The Carbon Voyage tool is developed by the Global Efficiency Intelligence, LLC.

Around 22% of global CO2 emissions are embodied in imported goods, thus escaping attribution in the consuming country (the end-user) and instead being debited to the producer country. Embodied emissions in trade are not accounted for in most current GHG accounting systems and climate policies, but if they were, many promising climate trends would be negated or reversed in some countries.

In 2022, Global Efficiency Intelligence published a report titled . Embodied Carbon in Trade: Carbon Loophole. This report aims to provide a newly updated analysis of embodied carbon in global trade (carbon loophole, also known as imported consumption-based emissions). Using the latest EXIOBASE (version 3.8.2) database, along with additional data, we estimated global embodied carbon in trade by developing the Environmentally-Extended Multi-Regional Input-Output (EE MRIO) model. Our analysis investigated global trends and does a deep dive into several key countries/regions and industry sectors.

The Carbon Voyage tool is developed based on the analysis conducted and the model developed in the aforementioned study. It is a visualization tool that allows people to explore the size and directions of the embodied emissions in trade across countries and regions over time. This tool is developed based on the Environmentally-Extended Multi-Regional Input-Output (EE MRIO) model. Our source for the annual MRIO data is the monetary industry-by-industry tables from EXIOBASE, in that we use the EXIOBASE 3.8.2, the latest version available.

Originally, the EXIOBASE 3.8.2 contains 44 countries and five ROW aggregate regions between 1995-2021. We, however, exclude the last two years, 2020 and 2021, due to the global anomaly induced by Covid-19. EXIOBASE 3.8.2 also offers environmental pressure data, one of them is emission intensity data which we use to together with monetary industry-by-industry tables.

This tool provides essential data to the state of embodied carbon in international trade and global carbon emissions. The tool provides macro-analysis of embodied carbon in trade in certain countries/regions and for 24 key carbon-intensive products. The Carbon Voyage tool offers visualized answer to the following questions:

• How much the emissions embodied in a country exports and imports?
• Where does a country exports embodied emissions to, or imports emissions from?
• How much is the emissions embodied in a country's exports or import of 24 emission-intensive products?
• Where does a country export embodied emissions of 24 products to, or imports from?
• What is the share of embodied emissions in exports or imports of a country in total global embodied emissions in trade?

We would like to thank the Breakthrough Energy for supporting the development of this tool.

This website and its information may be freely quoted but acknowledgment is requested.

Recommended citation: Global Efficiency Intelligence, 2024. Carbon Voyage Tool: Embodied Carbon in Trade. Global Efficiency Intelligence. Florida, United States. Available at https://www.carbonvoyagetool.com