Pitt’s online travel booking tool now shows carbon emissions information for flights

The University of Pittsburgh is offering a new resource to promote more sustainable travel: Pitt’s online travel booking tool, Concur, now shows carbon emissions information for all flight options, indicating the pounds of CO2 for each trip.

Air travel made up 21.1% of the University’s emissions pre-pandemic, so reducing this number is a major part of Pitt achieving carbon neutrality by 2037.

“This new feature allows travelers to make informed decisions when booking travel, and it reflects the commitment we have in Purchase, Pay & Travel to work closely with Pitt Sustainability and the Pitt community to support sustainability initiatives,” said Maureen Beal, assistant vice chancellor for financial operations.

The carbon emission feature in Concur will help the University to centralize the tracking of this emission data, whereas the same data for flights booked outside of Concur, such as through airlines or third-party sites, cannot be tracked centrally. Concur’s new feature will also help each department to develop their own internal goals and strategies for reducing emissions produced by air travel while still ensuring University travelers have access to discounted ticket prices and hands-on travel assistance when needed, all in one place.  

“The new Concur data for flight-related carbon emissions enables the University to centralize tracking and reporting of this information. Accurate information is vital to understanding our true impact — and progress towards our established sustainability goals, including carbon neutrality by 2037,” said Aurora Sharrard, executive director of sustainability at Pitt.

The program is one of many included in the Pitt Climate Action Plan, the Pitt Sustainability Plan and other University initiatives to create a bright and thriving future for all. Every Pitt student and employee has a different local, national and international contribution to our collective carbon impact from travel. Based on University requirements, the greenhouse gas impacts of air travel vary widely across our community. As we take this journey together, Pitt community members will continue to find the balance between in-person and virtual connections and make important trip decisions that will help us reach our carbon neutrality goals.

Visit the following pages on the Purchase, Pay & Travel website for more details about the Concur carbon emission feature and supplier sustainability efforts, as well as the Travel and Expense Management Program and University-wide Contracted Suppliers for planning a virtual or hybrid conference or event.