The European Commission very recently released the MEDIA Carbon Calculator, a new online tool that gives audiovisual producers across Europe a standardised way to calculate the carbon footprint of their productions. The tool is originally conceived for film and television production, but its application is not limited to the traditional entertainment industry, and it may well be a useful instrument for educational media producers in universities and higher education institutions who create video lectures, online courses, teaching and learning videos or other media for learning.
The MEDIA Carbon Calculator provides a methodology for assessing CO₂ emissions associated with audiovisual projects, for example through energy use, travel, transportation, catering, materials, accommodation and all other production-related activities. It is built by a consortium led by a cloud-software firm, together with experts in carbon-footprint analysis and sustainable film production. It complements other existing national or commercially available calculators that can provide even more granular measurement.
Increasingly, digital media production is under scrutiny for its environmental impact, also within Universities and Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). The large volumes of media: recorded lectures, tutorial videos, online modules, webinars, promotional content, and more involve energy consumption (recording, storage, streaming), travel (filming on location or bringing people together), materials (sets, props, printed material), catering or accommodations for staff, etc. With this tool you can visualise the hidden cost in terms of CO2-emission and raise awareness about how sustainability can be increased. This can lead to more environmental responsibility in media production workflows. For instance, by choosing more energy-efficient filming/recording setups, favouring local over remote shooting to reduce transport emissions, re-using materials or digital assets, planning shoots more efficiently to reduce waste, or favouring remote/virtual production techniques when possible. Furthermore it allows institutions to monitor their carbon footprint over time, set reduction targets, and communicate their efforts credibly to stakeholders (students, funding bodies, institutional leadership, the public). This matters especially for cross-border collaborations, co-productions, and institutions with campuses or media operations in different Member States.
Getting started is simple: set up a (free) account and set up a project for each media production. This can be a filmed lecture series, an online module, a promotional video or any other output that involves filming, editing, travel or on-site activity. When creating a project, the Calculator will ask for information about elements such as travel, energy use, accommodation, materials and equipment. Most of this can be provided using standard planning documents or information you have already gathered during the preproduction phase. In cases where precise figures are not available (yet), you can enter estimates. The aim is to build an overall picture rather than to reach scientific precision.
After entering the information, the tool produces a summary of the project’s estimated carbon footprint so that you see where the emissions are and what adjustments might help to reduce them. For example, you may notice that travel forms a large portion of the impact and decide to schedule more filming on campus rather than off-site, or you might consider doing interviews and on camera presentations via videoconferencing.
Cultural and educational sectors are not exempt from environmental responsibility, and this tool can help media teams embed sustainability into planning and production cycles not as an afterthought, but as a conscious design choice. MEDIA Carbon Calculator is free of charge for users across the EU. You may be asked to sign in (or register) with your EU-login.
