★ Integration Day Closing cross-section workshop — final session of the term
CVEN 5019 · Integrated Core · Fall 2026 · Week 8
Case Studies & Final Presentations
Applying the full sustainable technology toolkit to real-world transitions — energy, mobility, built environment, and agriculture.
Week 8 Agenda
This Session
- Opening: Course arc recap — where we've been
- Case Studies: Four technology sectors analyzed through the toolkit
- Final Presentations: Student project presentations to faculty & guests
- Synthesis: Full toolkit one-pager — design principles
- Integration Day: Closing cross-section workshop
- Close: What comes next — pathways & commitments
Learning Outcomes (Week 8)
- Apply GHG, DMRV, LCA, net zero, and equity tools to an integrated case
- Critically evaluate technology transitions across multiple impact dimensions
- Communicate findings clearly to a mixed technical/non-technical audience
- Synthesize the course toolkit into a personal design decision framework
The Arc of This Course
🌍
Week 1
Systems Thinking & Planetary Boundaries — Why design matters
📊
Week 2
GHG Accounting — Measuring Scope 1/2/3 emissions rigorously
📡
Week 3
DMRV — Digital verification at scale (★ Integration Day)
♻️
Week 4
Process LCA — Full cradle-to-grave impact assessment
🎯
Week 5
Net Zero & Procurement — Target-setting and supply chain decarbonization
💧
Week 6
Beyond Carbon — Water, food, social LCA (★ Integration Day)
⚖️
Week 7
Justice, Equity & PM — Distributional impacts and lifecycle planning
🏆
Week 8
Case Studies & Final Presentations — Synthesis (★ Integration Day)
→
Beyond
Your practice — applying the toolkit throughout your career
Every case study today will be analyzed through at least three lenses from our toolkit — not just carbon.
Part 1 of 4
Case Studies:
Technology Transitions
Four real-world sectors — analyzed using GHG accounting, LCA, net zero strategy, and equity frameworks.
Case Study 1: Utility-Scale Solar + Storage (Nevada)
The Transition
- Project: 250 MW solar PV + 4-hour battery storage replacing a coal plant
- GHG result: 91% reduction in Scope 1; Scope 3 Cat 11 (use-phase) eliminated
- LCA hotspots: Panel manufacturing (poly-Si, silver, glass) — 18 gCO₂eq/kWh; battery pack — lithium, cobalt
- Net zero alignment: SBTi 1.5°C trajectory; residual 9% addressed via high-quality offsets
Beyond Carbon
- Water: 98% reduction vs. thermoelectric cooling — critical in drought-stressed basin (AWARE score: high scarcity region)
- Land use: 4,000 acres — biodiversity LCIA via ReCiPe midpoint
- Equity: 94% of impacted community: low-income, Indigenous. CBP Agreement negotiated for jobs + remediation fund
- DMRV: IoT production monitoring feeds real-time EAC (Energy Attribute Certificate) issuance
Design lesson: Carbon-only analysis misses the water savings that make this project compelling in an arid region.
Case Study 2: Fleet Electrification — Transit Bus (Colorado)
The Transition
- Project: RTD Denver: 200 diesel buses → BEV over 5 years
- GHG: Scope 1 eliminated; Scope 3 Cat 11 (fuel combustion) → upstream electricity emissions (CO grid: 0.43 kg CO₂eq/kWh declining)
- LCA: Battery pack manufacturing = 35–50 tCO₂eq/bus; payback period ~3 years at current grid intensity
- Procurement: Scope 3 Cat 1 — battery cell suppliers required SBTi alignment
Beyond Carbon
- Air quality: NO₂ and PM₂.₅ reduction largest in low-income, high-density routes → quantified via Social LCA
- EJ: Route prioritization used EJScreen to deploy EVs on disadvantaged community routes first
- PM: Battery end-of-life specified in contract (2nd-life + recycling); decommissioning liability tracked
- DMRV: Telematics → real-time Scope 3 Cat 6 (employee commute) avoided emissions reporting
Design lesson: Sequencing electrification on environmental justice routes first maximizes co-benefits beyond carbon.
Case Study 3: Net Zero Building — Commercial Office (Chicago)
The Transition
- Project: 120,000 sf office tower — deep energy retrofit + all-electric conversion
- GHG: Operational carbon → net zero via efficiency + RECs; embodied carbon (Scope 3 Cat 2) = 12 kg CO₂eq/sf from glazing, steel, concrete
- Whole-life LCA: EDGE certified; TRACI impact method; 60-year system boundary
- Procurement: EPDs (Environmental Product Declarations) required from all structural suppliers
Beyond Carbon
- Water: Low-flow fixtures + greywater reuse → 42% potable water reduction (ISO 14046)
- Material health: DECLARE labels for interior finishes; chemical hazard screening
- Social: Local hiring plan — 40% workforce from low-income zip codes; living wage requirement
- Equity: Avoided gentrification analysis — affordable commercial tenant reserve
Design lesson: Embodied carbon in materials can exceed 30-year operational carbon — whole-life LCA is essential.
