{"title":"Hydropower resilience in the Narayani River Basin: Multi-scenario insights on reliability and vulnerability under climate and land use change","authors":"Nirajan Devkota, Suraj Lamichhane, Pawan Kumar Bhattarai","doi":"10.1016/j.esd.2025.101786","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.esd.2025.101786","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Hydropower systems are highly sensitive to climate variability, necessitating robust assessments for long-term sustainability. This study employs the SWAT hydrological model for the Narayani River Basin in the Hindu Kush Himalayan Region. Climate change projections from General Circulation Models (GCMs) are integrated with land use change scenarios to assess their combined impact on hydropower performance through Reliability, Vulnerability, and Resilience (RVR) analysis. Reliability is the system's ability to consistently meet demand, Vulnerability evaluates its exposure to climate disruptions, and Resilience gauges its capacity to recover after disturbances. Future climate scenarios “wet-cool”, “wet-warm”, “dry-cool”, and “dry-warm” capture projected variations in temperature and precipitation. Results reveal significant seasonal and systemic disparities: snow-fed systems exhibit superior reliability, consistently exceeding the 0.95 reliability threshold post-monsoon due to sustained snowmelt, whereas rain-fed systems struggle during winter and pre-monsoon periods. Despite lower reliability, rain-fed systems maintain low vulnerability (<0.5) across all seasons, highlighting their inherent resilience to disruptions. Monsoon conditions enhance performance for both systems, achieving near-perfect resilience (score = 1), though dry-warm climates exacerbate vulnerability due to increased water scarcity. The analysis underscores critical climate-driven risks, with snow-fed systems being more affected by snowmelt variability and rain-fed systems by groundwater recharge limitations. To mitigate climate uncertainties, this study recommends adaptive strategies, including prioritizing enhanced water storage over run-of-river projects. By integrating multi-model GCMs projections with RVR metrics, this research advances hydropower resilience planning, advocating for localized climate adaptation and infrastructure investments to ensure sustainable energy security in a warming world.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":49209,"journal":{"name":"Energy for Sustainable Development","volume":"88 ","pages":"Article 101786"},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2025-07-22","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144680491","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Jiaxin Zheng , Licheng Sun , Xin Xu , Xiting Long , Tianyi Gao , Entong Xia , Biao Li , Shuheng Li , Jun Wang , Zhengyu Mo , Min Du , Jie Wang , Haoran Wang , Heping Xie
{"title":"Feasibility of shallow geothermal energy for industrial heating using high-temperature heat pumps in Sichuan Province, China","authors":"Jiaxin Zheng , Licheng Sun , Xin Xu , Xiting Long , Tianyi Gao , Entong Xia , Biao Li , Shuheng Li , Jun Wang , Zhengyu Mo , Min Du , Jie Wang , Haoran Wang , Heping Xie","doi":"10.1016/j.esd.2025.101785","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.esd.2025.101785","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Industrial energy consumption plays a pivotal role in the global energy landscape and offers considerable potential for carbon emission mitigation. The integration of shallow geothermal energy, which is widely distributed and easily accessible, with high-temperature heat pump technology presents a viable solution for industrial heating applications requiring temperatures below 100 <span><math><mo>°</mo></math></span>C. This study investigates the feasibility of utilizing shallow geothermal energy and existing oil and gas wells for industrial process heating in major cities of Sichuan Province, China. Through a comprehensive analysis of low-temperature industrial heating demand, shallow geothermal energy potential, existing well resources, and project economic benefits, the study reveals that a substantial low-temperature industrial heating demand of approximately 116.3 million GJ (3.97 million tons of standard coal equivalent (tce)) in the study area. Sichuan Province possesses significant exploitable shallow geothermal energy resources, estimated at 410.3 million GJ (14 million tce), along with 10,000 oil and gas wells and thousands of abandoned wells, which collectively can satisfy this demand. Economic analysis indicates that the Levelized Cost of Heating (LCOH) for shallow geothermal projects is 0.057 USD/<span><math><msub><mrow><mtext>kWh</mtext></mrow><mrow><mtext>th</mtext></mrow></msub></math></span> (0.400 CNY/<span><math><msub><mrow><mtext>kWh</mtext></mrow><mrow><mtext>th</mtext></mrow></msub></math></span>), while existing well projects demonstrate a lower LCOH of 0.039 USD/<span><math><msub><mrow><mtext>kWh</mtext></mrow><mrow><mtext>th</mtext></mrow></msub></math></span> (0.271 CNY/<span><math><msub><mrow><mtext>kWh</mtext></mrow><mrow><mtext>th</mtext></mrow></msub></math></span>), both slightly higher than natural gas