Footprint calculator by Swiss Climate

The Footprint Calculator by Swiss Climate enables you to calculate and reduce your emissions in the areas of personal footprint, air travel, events and small businesses. In addition, you can take responsibility for the resulting emissions by investing in climate projects.



The Footprint Calculator by Swiss Climate offers you simplified CO₂ management on a self-service basis. By investing in certified climate projects, you can also make an additional contribution to global climate protection and take responsibility for unavoidable emissions.

Personal footprint

Calculate your personal footprint and take responsibility by investing in climate projects.

Living and energy
Electricity
  
kWh per year
  

Your personal footprint

CO₂ emissions: t CO₂

  • Living and energy
  • Air travel
  • Mobility
  • Nutrition
  • Consumption
  • Public services Average value per Swiss citizen


TARGET value per person per year (2050)* TARGET value per person per year (2030)* Your personal footprint
    CO₂ emissions (t CO₂)
    * To achieve the Paris climate goals, global CO₂ emissions must be reduced substantially. The objective is to restrict global warming to a maximum of 1.5°C or 2°C above pre-industrial temperatures. To achieve the 1.5-degree target, CO₂ emissions must be reduced to 2.9 tonnes per person per year by 2030 and 1.5 tonnes per person per year by 2050.

    Reduction measures for your personal footprint
    Housing and energy
    A bright idea – turn off lights and appliances
    Info: If you are only spending time in one room in the evening, it will cost money and energy to leave the light on in other rooms. Leave the light on only where it is needed. When sitting comfortably in front of the TV or computer, you might not need any extra light – the screen might be enough. If you won’t be using a device (e.g. the TV) for a while, it is worth switching it off completely, as it also uses energy in stand-by mode.
    Reduction potential: If a normal 60-watt light bulb is left on for 3 hours less per day, the savings per year will amount to about 8.4 kg of CO₂. If a TV is switched off completely instead of left in stand-by mode, the savings can amount to 10 kWh per year, or about 1.28 kg of CO₂, depending on the model and how old the device is. When several appliances are in stand-by mode, this soon adds up, so it may well be beneficial to your footprint to switch them off completely.
    Switch to LED
    Info: LED lamps require much less electricity to generate light than conventional lamps. On average, LEDs use 40% less energy than fluorescent lamps and even up to 90% less energy than incandescent lamps. This reduces your electricity bill.
    Reduction potential: A typical household uses almost 300 kWh of electricity per year for lighting. Around 80% of this can be saved immediately by replacing incandescent bulbs with LED lights.
    Showers instead baths – not too long, not too warm
    Info: The next time you take a shower, look at the clock. How long were you in there? Could you have made it any shorter, and maybe had the water not quite as hot? Using an energy-saving shower head is also one of the most effective energy-saving measures you can take at home. Once installed, you save electricity every time you take a shower.
    Reduction potential: On average, 13% of the energy we consume is used to make hot water. The less time you spend in the shower and the cooler the water, the smaller your personal footprint. In addition, there are many efficient shower head models available nowadays. With an energy-saving shower head, you can halve your energy consumption and thus also your CO₂ emissions.
    More environmentally friendly heating
    Info: Reduce the room temperature by two degrees. In winter, a jumper will do; t-shirts are for summer.
    Reduction potential: 70% of the energy consumed directly by Swiss private households is used for heating. This offers enormous savings potential. Reducing the room temperature by 1 °C alone is enough to lower energy consumption by 6%. Here’s an example: 20 °C instead of 21 °C in a flat with a floor area of 70 m2 reduces CO₂ emissions by 160 kg on average (depending on the type of heating).
    Wash in a more environmentally friendly way
    Info: Is the next load of washing already waiting for you? Tip: Usually, dirty clothes will still get clean at 30 °C. If possible, don’t use the tumble dryer – as well as protecting your clothes, this will also reduce your personal footprint. Most washing machines also have an energy-saving programme.
    Reduction potential: If you wash four times a month at 30 °C instead of 60 °C (full load in washing machine with 5 kg capacity), you will save around 3.2 kg of CO₂ per year (depending on the washing machine model).
    Mobility
    Fly less
