EcoCalc

EcoCalc is a website designed to help Trinity students keep track of and budget the Carbon Footprint produced by their commute to and from college.

EcoCalc is a website that hopes to help Trinity students reduce their Carbon Footprint through tracking their commute. It uses a Distance Matrix API from Google Maps to help the user track the distance of their journey from their student residence to the college campus, and uses an EPA Emissions Calculator to determine the Carbon Output of the journey. This provides the user with a tangible figure of the Carbon emissions created by their weekly commute, and provides a realistic concept of what their Carbon Footprint really means. Hopefully this will boost the students’ understanding of the impact they can have on the environment and how their efforts towards a greener campus life will have positive outcomes. The primary aspect of the Website is the budgeting feature. The budgeting feature invites the user to set a weekly limit for output produced by their commute, and sends reminders and tips for how to maintain this limit throughout the week. We hope this will encourage Trinity students to choose alternative, sustainable transport options such as cycling or walking. The website will also provide more sustainable options for core features of student life. We hope to connect with local cafes and shops within Dublin city center and especially those popular amongst Trinity students. These sustainable establishments will be promoted on a specially dedicated page on our website, to help encourage Trinity students to purchase and consume more ethical, sustainable goods. This will help decrease their Carbon Footprint even further. The overall goal we have for this website is for Trinity Students to become more aware of their Carbon Footprint, and make conscious efforts to make sustainable choices within their university life.

The primary focus for this project is Trinity Students and Staff who are regularly commuting into campus from Dublin or the surrounding areas. Initially we will focus on those commuting directly to the main campus, but hope to expand to other off campus sites such as St. James’ Hospital and TBSI.

Domain Name (12 months) €15.00 Would cover .eu or .ie domains. Website UI Resources €40.00 Graphics package for commercial use. Server Hosting (12 months) and Google API requests €200.00 * Highly dependent on website traffic. Total Funding Required €255.00

With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen a change in attitude towards public transport and environmental conservation as a whole. Due to social distancing measures, many commuters are less eager to use a Bus or Luas to travel throughout Dublin, instead preferring to walk or cycle. This increased adoption of more environmentally friendly methods of transport will be celebrated through our project, and will promote the continuation of these trends even as Social Distancing measures begin to lessen. All the website development, implementation and usage is done virtually and therefore can be carried out from remote locations, adhering to Government guidelines and Social Distancing. After a year of economic slow-down due to the pandemic restrictions, local businesses are eager to return to normal operating. We hope to support them through promotions on our website, which will hopefully boost business and help these sustainable alternatives remain an option for Dublin consumers.