boiler costs. The economic assessment shows that shallow geothermal projects can achieve a maximum Net Present Value (NPV) of approximately 1.01 billion USD (7.08 billion CNY), whereas existing well projects can reach up to 11.92 billion USD (83.45 billion CNY). The Dynamic Payback Period (DPP) analysis reveals that all existing well projects achieve payback within 1 year, while shallow geothermal projects show payback periods ranging from 7 to 14 years. These results substantiate the technical and economic feasibility of implementing shallow geothermal energy and existing well systems for industrial process heating. This model demonstrates significant potential for replication in other urban areas, offering dual benefits of economic advantages for industrial operations and substantial contributions to achieving national carbon neutrality objectives.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":49209,"journal":{"name":"Energy for Sustainable Development","volume":"88 ","pages":"Article 101785"},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2025-07-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144662608","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Clint Alex Steed , Bradley Shawn Mercuur , Mia Mangaroo-Pilllay
{"title":"A sustainable decarbonisation roadmap for South African priority agro-processing sub-sectors","authors":"Clint Alex Steed , Bradley Shawn Mercuur , Mia Mangaroo-Pilllay","doi":"10.1016/j.esd.2025.101788","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.esd.2025.101788","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>South Africa's agro-processing industry is a major contributor to the country's export earnings, but runs on one of the world's most carbon-intensive power grids, which makes the industry itself carbon-intensive. With global population set to exceed 8.5 billion by 2030, escalating demand for low-carbon food collides with the sector's coal-weighted energy mix—turning a core economic asset into both a climate liability and a competitive weak point. Pending hikes in South Africa's Carbon Tax and the EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) will penalize carbon-heavy producers unless the sector transforms that liability into an advantage.</div><div>This paper reframes decarbonisation from a purely environmental imperative to a <em>currency for trade competitiveness.</em> Building on a soft-systems methodology and a synthesis of rapid- and industrial-decarbonisation frameworks, we propose a three-phase roadmap for fruit-and-vegetable processing, breweries, poultry, and sugarcane milling that (i) captures low-cost efficiency gains, (ii) scales renewables and circular bio-energy, and (iii) electrifies thermal processes to approach net-zero. Scenario analysis shows that failing to decarbonise could add cost to EU-bound exports by 2030, while proactive decarbonisation yields positive net-present value once avoided CBAM tariffs and Carbon Tax liabilities are internalised.</div><div>The roadmap defines clear, cost-effective technology and financing strategies while weaving in a just-transition perspective that protects rural communities as we pursue climate goals. By harnessing systems thinking across policy, finance, and industry practice, it creates a scalable roadmap for carbon-intensive, resource-limited economies to accelerate—and equitably achieve—their net-zero ambitions.</div><div>Finance-ready transition hinges on coherent policies—progressive carbon pricing, targeted incentives, and transparent reporting—working in concert with industry-led innovation. This roadmap equips policymakers, financiers, and plant managers with a concise playbook to sharpen South Africa's agro-processing competitiveness as the global economy races toward low-carbon solutions.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":49209,"journal":{"name":"Energy for Sustainable Development","volume":"88 ","pages":"Article 101788"},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2025-07-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144662609","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Weiwei Huang , Huiying Ye , Nikolay Khabarov , Jiahui Chen , YanYan Yu
{"title":"Decoupling carbon emissions, economic growth, and health costs toward carbon neutrality in China's regions","authors":"Weiwei Huang , Huiying Ye , Nikolay Khabarov , Jiahui Chen , YanYan Yu","doi":"10.1016/j.esd.2025.101789","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.esd.2025.101789","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>In response to climate change, understanding regional and sectoral carbon emissions is essential for guiding China's low-carbon transition. This study analyzes carbon emission trends across provinces and industries in China from 2006 to 2020, covering the 11th to 13th Five-Year Plan (FYP) periods. Using the Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index (LMDI) method and Tapio decoupling model, we identify key emission drivers and decoupling patterns. Results reveal significant regional disparities: carbon emissions in the Northwest increased by 55 % during the 12th FYP and 46 % in the 13th FYP, reaching 380 million tons, while the Beijing-Tianjin region saw only an 8 % increase and achieved strong decoupling in the 13th FYP. Economic growth remains the main driver of emissions, particularly in the Central and Northern Coast regions, whereas energy intensity and industrial restructuring play important mitigating roles. The share of health expenditures in GDP rose from 4.7 % to 7.1 %, with the Northwest region peaking at 9.1 %, indicating links between emissions and health costs. The findings offer practical insights for region-specific policy design, including energy structure optimization, technological upgrading, and public health considerations.