    Info: For your next holiday, plan a bike ride in France instead of a flight to Colombia. Air travel is still one of the biggest CO₂ emitters among individuals. But there are many good alternatives. If your dream destination is so far away that it can practically only be reached by plane, then plan ahead and save up your work holiday. It’s better to enjoy a three-week holiday in Colombia every three years than flying there for one week every year. If flying can’t be avoided, be sure to choose economy instead of business or first class, as this is better for your footprint and your bank balance.
    Reduction potential: If you choose a bike ride in France over a flight to Colombia, you will save around 3.6 tonnes of CO₂.
    Drive less
    Info: Pick one day of the week to travel to work by public transport or by bike. Enjoy the free time you get while on public transport or the exercise in the fresh air. And avoid getting stressed out by traffic after work. Who knows – maybe you’ll suddenly feel like having two car-free days, or even three?
    Reduction potential: On average, your footprint will be 10% smaller if you regularly travel to work by public transport or bicycle. For a commuting distance of 15 km (one way), this measure will reduce your footprint by about 4.2 kg of CO₂ per day compared to driving a VW Golf TDI (diesel), for example; if you don’t use your car for three days, it will amount to almost 0.6 tonnes of CO₂ per year.
    Nutrition
    Eat a plant-based diet more often
    Info: Try to eat vegetarian or vegan at least one day a week. There are now countless simple and tasty recipes that make you forget about meat and fish.
    Reduction potential: Compared to regular meat and fish eaters, the nutritional footprint of vegetarians is almost a quarter smaller, and as much as 40% smaller for vegans.
    Waste less food
    Info: Plan one day a week on which you will eat leftovers rather than going shopping for more food. Next time you go to a restaurant, bring a container with you, so you can take any leftovers home with you. Various organisations also offer surplus food at reduced prices.
    Reduction potential: For every kilogramme of food that doesn’t end up in the bin, you save about 2.5 kg of CO₂. In Switzerland, around 330 kg of food is wasted per person each year, which translates to around 825 kg of CO₂ per person.
    Drink less coffee
    Info: Try to reduce your coffee consumption by one cup a day.
    Reduction potential: Compared to other beverages, coffee has a large ecological footprint. For every cup of coffee you don’t drink, you will save around 74.9 g of CO₂. This means that with just one cup of coffee less per day, you can reduce your footprint by more than 27 kg of CO₂ per year.
    Pay attention to seasonality and regionality
    Info: Look for regionality and seasonality the next time you go shopping. Cucumbers and tomatoes taste much better in summer anyway. And if you buy asparagus when it’s in season in Switzerland and avoid the early imported asparagus from Mexico, you will be supporting Swiss agriculture and doing something good for the climate.
    Reduction potential: Transporting Mexican asparagus to Switzerland by air causes about 12 kg of CO₂ per kilogramme, whereas transporting it within Switzerland by lorry causes only 0.5 kg of CO₂ per kg of asparagus. You can therefore save 11.5 kg of CO₂ per kilo of asparagus by waiting for asparagus to be in season in Switzerland.
    Consumption
    Second-hand instead of new
    Info: The next time you go shopping for clothes, visit a second-hand shop. They often have some very nice items at low prices, and you will also be doing something good for the climate. Not only clothes, but also other things like laptops, can be bought second-hand.
    Reduction potential: Making a new pair of jeans can cause up to 30 kg of CO₂. By buying a second-hand product, you will extend the life of the jeans and improve your footprint.
    Less is more
    Info: The minimalism trend has taken hold in various areas of life, such as living or even tourism. A flat can feel much more pleasant if there is also a bit more space to live in. Think about whether there are things in your home that you no longer need and take them to a second-hand shop, so that someone else can enjoy them.
    Reduction potential: If you clear your old Ikea table out of the cellar and sell it on a free-ads site, you will enable another person to save 80 kg of CO₂ by not having to buy a new one. As an added bonus, you will also have more space in your cellar.
    Eco-brands are stylish
    Info: ‘I want to wear eco-friendly clothes, but I’ll no longer be fashionable.’ That’s what many people thought for a long time. Fortunately, this is no longer the case today. There are many sustainable brands that are committed to creating sustainable fashion, including shoes. See for yourself!
    Reduction potential: If you’re interested in buying some VEJA trainers, for example, you can find detailed information on their website about CO₂ emissions in the supply chain.

