University of Plymouth - The Carbon Footprint

CLIENT

University of Plymouth

PURPOSE

To engage students, academics and staff, show emissions are real and that the University is endeavouring to achieve reductions.

DESCRIPTION

Animation showing the footprint using the campus itself for scale and including a success story where emissions have been reduced.

The University of Plymouth adds 11 thousand tonnes of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere every year. But what does that look like?

This animated film illustrates this footprint using the campus itself for scale and shows a ‘success’ story’ where emissions have been reduced.

The purpose of the video was to engage otherwise uninterested students, academics and staff, get them to realise that carbon emissions are real and show that the university is endeavouring to achieve measurable reductions. The intention is then to invite them to explore more detail through web-based energy and carbon dashboard.

The annual carbon reduction savings of 213,890 KgCO2e were achieved at the Babbage building after lighting and IT upgrade, installing voltage optimisation and connection to the Combined Heat & Power (CHP) plant. These savings are expected to equate to the annual emissions of the new Marine Building.

FURTHER INFORMATION

University of Plymouth Carbon Management Plan 2010 - 2015 here.

Sustainability pages for Plymouth University here.

Visualising water use for AGM

CLIENT

South West Water

PURPOSE

 

Film to provide shareholders with an engaging view of the business, highlight the challenge of managing a finite resource, and demonstrate the company's competence.

DESCRIPTION

Animation showing the volume of the world's drinking water and real-time water use by the business. Also, images showing UK water use per head, comparison with other countries and the breakdown of how 137 litres per person is used.

Per capita water use in different countries

Per capita water use in different countries

Drinking water use in the South West

Drinking water use in the South West

South West Water, a utility business supplying drinking water and waste water services in the south west of England, wanted a short film for the 2014 Annual General Meeting (AGM) of their parent company Pennon Group Plc.

The aim was to provide shareholders who attended the meeting with a different and engaging view of the business, highlighting the challenge of managing a finite resource, and demonstrating the company's competence.

We created a short animation showing the volume of the world's drinking water, and a view of the actual water use of the business in real-time. In addition we created several still images showing UK water use per head compared to other countries, and the breakdown of how the 137 litres per person is used.

Finally we incorporated some video footage from the Space Station as well as some of the client's own photos into the film as a backdrop for key messages.

See Creative Director Adam Nieman's blog on visualising water here.

UK 80% reduction target – in Piccadilly Circus

CLIENT

UK Department of Energy & Climate Change (DECC)

PURPOSE

Use social media to get young people interested in a 70 page report.

DESCRIPTION

An animated drama set in Piccadilly Circus – a popular and iconic gathering place for young and all. The scene is transformed into a memorable moving picture that shows the UK Government’s 2050 target on the scale of one person.

We are very happy with the film, and particularly thrilled that it was our first Vine and had 5000 loops in 5 days.

David Armstrong, Head of eCommunication & Digital Media, DECC

A still image from the film.

A still image from the film.

A still image from the film.

A still image from the film.

A still image from the film.

A still image from the film.

A still image from the film.

A still image from the film.

How do you create a stir on Twitter and other social media to get interest in a 70 page Report?

That was the task facing the UK Department of Energy & Climate Change (DECC) who wanted to commission a compelling image set and short animation to draw attention to a new Report - Paris 2015: Securing Our Prosperity Through a Global Climate Change Agreement.

A fast turn-round meant an immediate focus on a key compelling message that could be visualised. Fortunately the UK government has a particularly positive message on carbon - with an 80% reduction target for 2050 enshrined in law. So we set about clarifying the data and thinking through visualisation ideas.

The result: a visual drama set in Piccadilly Circus – a popular gathering place for young and all and itself a unique and iconic location. With captions and messaging appearing as adverts, this immediately recognisable scene is transformed into an eye-catching and memorable moving picture that shows the target on the scale of one person.

See Number 10 Storify page for these images in use.

See video on YouTube. See VINE version

Technical Notes

Raw numbers:

UK Population 1990: 57,237,500

UK Population 2050 (projection): 77,000,000

GHG Emissions 1990: 777.6 MtCO2e

Derived values:

2050 target emissions (80% reduction): 155.52 MtCO2e

Per capita emissions 1990: 13,586 kg

Per capita emissions target 2050: 2,020 kg

Per capita saving target (1990 to 2050): 11,566 kg

Population figures and projections come from Office for National Statistics (ONS); GHG emissions from DECC.

The case for Carbon Capture & Storage

CLIENT

World Business Council for Sustainable Development

PURPOSE

To engage world leaders, industry experts, campaigners and scientists at the UN Climate Summit, New York, September 2014 and to catalyse and inform conversations about reducing carbon emissions.