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":49209,"journal":{"name":"Energy for Sustainable Development","volume":"88 ","pages":"Article 101789"},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2025-07-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144662606","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Enhancing postharvest storage in low- and middle-income countries: Evaluation of the passive evaporative cooling blanket for fruits and vegetables","authors":"Theresa Wittkamp , Thijs Defraeye , Rebecca Yegon , Daniel Onwude","doi":"10.1016/j.esd.2025.101787","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.esd.2025.101787","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Over 30 % of fruit and vegetables produced in low- and middle-income countries is lost from farm to consumer. To combat this, cooling fresh produce after harvest is vital. Evaporative passive cooling is a viable solution, yet it is underutilized mainly due to complexity, scalability, and affordability issues for smallholder farmers. The passive cooling blanket represents a cleaner alternative to current evaporative coolers that can address these challenges. It is a re-usable textile-based blanket filled with a natural padding material such as sawdust or charcoal. However, its performance in real-world conditions has not been tested so far. This study evaluated the efficacy of two cooling blankets with capacities of 0.06 m<sup>3</sup> and 0.18 m<sup>3</sup> to preserve fresh produce by full-scale outdoor experiments in Kenya. Storage trials on tomato, kale, zucchini, and peas were conducted, comparing the blanket with a traditional charcoal cooler and storage under permanent shade. The blanket effectively lowered air temperature on average by 3–5 °C below ambient, with a maximum reduction of 10 °C during the warmest time of the day. It maintained a constant interior relative humidity of 95 %, which slowed down the wilting of the produce. The cooling efficiency was 70 % during the daytime. The blanket performed slightly better than the traditional large charcoal cooler room in terms of humidity. The quality preservation of the vegetables was improved significantly compared to storage under the shade, reducing postharvest losses by up to 45 %. The combination of cool temperatures and elevated humidity makes this storage method suitable for preserving several fruits or vegetables. A comprehensive cost analysis indicated that the payback period of the blanket is less than three months. Moreover, a survey among smallholder farmers and fruit vendors revealed an extremely high willingness to adopt this blanket. As a result, the passive cooling blanket emerged as a promising and sustainable solution for addressing postharvest storage challenges in low- and middle-income countries.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":49209,"journal":{"name":"Energy for Sustainable Development","volume":"88 ","pages":"Article 101787"},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2025-07-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144654206","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A comparative analysis of in-motion and overnight charging infrastructure design for e-buses","authors":"Abu Nasar, Aman Sharma, N. Nezamuddin","doi":"10.1016/j.esd.2025.101784","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.esd.2025.101784","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>With the increasing environmental concern due to using fossil fuels, there is a global trend towards large-scale vehicle electrification. This study examines a scenario where an urban area's current fleet of conventional fossil fuel buses will be replaced with electric buses (e-buses). The study compares two different charging strategies, in-motion charging (IMC) and overnight charging (ONC), for deploying a cost-optimal e-bus system on a city's sub-network to help operators make better decisions. The e-bus systems are designed using Mixed Integer Linear Programs for a sub-network of the real-life bus network in Delhi, India to demonstrate the usability of the study. The results indicated that the e-bus system designed using IMC was about 8 % more economical than charging the buses overnight. The main difference was observed in the charging infrastructure and the battery sizes selected for the e-buses. Using IMC, enabled the e-buses to complete the day's service with a significantly smaller sized battery compared to when the e-buses are charged overnight, leading to savings in cost and the yearly CO<sub>2</sub> emission due to the battery manufacturing process. Sensitivity analysis conducted for battery price trend in the future shows with decreasing battery cost ONC becomes a more economical option, although concerns regarding CO<sub>2</sub> emission remains. This study will help the transit operators and policy makers to make decisions regarding the kind of e-bus system to deploy considering the long-term cost and environmental factors of the same.