    Air travel

    Calculate the emissions caused by your flight and take responsibility by investing in climate projects.

      
         
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    Air travel

    Distance you flew: km
    Total CO₂ emissions: t CO₂
    TARGET value per person per year (2050)* TARGET value per person per year (2030)* CO₂ emissions from air travel
      CO₂ emissions (t CO₂)
      * To achieve the Paris climate goals, global CO₂ emissions must be reduced substantially. The objective is to restrict global warming to a maximum of 1.5°C or 2°C above pre-industrial temperatures. To achieve the 1.5-degree target, CO₂ emissions must be reduced to 2.9 tonnes per person per year by 2030 and 1.5 tonnes per person per year by 2050.

      Reduction measures for flying
      Air travel
      Fly less
      Info: For your next holiday, plan a bike ride in France instead of a flight to Colombia. Around 86% of the flights taken by Swiss people are for private travel. This means they are mostly for their own pleasure. Air travel is still one of the biggest CO₂ emitters among individuals. But there are many alternatives. If your dream destination is so far away that it can practically only be reached by plane, then plan ahead and save up your work holiday. It’s nicer to enjoy a three-week holiday in Colombia every three years than flying there for one week every year.
      Reduction potential: If you choose a bike ride in France over a trip to Colombia, you will save around 3.6 tonnes of CO₂.
      Fly economy class
      Info: If flying is unavoidable, choose economy instead of business or first class. It’s better for your own footprint and your bank balance. The more space individual passengers take up, the fewer people fit on an aircraft, causing more emissions per seat.
      Reduction potential: If you fly from Zurich to Lima in first class instead of economy class, you as a passenger will cause 3.5 tonnes more CO₂ emissions.

      Events

      Calculate the emissions caused by your event and take responsibility by investing in climate projects.

      Please note: this event calculator is designed for conferences and small events attended by up to 500 people. To calculate the carbon footprint of large events, please contact the experts at Swiss Climate.

      General information

      Your event

      CO₂ emissions of your event: t CO₂

      • Mobility
      • Food and drink
      • Overnight stays
      • Print materials and merchandising
      • Further categories[1]


      [1] The CO₂ emissions of your event are calculated on the basis of data on the primary emission sources of mobility, food and drink, overnight stays and print materials and merchandising. To cover the additional categories of energy, waste and water, a supplement of 20% of the emissions is included in the calculation. This percentage is based on empirical values gathered by Swiss Climate.

