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Lynette Cheah presents “Carbon footprint assessment of cross-border e-commerce shipping options”
October 15, 2021 @ 11:00 am - 12:00 pm
The Smart Freight Centre Leadership Seminar Series presents special guest speaker Professor Lynette Cheah of the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) on Friday, October 15, 2021, 11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. EST.
All are welcome to attend this free online webinar via Zoom. Join at: https://utoronto.zoom.us/j/87624482177.
Description
In the bid to stay competitive, online shopping platforms often offer a variety of shipping options to meet the preferences of consumers. While faster delivery might be desirable for consumers, this may be detrimental to the environment.
This study aims to conduct a comparative carbon footprint assessment of shipping options available in Taobao, a highly popular Chinese online shopping website. We evaluate the case of cross-border e-commerce, where goods are ordered from China to Singapore as the shipment destination. Thereafter, a shipping choice preference survey is conducted to evaluate the impact of carbon labelling on consumers’ shipping preferences. Out of 188 survey respondents, slightly more than half (55%) were found to be willing to compromise the speed of delivery for a less carbon-intensive alternative.
Given this finding, the study advocates for carbon labelling to be introduced for e-commerce shipping options.
About the speaker
Lynette Cheah is an Associate Professor of Engineering Systems at the Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD). She directs the Sustainable Urban Mobility research laboratory, which develops data-driven models and tools to reduce the environmental impacts of passenger and urban freight transport. She is currently Associate Editor for the Journal of Industrial Ecology and Review Editor for the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s Sixth Assessment Report.
More information about Professor Cheah’s research is available here.
Previously on the Smart Freight Centre Leadership Seminar Series
- Genevieve Giuliano presents “Heavy duty trucks: The challenge of getting to zero,” May 5, 2021
- Miguel Jaller presents “Who shops online and how sustainable is the delivery process?” February 12, 2021
- Alison Conway presents “Freight and Complete Streets: Moving Goods in Shared Urban Space,” November 6, 2020
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