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":49209,"journal":{"name":"Energy for Sustainable Development","volume":"88 ","pages":"Article 101784"},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2025-07-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144605417","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Xiaoshan Cheng , Weijing Ma , Jingjing Yang , Qiyu Yang , Yuheng Yue , Meena Kumari Kolli
{"title":"Supply-demand and interplay of food-energy-water nexus system of Hexi Corridor, China","authors":"Xiaoshan Cheng , Weijing Ma , Jingjing Yang , Qiyu Yang , Yuheng Yue , Meena Kumari Kolli","doi":"10.1016/j.esd.2025.101782","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.esd.2025.101782","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>The Hexi Corridor plays a pivotal role in the sustainable development of the Belt and Road initiative. However, the region is resource-dependent and faces crises such as water scarcity, soil degradation, energy transition challenges, and lack of effective policy coordination. Therefore, based on the STELLA modeling platform, this study establishes a dynamic model of Hexi Corridor to simulate the dynamic interaction of food-energy-water (FEW) systems from 2010 to 2035, to examine the interconnections between the supply, demand, and interrelationship of these three types of resources. The results show that: (1) Compared with 2010, the supply of food in the Hexi Corridor in 2035 exceeded the demand by 600,000 tons, and the energy exceeded about 20 million tons of standard coal. However, the water demand gap of Hexi Corridor will be about 142 million m<sup>3</sup>. (2) The energy-food correlation coefficient has decreased by approximately 0.01 as a result of advancements in agricultural technology. Additionally, the energy-water and water-food correlation coefficients have respectively increased to 0.02 and 2.06 due to population growth, which has resulted in an escalated demand for energy and food. (3) The sustainability of the comprehensive effects is the strongest, which indicates that the key to the sustainable development of the Hexi Corridor is to improve the technical level and rational utilization of policies to save resources. The findings would contribute to the formulation of data-based recommendations for sustainable resource management policies in the Hexi Corridor.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":49209,"journal":{"name":"Energy for Sustainable Development","volume":"88 ","pages":"Article 101782"},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2025-07-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144571880","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Jinwei Li , Xiaoling Cao , Shouya Liu , Pengxin Zhang , Yanping Yuan
{"title":"Study on the load uncertainty of buildings and villages in western Sichuan Plateau based BP neural network integrating prior knowledge","authors":"Jinwei Li , Xiaoling Cao , Shouya Liu , Pengxin Zhang , Yanping Yuan","doi":"10.1016/j.esd.2025.101781","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.esd.2025.101781","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Due to its unique climatic conditions and occupant behaviors, the precise design of heating systems in the western Sichuan Plateau (WSCP) presents significant challenges. Existing research has primarily focused on climate change and solar energy utilization systems, with limited exploration of the combined impacts of weather variability and occupant behavior uncertainties on building and village heating demands. This study obtained three typical buildings and occupant behavior patterns through field surveys and on-site measurements. Further, it developed a novel algorithm combining a particle swarm optimization (PSO) algorithm with a backpropagation (BP) algorithm that incorporates prior knowledge to predict heating demands for buildings and villages under the dual uncertainties of weather and occupant behavior across different locations. The results show that considering both weather and occupant behavior uncertainties, the peak heating load of buildings may increase by up to 119.3 % compared to design conditions. Conversely, when considering the herding activities of the inhabitants, the overall peak heating demand of villages may decrease by 38.1 %. Additionally, in the WSCP, the mean uncertainty of building heating demand exhibits an upward trend with decreasing longitude and increasing latitude. Therefore, future designs of distributed and centralized heating systems in this region should fully incorporate the impacts of uncertainties from weather conditions and occupant behaviors. The findings of this study provide critical references for the precise design of heating systems in the WSCP.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":49209,"journal":{"name":"Energy for Sustainable Development","volume":"88 ","pages":"Article 101781"},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2025-07-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144569790","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Ofelia Carlsson, Madeleine Johansson, Erik O. Ahlgren