      Reduction measures for events
      Mobility
      Good public transport links
      Info: Look for an event location that is well connected to the public transport network. You can also coordinate the various programme points of the event with the public transport timetable. This will make it easier for participants to get to the event by public transport. You can provide information about how to reach the event by public transport in the invitation.
      Reduction potential: In Switzerland, a rail journey causes 27 times less CO₂ than a comparable journey by car. It also requires 6 times less energy.
      Climate-friendly shuttle service
      Info: If the event is spread over different locations and participants need to get from A to B easily, electric shuttle buses can be hired instead of conventional ones.
      Reduction potential: If you use an electric vehicle instead of a petrol car for a distance of around 4 km, you can save about 0.5 kg of CO₂ per person.
      Food & drink
      Offer plant-based snacks more often
      Info: Try to offer mainly vegetarian and vegan snacks at your event.
      Reduction potential: Producing 1 kg of pork causes the same amount of CO₂ emissions as for 80 kg of potatoes. Another example: Producing 1 kg of beef causes 15.4 kg of CO₂, compared to 0.7 kg of CO₂ for 1 kg of lentils.
      Cold meals
      Info: Food can be served cold to meet all the needs of the participants. Although keeping everything cool also requires energy, it doesn’t have to be done for all dishes. Energy consumption will therefore be much lower than if everything is warmed up or even freshly cooked.
      Reduction potential: On average, half as much CO₂ is emitted when preparing cold meals than it is for hot meals.
      Printing, water and waste
      Climate-conscious printing
      Info: Find out what paper you use for print jobs and switch to recycled paper. Also try to print double-sided. For external print jobs, ask for climate-neutral printing.
      Reduction potential: Replacing virgin fibre paper with recycled paper reduces energy consumption in production by up to 60% and water consumption by 70%, as well as halving CO₂ emissions.
      Glasses instead of plastic cups
      Info: Glasses or cups not only look more elegant than plastic cups, they also have a better footprint. Glasses can be used again and again, whereas disposable plastic cups end up in the waste after use. Whenever possible, choose reusable instead of disposable tableware.
      Reduction potential: A lot of CO₂ can be saved by reusing cutlery, plates and cups. The footprint of a disposable plastic cup, for example, is 10 times better than that of a reusable plastic cup.
      Improve recycling
      Info: Make sure that recycling stations are available throughout the event. This will make participants aware of recycling and may encourage them to consistently separate waste themselves.
      Reduction potential: 126 tonnes of CO₂ are saved per year in Switzerland through PET recycling, as no new PET bottles have to be produced or old ones incinerated.

      Small business

      Calculate your company’s annual CO₂ emissions and take responsibility by investing in climate projects.

      Please note: this footprint calculator is designed for small businesses in the service sector with up to 50 employees and one or two sites. To calculate the carbon footprint of larger organisations and companies from other sectors, please contact the experts at Swiss Climate.

      General information

      %
      m²

      Do you have questions about your footprint or would you like support in setting up a comprehensive CO₂ management or defining a climate strategy

      We are always available for questions and individual requests in the areas of CO₂ management, sustainability, energy and offsetting.


      JAN GEISSBÜHLER

      Consultant
      contact@co2-footprint.ch

      Your company

      CO₂ emissions: t CO₂
      CO₂ emissions per FTE: t CO₂

      • Heating
      • Electricity
      • Business travel
      • Commuter journeys
      • Consumables
      • Water and waste


