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v2026.1CASRAI Dictionary 714 entries across 20 domains · CC-BY 4.0714 entries · CC-BY 4.0

Dictionary termTrack EStablev2026.2

Scope 1 / 2 / 3 emissions (research org)

The categorisation of a research organisation's greenhouse-gas emissions following the GHG Protocol: scope 1 (direct on-site combustion), scope 2 (purchased electricity, heat, steam, cooling), and scope 3 (indirect emissions across the value chain, including procurement, commuting, travel, and waste).

ByCASRAI Editorial Board

· Last updated 21 May 2026

Examples

Worked examples

Is an instance
A university reports 8 percent scope 1, 22 percent scope 2, and 70 percent scope 3 in its 2024 carbon report.
Is an instance
A research institute commits to a 50 percent scope 1+2 reduction by 2030 with a separate scope 3 trajectory.

Counter-examples

Looks similar, but isn't

Not an instance
A report that mentions only direct emissions is incomplete relative to the GHG Protocol.
Not an instance
A single corporate carbon-offset claim without scope categorisation is non-standard.

Editorial commentary

For research-intensive universities and institutes, scope 3 typically dominates total emissions (often more than 75 percent), with procurement of laboratory consumables and equipment, and business travel, being the leading sub-categories. Robust scope-3 accounting requires supplier engagement and spend-based emission factors, with progression to product-level emission factors as data improves. Mandatory disclosure regimes (UK SECR, EU CSRD, US SEC climate rules) are tightening expectations. Many research funders now expect institutions to report scope-3 reduction trajectories.

References

GHG Protocol Corporate Standard; CDP Climate Disclosure framework.

Also known as

GHG scopes · Scope 1 2 3 · Three-scope GHG accounting

Machine-readable encodings

Use in your systems

JATS XML <role> element

xml

<role vocab="credit"
      vocab-identifier="https://casrai.org/dictionary/"
      vocab-term="Scope 1 / 2 / 3 emissions (research org)"
      vocab-term-identifier="https://casrai.org/dictionary/term/scope-1-2-3-emissions-research-org" />

Schema.org DefinedTerm (JSON-LD)

json

{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "DefinedTerm",
  "name": "Scope 1 / 2 / 3 emissions (research org)",
  "identifier": "https://casrai.org/dictionary/term/scope-1-2-3-emissions-research-org",
  "description": "The categorisation of a research organisation's greenhouse-gas emissions following the GHG Protocol: scope 1 (direct on-site combustion), scope 2 (purchased electricity, heat, steam, cooling), and scope 3 (indirect emissions across the value chain, including procurement, commuting, travel, and waste).",
  "inDefinedTermSet": "https://casrai.org/dictionary/domain/sustainable-research-and-laboratory-operations/",
  "url": "https://casrai.org/dictionary/term/scope-1-2-3-emissions-research-org",
  "sameAs": [
    "GHG scopes",
    "Scope 1 2 3",
    "Three-scope GHG accounting"
  ],
  "license": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"
}

Referenced across the research world

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