{"title":"Utilization of a solar PV mini-grid powered cold storage to reduce fishery spoilage - A Tanzanian case","authors":"Ofelia Carlsson, Madeleine Johansson, Erik O. Ahlgren","doi":"10.1016/j.esd.2025.101778","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.esd.2025.101778","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Access to electricity is important for the development of rural areas in Sub-Saharan Africa. One area where better electricity access could contribute to development is reduction of spoilage of food. This article aims to understand how access to electricity can affect the spoilage of fish and the economical possibility to implement a communal cold storage unit connected to a solar PV mini-grid, as well as what technical requirements this would put on the mini-grid operation. The study is based on a case on the island Ukara in Lake Victoria, Tanzania. A techno-economic analysis is performed simulating a walk-in cold storage room connected to a solar PV mini-grid. The article also includes a qualitative analysis with a causal loop diagram illustrating the interlinkages between the system variables to identify the effects of electrification on the spoilage of fish. The findings indicate that it is economically feasible to implement a communal cold storage unit if an investor makes the initial investment and allows the fishers a pay-back period of at least one year and if a profit wants to be made more than 50 kg fish should be sold a day. Another finding is that the capacity of the mini-grid may need to increase to be able to cover the demand during periods of low solar PV generation. The cost for the mini-grid company becomes higher with the cooling unit during the high season of fishery, this is since the rain seasons correlate with this, and the solar radiation is low. The mini-grid operation cost is around 2.4 $/day higher with the cooling unit connected to the grid, it may be higher if the mini-grid owners decide to run the diesel generator instead to invest in higher capacity batteries and solar PV. The causal loop diagram indicates that access to electricity can be an important solution to reduce the spoilage of fish by enabling the use of cold storage. Moreover, electricity access allows the fishermen to use electricity for value addition of the fish, as the refrigerated fish have higher price than fresh fish. The spoilage has become zero when the fish is refrigerated.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":49209,"journal":{"name":"Energy for Sustainable Development","volume":"88 ","pages":"Article 101778"},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2025-07-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144569789","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Sustainability-driven energy management strategies for reducing carbon footprints in higher education","authors":"Ahmed Hebala, Mostafa M. Kamel, Mostafa S. Hamad","doi":"10.1016/j.esd.2025.101783","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.esd.2025.101783","url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are intense energy consumers with a substantial carbon footprint (CF), yet they hold promising potential for emissions reductions. This study aims to evaluate the CF of the College of Maritime Transport and Technology (CMTT), Alexandria, Egypt, and to assess the effectiveness of four mitigation strategies. An in-depth CF analysis was conducted based on Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions using established protocols to identify key emission sources. Building on this baseline, the study evaluates the impact of four mitigation strategies: (1) improving energy efficiency in buildings, (2) PV-based energy generation, (3) electrifying the campus transport fleet, and (4) an innovative on-campus waste valorisation system that converts Recycled Cooking Oil (RCO) into biodiesel. The analysis estimates the potential for RCO production from campus activities and quantifies feasible CF reductions from biodiesel-based fossil fuel substitution. The effectiveness of this approach is compared with that of conventional strategies, showing varying degrees of contribution to institutional decarbonisation. The study provides a novel integration of circular economy solutions—specifically RCO-to-biodiesel conversion—into a conventional energy and emissions management framework. It offers a replicable roadmap for HEIs to enhance sustainability through combined renewable, efficiency, and waste-to-energy strategies.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":49209,"journal":{"name":"Energy for Sustainable Development","volume":"88 ","pages":"Article 101783"},"PeriodicalIF":4.4,"publicationDate":"2025-07-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144556592","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}