DESCRIPTION

Film showing actual quantities of global fossil fuel consumption and carbon emissions, and the part that carbon capture and storage can play in limiting global climate change to 2 degrees.

Among all of the documents, reports and images being released around the UN summit, we hope that this film will stand out and benefit all participants, as well as anyone who watches it around the world.

Peter Bakker President, WBCSD

A coal pile buries the UN General Assembly, gas races down 42nd Street and then New York is lost under a blue mountain. These dramatic CGI scenes, depicting actual quantities, create an immersive journey that brings home the scale of global carbon emissions and fossil fuel consumption.

This dynamic four-minute film, being launched at the UN Climate Change Summit in New York September 2014, shows the part that carbon capture and storage can play in limiting global climate change to 2 degrees.

Commissioned by WBCSD and produced by Carbon Visuals, the animation is being shown to world leaders, industry experts, campaigners and scientists at the Summit to help catalyse and inform conversations about reducing carbon emissions.

Key messages of the film:

• use of renewables is increasing
• but energy use is rising faster
• fossil fuel use is increasing not decreasing
• if carbon stored in fossil fuel reserves is burnt we exceed 2 degrees warming by 2055
• carbon capture & storage (CCS) is an essential part of the 2 degrees solution

Technical note
The volumes of coal, oil, gas and CO2 shown in the film are accurate volumes based on best available data. A detailed Technical Data Methodology document has been produced to accompany the film. This shows all data sources, assumptions on future global renewable and non-renewable energy requirements and the potential of carbon capture and storage technology.

See the Methodology Document for more details

In 2012 we added over 39 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere. That’s 1,237 metric tons a second. 

It is like a ‘bubble’ of carbon dioxide gas 108 metres across entering the atmosphere every second of every day. We could fill a volume the size of the UN Secretariat Building with our carbon dioxide emissions in less than half a second. We could fill it 133 times a minute.

The pile of one metric ton spheres in the film, which represents one day’s emissions, is 3.7 km high (2.3 miles) and 7.4 km across (4.6 miles).

The world gets through a lot of fossil fuels:

• 7,896.4 million metric tons of coal a year (21.6 million metric tons per day, 250 metric tons per second)

• 91,330,895 barrels of oil per day (168 m3 per second)

• 3,347.63 billion m3 of natural gas per year (9.2 km3 per day, 106,082 m3 per second)

This film tries to make those numbers physically meaningful – to make the quantities real; more than ‘just numbers’.

The coal we use each day would form a pile 192 metres high and 546 metres across. We could fill a volume the size of the UN Secretariat Building with coal every 17 minutes.   At the rate we use oil, we could fill an Olympic swimming pool every 15 seconds.

This would fill a volume the size of the UN Secretariat Building with oil every 30 minutes.

The rate at which we use natural gas is equivalent to gas travelling along a pipe with an internal diameter of 60 metres at hurricane speeds (135 km/h / 84 mph). We could fill a volume the size of the UN Secretariat Building with natural gas in under 3 seconds.

We use a cubic kilometre of gas every 2 hours 37 minutes and a cubic mile of the stuff every 10 hours 54 minutes.

A set of shorter clips has also been released, featuring some of the most impactful scenes of the main film. These are intended for use by everyone, from industry through to educators and campaigners. Get in touch if you would like hi-res versions.

Main film and extract films can be viewed on YouTube:

Whole film

Fossil Fuels Extract

Carbon Dioxide Extract

Natural Gas Extract

Oil Extract

Coal Extract

All images are available under Creative Commons licence to download on our Flickr page

See blog background story.

Making sense of carbon, trees and timber

CLIENT

Wood for Good

PURPOSE

To find a new way to communicate the carbon benefits of using wood and timber in the UK construction sector.

DESCRIPTION

A series of short animated films and case study images using Wood for Good’s data to reach construction professionals, policy makers and the public.

The competence and skill you have in handling large data sets is absolutely fantastic. And you still delivered a wonderful set of visuals for us that we can continue to use for a long time to come.

Craig White Chairman, Wood for Good

How much carbon is stored in a tree? How does that translate into cut timber and wood products? And how much carbon can be ‘banked’ by using timber for building houses in the UK?

These questions are raised and answered in a communication project that includes a series of short animated films and set of case study images created by Carbon Visuals for Wood for Good, the UK's wood promotion campaign.

The aim was to find a new way to communicate the positive carbon benefits of using wood and timber in the UK construction sector not just to construction professionals but also policy makers and the public.

Given the wide nature of the brief we agreed with the client to start the project with a scoping phase. During this, it was decided to split the film into three separate sections that could each work as short stand-alone films, rather than only as one single complex narrative. In addition we agreed to create a set of case study best practice images showing the carbon ‘banked’ in high profile buildings and timber products.

