Multi-scale greenhouse gas emissions accounting in developing countries
Climate action needs reliable information on where greenhouse gas emissions come from and how they change over time. Emission inventories provide this information by showing the sources, scale, and trends of emissions. However, in many developing countries, emission inventories are still incomplete, inconsistent, or difficult to compare across countries, cities, and sectors. This makes it harder to design effective climate policies and to track progress toward emission reduction targets.
In his thesis, Binyuan Liu studies how greenhouse gas emission accounting can be improved in developing countries. Liu first reviews existing national and city level inventories and identifies common problems in data coverage, quality, transparency, and comparability. He then develops more consistent CO₂ emission accounts for Mainland Southeast Asia and examines the key drivers of emission changes, especially the growing role of energy use and the power sector. Finally, Liu improves fossil fuel emission accounting by tracing traded fuels back to their extraction countries and applying origin-specific emission factors, showing that emission estimates may be biased when imported fuels are treated the same as domestic fuels.
Overall, this thesis shows that better emission accounting is more than a technical task. Liu provides the evidence needed for fairer, more transparent, and more effective climate action. The findings highlight the importance of improving data capacity, strengthening cooperation across governance levels, and developing emission accounts that better support climate policy in developing countries.