A strategy to reduce the carbon footprint of clinical trials

Abstract

Clinical trials need to be decarbonised and we propose a strategy for doing so. Almost 14 years ago the Sustainable Clinical Trials Group concluded that “clinical trials contribute substantially to greenhouse gas emissions”, notably through energy use in research premises and air travel.1 The group developed guidelines for reducing the carbon footprint of trials and showed that they improved carbon efficiency.2 Improvements resulted from faster patient recruitment, lighter trial materials, and web-based data entry.