, buildings, energy consumption and waste management. It is therefore clear that the climate transition cannot take place without the commitment of municipalities.

Énergère and Tapio have already taken action, demonstrating that it is possible to work with cities to combat climate change. Would you also like to take action?