The Superpower Institute
Open Methane
An open platform for understanding Australia’s methane emissions.
Insight
If you can’t measure it, you can’t manage it.
At least 30% of today’s global warming is driven by methane from human actions.
Methane is a potent greenhouse gas with over 80 times the warming power of CO2 over short timescales.
However, studies suggest that governments and industry may be significantly underestimating methane emissions, obscuring the actual environmental impact and hindering effective policy-making.
The Superpower Institute partnered with AKQA to address this critical gap in accurate methane emissions accounting in Australia.
Idea
A world-first solution to a global problem.
Open Methane leverages cutting-edge satellite observations and sophisticated modelling to provide a transparent, accessible and near-real-time view of Australia’s methane emissions.
The interactive platform bridges the gap between complex atmospheric data and public understanding, empowering all stakeholders, from policymakers to the general public, with the knowledge they need to drive meaningful action.
The key feature, the Methane Map, offers industry, activists and local communities an accurate top-down view of methane emissions in their areas and across the continent. AKQA led the project’s user research, design and strategy, ensuring the experience and interface make complex data accessible and understandable to a diverse audience.
Impact
Revolutionising emissions accounting in Australia.
Open Methane is already driving a consensus among researchers, government and industry leaders, fostering actionable insights to reduce methane emissions more effectively.
In early results, Open Methane found that some emissions hotspots may be undercounted by as much as 2.5x compared to official government reports.
This finding permeated mainstream media and has led to critical discussions among policymakers about the need to improve national methane accounting methodologies.
Open Methane will transform Australia’s approach to methane emissions by providing authoritative, scientifically rigorous, auditable data for the first time. This tool and its influence will be essential for meeting Australia’s climate commitments, and for demonstrating our environmental credibility on the global stage.
