Steps, calories… CO2? Emissions-tracking apps are on the rise

Calculating emissions for individual purchases is harder than it sounds. The amount of carbon dioxide produced by a flight or a piece of meat is measurable and relatively concrete. But the emissions footprint of, say, a new smartphone – made of materials from myriad carbon-intensive supply chains – can be much more difficult to quantify. — AFP

In 2019, Sanchali Pal decided she’d had enough of spreadsheets.

For six years, the former consultant had been using Excel to manually track the carbon emissions of her purchases, a routine she says saved her about US$2,000 a year by encouraging more secondhand shopping, fewer flights and less meat consumption. But the DIY approach was getting tedious.