Greenhouse gas inventory in higher education institutions: a bibliometric analysis

The current scenario of combating global warming underscores the necessity to record greenhouse gas emissions from various human activities. The design of inventories to discern and quantify emission sources is pivotal for formulating strategies and policies aimed at mitigating and curbing the drivers of climate change. In this sense, this study endeavours to map the breadth of research concerning greenhouse gas emissions within higher education institutions employing a bibliometric analysis. Utilizing the Web of Science scientific database, this research spans publications from the inception of records to the present day (1994 to 2023), using bibliometrix R-package and VOSviewer software to visualize the results. The searches yielded 140 documents from 52 countries with notable productivity from the United States (USA), China, and Japan. Analysis of keywords prevalent in the retrieved documents underscores their focus on "greenhouse gas emissions," "emissions," and "inventory," accentuating the imperative for interventions aimed at managing emissions within higher education institutions to foster sustainable practices. The analyzed studies indicate that actions taken by higher education institutions to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions include infrastructure changes, improvements in transportation, and the pursuit of renewable energy. However, progress in emission mitigation depends on the collective efforts of the academic community and local authorities, as well as the promotion of public policy development. The findings of this study serve as a valuable compass for guiding future research accomplishments in this domain.