Climate Calculators

Climate calculators are tools that can help schools measure their carbon footprint. Bigger isn’t always better, especially when it comes to the size of your carbon footprint. A carbon footprint measures total carbon dioxide directly and indirectly contributed by a school over the course of a year. The results can be used to take action to reduce your climate impacts.

Calculators for K-12 Students

EPA Tool to Calculate Classroom and School Impact on Climate

A Climate Change Kids Site offers an interactive series of suggested actions and questions that students can answer to identify whether they’ll take certain climate actions. There are recommendations to use less water, save energy, bicycle or walk to school, take public transit and recycle. The calculator estimates pounds of CO2 saved per year if all students in your classroom, your school and the US take the specific actions students identify through the exercise. Students can plug in basic information about their classroom and obtain details if they’d like to find out more information about the recommended actions.

SchoolNeutral Carbon Calculator

EarthTeam's COOL SCHOOLS Climate Action Campaign equips middle & high school students in the Bay Area & beyond with the knowledge, tools, inspiration, & support to take action against climate change in their homes, schools, & communities. The SchoolNeutral Carbon Calculator measures your school’s carbon footprint. Students can collect information on electricity and natural gas usage for the entire school to calculate greenhouse gas emissions. Information on how students get to school is also factored into measuring the schools’ impact on global warming. An estimate of the cost associated with offsetting your school’s emissions is provided. The Climate Calculator and a Student Manual are free tools available to you once you register to use their site.

Interactive School Carbon & Ecological Footprint Calculator

A UK-authored calculator offers a user-friendly interface to calculate your school’s carbon footprint. It is a more advanced calculator that requires students to conduct an assessment of energy usage, transportation miles connected with getting food to the school, waste generated daily, and water used for school operations. Before submitting detailed information about your school, an animated “Eco Gang” offers inspiring (UK-specific) facts.

Calculator for District Officials

ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager for K-12 School Districts

School district administrators can use EnergyStar Portfolio Manager to track energy and water consumption. This benchmarking tool also calculates greenhouse gas emissions. You can set priorities, monitor progress, and verify improvements of school facilities over time.

Calculator for Higher Education

Clean Air Cool Planet Campus Carbon Calculator

The Campus Carbon Calculator™, is available for download. The latest version includes new features, updates and corrections - including greatly expanded projection and solutions modules, designed to aid schools that have completed greenhouse gas inventories in developing long term, comprehensive climate action plans based on those inventories. The new modules facilitate analysis of carbon reduction options, determining project payback times, net present value, cost per ton reduced, and other relevant markers.