      Reduction measures for small businesses
      Heating and electricity
      LED lamps
      Info: Lights in office buildings can be replaced by LED lamps. They need much less electricity to generate light than conventional light sources. On average, LEDs require 40% less energy than fluorescent lamps, and even up to 90% less than incandescent lamps. This has a positive effect on the environment and also reduces your electricity bill.
      Reduction potential: By replacing light bulbs with LED lights, average energy consumption for lighting can be reduced by around 80%.
      Save heating energy
      Info: Reduce the room temperature by two degrees. In winter, a jumper will do; t-shirts are for summer.
      Reduction potential: Reducing the room temperature by 1 °C alone reduces energy consumption by 6%.
      Shock ventilation
      Info: Especially in winter, make sure you ventilate the room at full speed instead of keeping the window tilted all day.
      Reduction potential: The savings achieved through correct ventilation alone amount to about 2,812.5 kWh per year.
      Install a photovoltaic system
      Info: Another way to reduce CO₂ emissions is to produce electricity on your company’s own roof. To do this, you will need a photovoltaic system.
      Reduction potential: The actual reduction can vary depending on the electricity mix. A PV system saves CHF 0.09 per kWh of electricity. An average Swiss single-family home consumes 4,500 kWh of electricity per year. If 50% of this (2,250 kWh) can be covered by solar electricity, the savings per year would be as much as CHF 200.
      Switch to climate-friendly electricity
      Info: If you don’t have enough free roof space for the previous measure, a good alternative is to buy climate-friendly electricity. Even a slight increase in the amount of climate-friendly electricity you consume is a step in the right direction.
      Reduction potential: Producing one kilowatt hour of electricity generally causes around 569 g of CO₂. Electricity from renewable energy is generated carbon-free. By switching to green electricity, the average three-person household can reduce CO₂ emissions by almost 2 tonnes per year.
      Business travel
      Plan business trips wisely
      Info: Plan business trips so that multiple meetings in the same region can be combined. If several employees are travelling to the same place or region, car-sharing can also be organised.
      Reduction potential: For each person who doesn’t need a car on their own, the CO₂ emissions caused by an entire journey can be saved.
      Hold business meetings virtually
      Info: It is worth travelling to business meetings by train, provided that the journey doesn’t take more than six hours. Train seats can often be reserved in advance and you can also get some work done in comfort in first class.
      Reduction potential: Flying causes a lot of CO₂ emissions. By switching to train travel, 120 kg of CO₂ emissions can be saved on the route from Zurich to Frankfurt, for example.
      Company fleet with low CO2 emissions
      Info: When replacing older vehicles, think about choosing vehicles that run on alternative fuels. Drawing up and reviewing procurement criteria can help too in this sense. Electric vehicles are also ideal for use as company cars and have a positive effect on the footprint of businesses.
      Reduction potential: Driving an electric car over a distance of 4 km causes 0.5 kg of CO₂ less than the same journey in a petrol car.
      Commuting
      Encourage public transport and cycling
      Info: To encourage employees to use public transport more, the company can contribute to their half-fare cards or adjust the reimbursement rates for public transport and car journeys in the expenses policy.
      Reduction potential: On average, the footprint is reduced by 10% if you consistently travel to work by public transport or bicycle. For a commuting distance of 15 km (one way), this measure will reduce your footprint by about 4.2 kg of CO₂ per day compared to driving a VW Golf TDI (diesel), for example; if you don’t use your car for three days, it will amount to almost 0.6 tonnes of CO₂ per year.
      Support working from home
      Info: Besides the added advantage of fewer people driving to work, there are various other benefits to working from home: It can make employees up to 30% more productive, and initial studies show that many people rate their quality of life higher when they have the opportunity to regularly spend a few days at home.
      Reduction potential: Viewed over a year, the reduction potential offered by working from home is impressive. In Switzerland, for example, it would reduce CO₂ emissions by more than 260,000 tonnes per week.
      Printing, water and waste
      Climate-conscious printing
      Info: Find out what paper you use for print jobs and switch to recycled paper. Also try to print double-sided. For external print jobs, ask for climate-neutral printing.
      Reduction potential: Replacing virgin fibre paper with recycled paper reduces energy consumption in production by up to 60% and water consumption by 70%, as well as halving CO₂ emissions.
      Glasses instead of plastic cups
      Info: Glasses or cups not only look more elegant than plastic cups, they also have a better footprint. Glasses can be used again and again, whereas disposable plastic cups end up in the waste after use. Whenever possible, choose reusable instead of disposable tableware.
      Reduction potential: A lot of CO₂ can be saved by reusing cutlery, plates and cups. The footprint of a disposable plastic cup, for example, is 10 times worse than that of a reusable plastic cup.
      Save water
      Info: Install water-saving fittings that curb consumption. This can help to reduce water consumption from 20–30 litres per minute to 5–6 litres.
      Reduction potential: Water treatment and the associated electricity consumption cause 0.35 g of CO₂ per litre. If water-saving fittings are installed, the reduction potential is 8.75 g of CO₂ per minute.

      Do you have questions about your footprint or would you like support in setting up a comprehensive CO₂ management or defining a climate strategy

      We are always available for questions and individual requests in the areas of CO₂ management, sustainability, energy and offsetting.


      JAN GEISSBÜHLER

      Consultant
      contact@co2-footprint.ch

      Buy direct certificates

      t CO₂



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