While it is possible to find out the carbon impact of a car or a house, such measurement tools do not exist for everyday products, such as shoes. Three 30-somethings set out to change that, leaving their jobs to create a platform through which people can learn about the carbon footprint of their sneakers.
Martin Daniel, Marc Laurent and Romain Champourlier launched the Carbonfact platform last month. Several brands are present on the site, from giants like Nike and Adidas to “vegan-friendly” brands such as Saye and Minuit sur Terre.
By clicking on the name of a pair of sneakers that appears on the screen, you will find detailed information on the product, such as the weight, materials used and their recyclability rate, the country of manufacture, and the existence of a specific recycling programme.
This data is analysed by the Carbonfact team, who then determine the carbon impact of each product.
All three founders, who were working in the field of technology, left “comfortable” jobs to embark on a project more in line with their values.
“We wanted to focus on the issue of ecology, which is certainly the biggest challenge for our generation,” says Daniel. “Once you start learning about the climate crisis, there is no turning back. You realise, for example, that everything you do on a daily basis – eating, moving, dressing and so on – has a carbon cost.”
The starting point was their observation that brands rarely, if ever, communicate the carbon footprint of their products, despite the existence of labels intended to guide consumers towards more eco-responsible choices.
“We are bombarded with fuzzy marketing terms such as ‘sustainable’, ‘eco-friendly’ or ‘green’. Why isn’t there already a carbon tag on each product so we can make an informed decision?” they point out in their manifesto.
At Carbonfact, particular attention is paid to the concrete impact of the ecological measures put forward by the brands. “It is very important for us to quantify the real impact of these products and not just rely on brand communication, a crucial issue given the omnipresence of greenwashing,” Daniel emphasises.
‘Like counting calories’
Another objective of the platform is to highlight brands that may not be as well known to the general public, but which are committed to the environmental cause and have values in line with the expectations of a growing number of consumers.
“Our goal is to support brands that are truly committed to sustainable development, but also to make consumers aware of this when they’re making decisions about what to buy.
“A bit like counting the calories in a food, we want to give them the option to count the carbon,” Daniel adds.
The platform is designed to have international reach. With support from United States-based incubator Y Combinator, Carbonfact is currently focusing solely on the carbon footprint of sneakers. But its founders are already planning to extend their carbon calculator tool to other everyday products.
“Why not clothes, household appliances or even electronic accessories? The objective is to focus on the sectors where we find the greatest carbon impact.
“Knowing that billions of shoes are manufactured in the world every year, we thought it would be interesting to start there,” Daniel says.