Case Study 4: Regenerative Agriculture — Grain Farm (Nebraska)
The Transition
- Project: 3,000-acre corn/soy operation: tillage → no-till + cover crops + precision fertilizer
- GHG: Scope 1 N₂O (fertilizer) reduced 31%; soil organic carbon (SOC) sequestration verified via DMRV (satellite + soil sensors)
- LCA: System expansion — co-product credits for cover crop biomass; functional unit: 1 tonne grain at farm gate
- Carbon market: Verra VCS methodology; DMRV stack enables real-time credit issuance
Beyond Carbon
- Water: Runoff/erosion down 55%; water quality co-benefit (nitrogen leaching to groundwater)
- Biodiversity: Pollinator habitat restoration — TNFD biodiversity metric improvement
- Food security: Yield stability increased in drought years (resilience co-benefit)
- Equity: Smallholder cost-share program — upfront capital barrier addressed by carbon revenue bridge financing
Design lesson: SOC sequestration is real but requires rigorous DMRV — permanence, additionality, and leakage all matter for credit integrity.
Part 2 of 4
Final Project
Presentations
Each team presents their Sustainable Technology Assessment to faculty and industry reviewers. Format: 12 min + 8 min Q&A.
Presentation Structure & Rubric
Recommended Structure (12 min)
- 0–2 min: Problem framing. What technology? What transition? Why does it matter (systems lens)?
- 2–5 min: GHG & LCA findings. Scope 1/2/3 profile; key hotspots; functional unit; impact categories beyond carbon
- 5–8 min: Net zero strategy. Reduction roadmap; residual offsets; procurement levers; SBTi alignment
- 8–10 min: Equity & project management. Who benefits, who bears burden; CBPD elements; lifecycle PM considerations
- 10–12 min: Recommendation & uncertainty. Clear design recommendation; key assumptions; sensitivity
Evaluation Rubric (100 pts)
Criterion
Points
Problem framing & systems lens
10
GHG accounting rigor (Scope 1/2/3)
20
LCA methodology & breadth of impact categories
20
Net zero & procurement strategy
15
Equity & social impact analysis
15
Clarity of recommendation + uncertainty treatment
10
Presentation quality & time management
10
Part 3 of 4
The Full
Toolkit
Synthesizing eight weeks of methods into a unified framework for sustainable technology assessment and design.
Your Sustainable Technology Assessment Toolkit
📊
GHG Accounting
GHG Protocol, Scope 1/2/3, Tier 1–3, ISO 14064, SBTi verification
📡
DMRV
IoT + satellite + blockchain 5-layer stack; real-time carbon credit issuance
♻️
Process LCA
ISO 14040/44; ecoinvent; ReCiPe, TRACI, CML; hotspot ID
🎯
Net Zero Strategy
SBTi 1.5°C; decarbonization roadmap; offset quality; circular economy
🛒
Sustainable Procurement
ISO 20400; EPDs; supplier engagement; Scope 3 Cat 1 management
💧
Water & Food LCA
ISO 14046; AWARE scarcity factors; food system impacts; TNFD biodiversity
👥
Social LCA
UNEP S-LCA; stakeholder categories; EJ metrics; poverty alleviation
⚖️
Equity & Justice
EJScreen; CBPD; distributional analysis; Just Transition principles
📋
Sustainable PM
Lifecycle phases; LCA in planning; decommissioning liability; stakeholder engagement
The integration principle: No single tool is sufficient. Robust sustainable technology assessment requires combining quantitative methods with equity and systems lenses.
★ Integration Day — Closing Workshop
Convergence: Designing for a Sustainable Future
All three Term B Integrated Core courses come together for the final session. Students from Principles for Sustainable Technologies, Policy & Technology Transitions, and Sustainable Business Strategy present integrated solutions to a shared wicked problem brief distributed at the start of term.
3:00–3:30
Opening plenary: Faculty framing — integration across technical, policy, and business lenses
3:30–4:30
Cross-disciplinary team presentations: 4–5 teams of 4–5 students; mixed cohort by design; 12 min + Q&A
4:30–5:00
Industry panel response: Practitioners reflect on presentations — what translates, what's missing in practice
5:00–5:30
Synthesis and close: Shared learning harvest; commitments cards; program close with Dean and faculty
🌱
Closing Activity — Individual Reflection
What is one concrete commitment you will make to apply this toolkit in the next 6 months?
On your commitment card, write:
1. The tool or framework you found most valuable (GHG accounting, LCA, equity lens, etc.)
2. A specific context where you will apply it — a project, a job decision, a supplier conversation, a policy proposal
3. One person you will share this method with — knowledge transfer multiplies impact
Cards will be collected and returned to you at your one-year program alumni check-in.
CVEN 5019 · Principles for the Design of Sustainable Technologies · Fall 2026
Thank You & Go Build Better Things
The tools in this course exist because the problems are real. The planetary boundaries are not abstractions — they are design constraints. You now have the methodological foundation to work within them.