Evaluating Carbon Footprint Behavior in the Agriculture and Energy Sectors: A Review

Abstract

Since the pre-industrial era, emissions of greenhouse gases have increased by about 70%, given anthropogenic activities. Thus, System Dynamics represents a fundamental tool that makes it possible to adopt a systemic-complex approach to the research process of modeling the behavior of these gases in different sectors. This paper presents a literature review about related case studies, mainly in the agriculture and energy sectors. By virtue of these models, it is feasible to identify alternative scenarios for a carbon footprint indicator in order to support strategic decision-making in secure environments at low risk, cost, and time. This review emphasizes the significance of modeling the carbon footprint behavior as a complex dynamic system mainly focused on the agriculture sector, which contributes 38.1% of greenhouse gas emissions to the atmosphere. Finally, it concludes with a future research project to deploy it in a sugarcane cropping system, one of the most important agro-industrial producers in Colombia.