ICLEI Europe and Google have been working together to better understand how the Environmental Insights Explorer (EIE) tool – created by Google in collaboration with the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy (GCoM) – can support cities in bolstering local climate action and in achieving their local carbon reduction goals.
The efforts of this partnership will be made public at a hybrid COP26 side event on Tuesday, 9 November from 16:00–17:00 GMT (17:00-18:00 CET). The session, titled “Race to Zero: Transforming cities through data, research and art”, will be led by ICLEI Europe and the United Nations University – Institute for Environment and Human Security (UNU EHS), and hosted at the EU Pavilion at COP26.
This session will publicly unveil research on “The Methodological Assessment of Google EIE Transport Emissions Data in European Cities”, which leverages the growing transformational power of data-driven approaches. Such approaches are increasingly being used to accelerate the implementation of innovative, integrated climate action initiatives worldwide. With the help of accessible and accurate data, these initiatives move communities closer to achieving carbon neutrality.
The EIE is designed to help cities measure their greenhouse gas (GHG) emission sources, in addition to identifying opportunities for cities to lower their emissions, especially in the building and transportation sectors, by providing a globally consistent, freely available data set.
Over the past few months, ICLEI Europe conducted a deep dive assessment of nine European cities’ use of the EIE tool to examine impacts on their transport emissions and mobility data in depth. These nine cities include ICLEI Members Florence (Italy), Izmir (Turkey), Lisbon (Portugal), Malmö (Sweden), Mannheim (Germany) and Warsaw (Poland). With guidance from ICLEI Europe experts, they analysed the functionalities, emissions-account methodologies, underpinnings and case studies of the EIE tool.
This methodological assessment aims to be a resource for local authorities interested in discovering the tool and in learning more about Google EIE data’s potential to contribute to transport emissions accounting processes and to modal split calculations. The report also offers recommendations on how to further harness the potential of the Google EIE tool for cities in Europe and beyond.
The report’s conclusions will be discussed in more detail at the hybrid COP26 side event on 9 November. This session will explore how local governments and city networks like ICLEI have collaborated to advance integrated, data-driven projects aimed at reducing emissions in urban areas and improving citizens’ quality of life.
Shortly after the session, the report is set to be released. To register to attend the EU Pavilion side events, click here.