Compare the emissions of your desired route
Basically any kind of transport is better for the environment than flying. Yep, even taking the car, especially when you share it with more people. So in case you have a car, take other travelers with you. If you’ve ever tried carpooling before, you know how easily you meet great people.
Comparing my ride from Stuttgart to Berlin will end up in 110 kg of carbon dioxide by plane, compared to 67 by car and 22 kg by train. If I share a ride with 3 other people, my share of CO2 emissions is only 17 kg.
Moreover, CO
2 is not the only parameter. In any other matter (energy resource consumption like gasoline, human toxicity, nitrogen oxides, and nonmethane hydrocarbons) plane travel is the most harmful mode of transport. You can check those metrics for any distance you consider taking by using
Ecopassenger.
I know, it’s easier said than done. But even if to completely stop flying isn’t an option, try to avoid flying whenever you can, even if it means bit by bit. As you see, taking the plane is the worst culprit of emissions, when you compared different kinds of transport. At the same time, flying is a privilege only a few percent of the world’s population is able to enjoy. And we, who are able to do so, should handle this precious privilege with care.
If I stop flying – can I inspire others through flight shame?
The term “flygskam” – flight shame – came up in Sweden some years ago, with a movement of activists persuading more and more people to stop flying. It means the sinking feeling and bad conscience caused by realizing the harmful effects of flying. The amazon burning down, polar bears losing their habitat, and corals dying. And with every flight we take, we play our part.
For every single ton of CO2 we churn out into the air, about 3 square meters of Arctic ice melt. Hence, the link between our lifestyle and our planet slowly dying becomes harder to overlook for many people.
Yet, flight shaming is not the right way. We can open a positive dialogue and transport our message, but in the end people need to make the decision on their own. Shaming someone for their actions or forcing an idea down someone’s throat won’t work.
Even with all the evident facts and knowing that flying is bad for the environment, it’s not realistic that everyone will stop flying completely. So it’s about being more conscious and flying as little as possible. We need to take small steps together. The best thing to impact others is to set a good example and inspire others through your actions instead of fingerpointing.
How can we be more environmentally conscious when flying?
There are those among us who simply can’t take the step and stop flying completely due to our family being split by thousands of kilometers.
Besides, it’s understandable that, when you’re passionate about traveling and exploring foreign cultures, there are some destinations which are hard to reach without a plane. As with other “bad habits” it may be the more sustainable approach to not just stop, but to find alternatives. It takes time, to slowly fall in love with traveling by coach.
So, if you do fly, there are ways to minimize the impact.
Fly economy class
I don’t know if I’ll ever have the money to fly first class. But if you do, please think twice before booking your next flight. The more space we take up in the cabin, the larger is our share of the plane’s emissions. Besides, first-class or business class passengers usually consume more onboard, causing more trash.
If you do fly – go direct
Did you know that take-off and landing cause most of a plane’s emissions? So try to avoid stop-overs and book direct flights. This can already reduce the carbon footprint of your trip.
Pack light
The more luggage you pack, the heavier the plane will be. More weight means the plane uses more fuel and thus releases more CO
2 into the atmosphere. I’ve talked about
the benefits of packing light many times. Yet, it can’t be repeated often enough that your back, your wallet, and the environment will be happy about less luggage.
Fly with airlines that use renewable biofuels
Who would have thought that fuel can be produced using renewable feedstock, like agricultural waste and plant oils? That’s exactly the way biofuels are produced. So if you fly with an
airline using renewable biofuels, emissions can be lessened.
Fly with budget airlines
When a flight costs less than a meal, it is hard to imagine that this can be sustainable. Sustainability is not only about the environment but also the employees. So it’s a fair point to choose the airline wisely. However, if you focus on the carbon emissions of a flight, budget airlines are often the better choice. The reason is that they pack more people into one plane and thus each individual passenger’s carbon footprint is lower. Also, food onboard and carry-on bags are not included at most budget airlines, reducing the weight of the planes.
Stay longer, especially if you take a long-distance flight
Make the most out of your vacation and stay longer at your destination. Make a big trip out of it, travel slower, and experience the place deeply. Maybe you can even connect it with working remotely for some time, if that’s possible with your job.
This makes even more sense when you travel somewhere far away. Only one long-distance flight can easily drive up your carbon footprint higher than an average person’s emissions over the course of a whole year. So extending your trip will be a more sustainable way of travel.
Reduce your waste
Even before your flight, you can easily save a lot of paper waste by using mobile tickets instead of printing your boarding pass and hotel reservations. Just download your boarding pass and store them on your phone.
Moreover, bring your own in-cabin items such as earphones, a pillow, or a thin blanket. All those items provided by the airline are packed in unnecessary plastic bags.
And have you ever wondered, if airplane trash is separated or recycled? The answer for most airlines is quick and dirty: Nope. After the crew walks through the aisle at the end of a flight, collecting all kinds of garbage in a large plastic bag, they simply ditch it at the next airport. No waste separation. No recycling. As most major airports have a recycling program, you’re better off keeping your airplane trash until you’re at the terminal. There you can easily find a proper trash bin where you can dispose of your waste separately.
