Xiaohongshu
Join us for our Literature Review in Personal Carbon Accounting project
The Research Volunteering programme through the Community Research Initiative gives YOU the power to take your research and classroom skills out into the community to create a positive social impact. Through our bite size projects, you’ll work with a group of interdisciplinary peers and organisational allies to tackle a project that will draw on your research skills. These projects are flexible and designed with students in mind to give you amazing experience to fuel your CV, explore new skills, and meet other likeminded students. Each opportunity is unique, make sure to check out our page for more information.
All about the organisation
EcoCounts is a North London charity aiming to revolutionise the way we account for CO2 emissions. Our methodology involves participants meticulously recording their personal carbon footprint, derived from their daily purchases and activities. Our objective is to implement carbon budgets for participants, eventually progressing towards the implementation of personal carbon trading. This unique system allows individuals within our group to trade carbon emissions, empowering everyone to manage their emissions effectively while collectively reducing the overall carbon footprint of the community. To achieve this we need a high level of accuracy in our information not obtainable from the use of online carbon calculators or broad estimates.
A bit about the project
This project gives you the chance to support EcoCounts, a North London charity on a mission to reinvent how we understand and reduce our personal carbon footprints. You’ll dive into the fascinating world of individual carbon accounting, explore how people track their emissions, and help build the evidence base for an innovative system where communities can one day trade their carbon budgets. By reviewing past research, updating it with the latest thinking, and shaping clear recommendations, you’ll play a key role in helping EcoCounts create a credible, science‑backed model for real climate action.
- What can I expect from this opportunity?
- Read and summarise EcoCounts’ existing research from their 2018 proposal.
- Explore the newest academic and industry work on individual carbon accounting.
- Work closely with the EcoCounts team, responding to feedback and sharing progress.
- Produce a clear summary of best practice and recommendations for their methodology.
- Gain hands‑on experience in climate research, sustainability innovation, and evidence‑based decision‑making.
- How will my work on this project impact the community?
- Strengthen EcoCounts’ ability to build a credible, trustworthy carbon‑tracking system.
- Help participants understand and reduce their personal carbon footprints.
- Support the development of community‑based carbon budgeting and trading.
- Provide the research foundation needed to scale a new model of climate action.
- Empower local groups to collectively lower their emissions.
What key tasks will the volunteer team be responsible for?
- Review and familiarise yourself with EcoCounts Approach
- Pick out key academic papers and existing literary reviews.
- Read documentation from EcoCounts on their approach.
- Extract key insights relevant to personal carbon accounting.
- Discuss an outline and review goal with EcoCounts.
- Update the Evidence Base with New Research
- Search for the latest academic and industry work on individual carbon accounting.
- Compare new methodologies, tools, and best practices.
- Highlight emerging trends and innovations.
- Analyse and Synthesise Best Practice
- Identify what makes a methodology credible, user‑friendly, and scalable.
- Evaluate feasibility for EcoCounts’ carbon budgeting model and community approach.
- Develop clear, actionable recommendations for their methodology.
- Produce and Present a Final Report
- Write a structured, accessible summary of findings and recommendations.
- Present insights to the EcoCounts team.
- Respond promptly to feedback and refine the report as needed.
What skills will I practice and develop during this experience?
- Literature review and critical analysis, across academic and industry sources.
- Sustainability and climate knowledge, especially carbon accounting.
- Professional writing, producing clear, evidence‑based reports.
- Systems thinking, understanding how individual actions scale to group impact.
- Collaboration and communication, through regular liaison with EcoCounts.
- Problem‑solving, identifying gaps and proposing research‑backed improvements.
- Project organisation, managing sources, deadlines, and feedback loops.