LEAP (Long-range Energy Alternatives Planning System) is a modeling tool developed by the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI). The tool can be used to track energy consumption, production and resource extraction in all sectors in the economy. In addition to tracking emissions of greenhouse gases, it can also be used to analyse emissions of local and regional air pollutants. It is used by over hundreds of organizations in more than 150 countries, including government agencies, academics, non-governmental organizations, consulting companies and energy utilities. In for example China, it has been used to explore how China could achieve its development goals while also reducing carbon intensity. In the United States, the Natural Resource Defense Council (NRDC) uses LEAP to analyse national fuel economy standards and in the Philippined, LEAP is used to develop National Energy Plans.

Read more: www.energycommunity.org

REAP (Resources and Energy Analysis Programme) is a software tool that helps policy makers to understand and measure the environmental pressures associated with human consumption. The tool has been developed by the Stockholm Environment Institute at its centre in York, and has been widely used by local authorities in the United Kingdom. It contains baseline data on the greenhouse gases, air pollutants and ecological footprints for the entire UK.

REAP can be used at the local, regional and national levels and generates indicators on:

-          Carbon dioxide and greenhouse gas emissions measured in tonnes per capita

-          The Ecological Footprint required to sustain an area in global hectares per capita

-          The Material Flows of products and services through an area measured in thousands of tonnes.

The methodology behind REAP is based on input-output analysis. One of the most important functions in the REAP tool is the scenario editor. This can be used to explore the environmental pressures associated with changes in population, consumption patterns and production technology over time.

Figure 1. The REAP interface

Find out more about REAP: www.resource-accounting.org.uk