Another quite effective tip is to bring your own food and a plastic-free travel kit on the flight to save money and a lot of single-use plastic.
This may sound like a drop in the ocean, but imagine 4 billion people boarding planes every single year – all of them leaving behind waste.
Choose a vegetarian or vegan in-flight meal
As meat production and thus
eating meat is one of the worst culprits of carbon emissions, this easy choice can make a huge difference. Just opt for the vegetarian or even vegan meal, in case an in-flight meal is already included. Bringing your own sandwich or snacks in eco-friendly packaging will be even better, as you can save a hell lot of plastic.
Is carbon offsetting the solution?
In case you haven’t come across carbon offsetting before, it may sound like a magic loophole for those who don’t want to, or for whatever reason, can’t stop flying. For very little extra money your emissions will be compensated by funding an environmental project, such as tree planting, conservation, or renewable energy. Some airlines and booking platforms have already included it in their booking forms, so passengers only have to tick the little carbon offset box when booking a flight.
The amount of carbon caused by taking that flight is calculated and it shows you the money you need to invest in order to compensate for those carbon emissions.
However, there are so many different carbon-offsetting schemes, that vary remarkably in their quality and way of calculation. Also, the projects supported differ largely. Some argue that tree planting programs won’t counteract any carbon now, as trees need years to grow. Also, it’s hard to say that they’ll live long enough to actually reabsorb the emissions from your flight. Eventually, your carbon offset will never “wipe out” the emissions your flight releases.
How can I choose the right carbon offsetting program?
While carbon offsetting is not a regulated system, it is a way to support a change until sustainable transport options will be technically more advanced. By supporting some high-quality carbon-reducing projects, such as WWF’s
Gold Standard or Germany’s
Atmosfair you can help to do some good somewhere in the world. There is a huge variety of projects you can support.
For a return flight from Berlin to Madrid, it will only cost me 17 Euros in order to compensate for the 728 kg of CO2 that I’ll cause by taking that flight.
Is carbon capture a more sustainable option?
Carbon capture is a
new technology that is said to be more sustainable than classic carbon offset. Simply put, this technology sucks CO
2 from the atmosphere and permanently stores it in the ground. Sounds like magic, right? It could be a more concrete solution, as Direct Air Capture has an immediate effect. So you can offset your emissions by supporting carbon capture with
Tomorrow’s Air.
Yet, whichever way you choose, offsetting is not about clearing your conscience! It’s not done by ticking the box and paying a few Euros for some project. We still need to question and change our behavior.
Neither can carbon offsetting be a long-term solution, as it simply doesn’t solve the origin of the problem. The solution would be less carbon emissions in the first place instead of emitting more and permanently trying to compensate for it.

What efforts is the industry making to be more eco-friendly?
Some people say the responsibility shouldn’t lie with the consumer but the airlines to find a solution and bear the costs. We can all take a step, but a large change is only possible if the government reacts and the industry changes.
Airlines
Some airlines have biofuel programs and invest in carbon offsetting and sustainability programs.
Hence, with the choice of the airline you fly with, you can make an impact as well. So let’s have a look at what the industry is doing. Here are just a few examples:
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KLM has reduced weight on their planes through investments, such as a digital reading app, and lightweight trolleys for the crew. This way, they were able to reduce their carbon emissions. Besides, they have a
corporate biofuel program.
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United Airlines have committed to
reducing their CO2 emissions by 50% until 2050. Also, they launched a carbon-neutral flight in 2019 without any cabin waste, using sustainable biofuel, and offsetting the plane’s complete fuel consumption. The plan is to learn from this flight for future policies.
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Easyjet invests in projects that help to keep the environmental impact of their flights at a minimum. Also, they plan to
reduce carbon emissions by investing in new planes, lightweight seats, and paperless cockpits.
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The first airline that has announced to be
plastic-free by 2023, is Ryanair. Also, they plan to be more sustainable by investing in new aircraft, operational efficiency, and running their planes with only one engine between terminal and runway.
Moreover, did you know that
Skyscanner also shows greener flight choices, based on their carbon emissions? It displays how much less CO
2 a flight causes in comparison to the average for that route. The calculation is based on aspects such as the age of the planes, or amount of passengers carried.
CORSIA – a global offsetting scheme for airlines
Meanwhile, the UN has taken a huge step by developing its own global offsetting scheme for aviation emissions. It’s commonly known as
CORSIA (Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation). As part of this climate protection strategy, the growth of international aviation aims to be CO
2-neutral from 2020. Through this offsetting scheme, airlines have to finance CO
2-reducing climate protection projects. It applies to all international flights connecting two participating countries. At the same time, investments are made in further reduction measures, such as sustainable fuel and modern climate-optimized flight technology. But it won’t shrink the carbon emissions of airlines anytime soon.
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