It has been very satisfying to shape and create a project which has both a business focus and important educational potential. I would like to see us working with more trade bodies and campaigns that have an important carbon message to get across.

Antony Turner, CEO Carbon Visuals

By liaising closely with the client in this initial phase we were able to spend time working up a communications plan, sourcing and examining appropriate data and creating draft film storyboards. This established a sound basis for the production schedule, culminating in all visual materials being ready for the campaign launch.

Data Sheet with methodology, data and references available here.

See Wood for Good website page here.

See our post-production video (giving insight from our clients on the project) here.

Illustrating the world’s first Carbon Neutral Engine Oil

CLIENT

Castrol Professional

PURPOSE

To help their dealers understand that although the amount of CO2 offset for a single one litre pack of engine oil might be small (2 kg), it adds up. Particularly when seen from the point of view of a whole country, or indeed world sales.

DESCRIPTION

An animated film for the European dealer launch at CERN in Switzerland of ‘the world’s first CO2 Neutral Engine Oil’.

A resounding success - thank you for turning this round so quickly. We are very happy with the final product and it was well received last week at CERN.

Adrian Pask, Global OEM Offer Development Manager Castrol Professional

How do you visualise carbon offsetting? This is, after all, carbon removed from the air to mitigate actual emissions. That was the challenge facing us when asked by Castrol Professional to create an animated film for the European dealer launch at CERN in Switzerland of ‘the world’s first CO2 Neutral Engine Oil’.

Castrol wanted a way to help their dealers understand that although the amount of CO2 offset for a single one litre pack of engine oil might be small (2 kg), it adds up. Particularly when seen from the point of view of a whole country, or indeed world sales.

Rather than showing the CO2 emitted in the manufacture of a consumer product, our role was to show that Castrol ‘neutralised’ those emissions. We set about writing and developing a story-board that could be animated in record time (we had less than a month to complete the project).

Background

Castrol Professional products have become the first CO2 neutral engine oils in Europe. EDGE Professional, MAGNATEC Professional and GTX Professional have all been certified CO2 neutral according to BSI PAS2060, a standard for measuring and managing the CO2 footprint of a product’s life cycle.

The company underpins its CO2 neutral claims with good science including reduction in the manufacturing process. It offsets the remaining CO2 by investing in a portfolio of emission reduction projects such as reforestation in Kenya, clean electricity generation in China and wind farms in New Caledonia.

In 2014, 200,000 tonnes of CO2 are likely to be neutralised globally by Castrol Professional. This figure is expected to grow to nearly half a million tonnes annually the following year.

More on Castrol Professional

More on CO2 reduction projects being supported by Castrol Professional

Tackling CO2 emissions is a major issue for the automotive industry globally and Castrol Professional has made this a central part of our working relationship with manufacturers and dealers, as we develop ever-more sophisticated engine oil formulations.

This is a practical step towards a longer commitment to innovate sustainably through continued technological and scientific advancement.

John Ward-Zinski, Global Brand Director Castrol Professional

To cover so many visualisations in 90 seconds with a strong product focus was potentially a tall order. Looping our narrative through a virtual world within the pack itself encourages viewers to explore and re-explore this complex story.

Dave Forman, Project Manager / Designer Carbon Visuals

The brevity and directness of this film gives staff, dealers and consumers an easy and quick feel for the product and emissions saved on a range of scales from a litre to half a million tonnes.

Antony Turner, CEO Carbon Visuals

Visualising a 90% carbon reduction

CLIENT

Interface

PURPOSE

To show the 90% carbon reduction achieved since 1996 at the European manufacturing facility in the Netherlands.

DESCRIPTION

Short animation that can be used on social media together with before and after images showing the Scherpenzeel factory and surroundings with the dramatic reduction in emissions.

In the past three years we have taken huge strides towards our Mission Zero goal.

To put it in context, we are now operating our European factories with a 90% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared to 1996 while the EU Commission has set an EU carbon reduction target of 40% by 2030.

Rob Boogaard, CEO Interface Europe

Carbon Visuals has helped Interface, the carpet tile manufacturer and pioneer in corporate sustainability, show the impressive 90% carbon reduction achieved since 1996 at its European manufacturing facility in the Netherlands.

We created a 3D model of the Scherpenzeel factory and surrounding area and populated it with our trademark ‘carbon bubbles’. Deliverables included volumetrically accurate ‘before’ and ‘after’ images as well as a short animation that can be used on social media or as part of a longer video.

See this animation on YouTube

Interface info on achieving 90 carbon reduction

Infographic illustrating how the emissions reduction has been achieved.

Video: A better way - Interface Europe achieves 90% CO2 reduction