The Industrial Ecology Programme (IndEcol) is a multidisciplinary education and research programme at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology.
What is Industrial Ecology?
“Industrial ecology is the study of the flows of materials and energy in industrial and consumer activities, of the effect of these flows on the environment, and of the influence of economic, political, regulatory and social factors on the flow, use and transformation of resources. The objective of industrial ecology is to understand better how we can integrate environmental concerns into our economic activities. This integration, an ongoing process, is necessary if we are to address current and future environmental concerns."
The position is connected to the EU Integrated Project PROSUITE (Development and application of a standardized methodology for the PROspective SUstaInability assessment of TEchnologies) and related work on modeling the penetration of new energy (production and use) technologies throughout the economy. The application deadline is 25 January 2010.
Carbon Calculator with a consumption perspective
(10.12.09)
Producing beef, toys and cars all causes substantial greenhouse gas emissions. These emissions are often ignored by climate calculators. Responding to IndEcol’s criticism, the Norwegian government has now with our help designed a climate calculator. Test yourself here: http://klimakalkulatoren.no/
IndEcol’s scholarly output has doubled in the space of two year. In 2009, IndEcol researchers produced 40 peer reviewed publications including 10 in highly ranked journals. Meet this year’s publication prize winners.
Measuring the Carbon Footprint of Cities
(10.11.09)
Many cities fail to consider the emissions connected to their purchases in their climate action plans because they see it as too difficult. In a new paper, titled "The case for consumption-based accounting of greenhouse gas emissions to promote local climate action", PhD student Hogne Nersund Larsen demonstrates a simple and straight-forward method for comprehensive municipal carbon footprints.
The Engineering Education Observatory has evaluated the sustainability-oriented education and research of 56 Technical Universities in Europe and ranks NTNU as the second best in a report, confirming our leading role in the field.
Defends Green Power Markets
(29.09.09)
Economists have recently attacked economic instruments designed to spread renewable electricity production. IndEcol program leader unpacks the flawed logic behind these arguments in his blog and DN, a business daily.
LCA of biofuel for Norwegian forest
(09.09.09)
PhD student Ryan Bright and supervisor Anders Strømman present a new analysis of the environmental implications of commercial-scaled ethanol production from boreal forest resources for use in regional road transportation in central Norway via application of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology in the Journal of Industrial Ecology.
Foresight for Oslo's wastewater infrastructure
(09.09.09)
A new paper by PhD students Venkatesh Govindarajan, Johanne Hammervold and Professor Helge Brattebø analyses the status of the aging piping of Oslo’s wastewater network, pointing to replacement and repair options and their environmental costs.
Carbon Footprint Calculator for Countries
(09.09.09)
A new website presents a comparative analysis of the carbon footprint of 72 nations. For poor countries, food and public services are the most important contributors to carbon footprints, while for rich countries, transportation and the consumption of consumer goods becomes important.
Utilizing solar heat to drive the gasification of cellulosic and waste biomass reduces land use by 60% and leads to a superior efficiency of converting solar energy to a liquid fuel, as a new paper published in Environmental Science & Technology shows.
The Annual Report 2008 is ready and can be downloaded as a pdf file. Read about our research, the MSc programme, our new faculty members and our students.
GEA aims to help decision makers address the challenges of providing energy services for sustainable development, whilst ameliorating existing and emerging threats.
Through targeting the assessment on parts that one finds in the economic analysis to be important, the new approach focuses the data collection effort to where it is most relevant.
Congratulations go to Ryan Bright, IndEcol PhD Candidate, on his recent accomplishment. Ryan's poster, entitled 'Hybrid Life Cycle Assessment of Wood-based Biofuel Production and Consumption Scenarios in Norway,' won the Best Poster Award for a topic related to biomass and biotechnology.
