CATCH - Carbon Aware Travel Choices

MRC McLean Hazel are currently leading a global consortium in a European Commission funded project called CATCH (Carbon Aware Travel CHoices) which aims to invoke behavioural change in urban areas to encourage a move towards low carbon transport modes and means. The project will develop a resource that will raise awareness amongst urban stakeholders of GHG (greenhouse gas) problems and local and international policy potentials to reduce the CO₂ contribution of their overall GHG emissions from urban transport. CATCH is developing an online ‘knowledge platform’ that will enable local decision-makers to move their city’s population towards less carbon intensive transportation. It will do this in three ways:

- by developing tools to help decision makers understand the nature of the problem and solutions to transport related carbon emissions in their city;

- by highlighting effective instruments and actions to reduce carbon emissions in their city grounded in a real understanding of how to achieve behavioural change towards sustainable travel,

- by highlighting best-practice approaches to exploit available knowledge.

 The 30 month project has been running for 18 months thus far, and involves partners from various institutions and sectors (universities, private consultancies, and international associations) based in 6 countries- UK, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Brazil and China.  Furthermore, an ‘Interest Group’ has been set up to help define the development and direction of the CATCH knowledge platform. The Interest Group consists of representatives of local governments across Europe, the NGO sector, business sector, and research arena in the fields of carbon and environmental management and transport.  In addition we have 5 European ‘core cities’ who applied to work with our team to apply CATCH to their city’s needs: Odense in Denmark, Rotterdam in the Netherlands, Lisbon in Portugal, Baia Mare in Romania, and the London Borough of Hounslow in the UK.  They will help inspire, design and test the knowledge platform throughout its development.

If you would like to find out more about the project please visit out project website, contact Steve Cassidy at MRC McLean Hazel’s office in Edinburgh, join our LinkedIn Group, or have a look at any of our other social networking dissemination channels:

• Website:             www.carbonaware.eu
• Youtube:             www.youtube.com/user/carbonaware
• LinkedIn:            Key words: carbon aware travel
• Twitter:                Key words: carbonaware
• Facebook:          Catch- Carbon Aware Travel Choices