We were momentarily thrilled in 2021 to see that Google Flights started listing passenger emissions with sorting options that allow users to compare carbon emissions when booking their trips- that is until 2022 when the calculation methodology changed, due to industry pressure. At the start, Google Flights included non C02 warming impacts, which contribute 2-3 times the warming effects of C02 alone. Unfortunately, these warming effects are no longer included in the calculations and flights now appear to have much less warming impact than before. See this article, “Google 'airbrushes' out emissions from flying, BBC reveals” to learn more. Thank you to NPR for featuring Flight Free in their 10/06/21 article about Google Flight Searches, stating that some people are now shunning air travel all together, not just shopping for less polluting flights.
Why Frequent Flyer Programs Have To Go
Stay Grounded recently published a sharp expose on Frequent Flyer Programs, a topic at the heart of the Flight Free Campaign. We ask people to pledge Flight Free to reduce emissions, change the fossil fuel norm, and support strong climate policy. Frequent Flyer programs do just the opposite- they increase air travel and global warming emissions, they normalize and reward climate destruction, and are an enormous public subsidy to airlines that no one voted for. Policy to ban frequent flyer programs and/or eliminate the regressive credit card banking mechanism that feeds these airline programs are vital to social justice and fossil fuel de-growth.
Report: Carbon Offsets Used By Major Airlines Based on Flawed System
A new report carried out by Unearthed, Greenpeace’s investigative arm and The Guardian “found that although many forest projects were doing valuable conservation work, the credits that they generated by preventing environmental destruction appear to be based on a flawed and much-criticised system, even though these credits were being used to back up claims of “carbon-neutral flying” and net-zero commitments.”
Envisioning Another Future: Stay Grounded Report "Degrowth of Aviation"
Reading the 2019 report from Stay Grounded: “Degrowth of Aviation” we are reminded that envisioning what kind of future we want is a crucial part in any work towards change we are doing.
News From Overseas: Bid to Close Airport and Banning of Short-Haul Flights
"Elite Status - Global Inequalities in Flying" - Report from We Are Possible
How Noise Pollution Affects Heart Health
Exposure to loud noise has long been linked with hearing loss. But the ruckus of planes and cars takes a toll beyond the ears. Traffic noise has been flagged as a major physiological stressor, second to air pollution and on roughly equal footing with exposure to second-hand smoke and radon.
Hothouse Solutions: "Travel Will Never Be the Same Again"
“Will travel ever go back to normal? Perhaps it shouldn’t” writes travel journalist Rosie Spinks for this article in Hothouse Solutions. It’s well worth a read - and features an interview of Flight Free USA co-founder, Ariella Granett. Please let us know what you think!
Podcast from SustainabiliGuy: Cancelled Airport Plans & Socially Powerful Non-Flying
A great podcast episode from SustainabiliGuy - about the cancelled airport plans at Charles the Gaulle, and the impact of individual choices.
A Pilot’s Conflict: Staying on the Ground For the Climate’s Sake
Flight Free USA Hosts Advance Screening of "I Am Greta"
Join Flight Free USA in an advance screening of this already acclaimed documentary:
RSVP here to receive link to stream I AM GRETA for free. After viewing the film, join us over Zoom to celebrate the launch Flight Free 2021 and share your reactions to the film. Email us at info@flightfreeusa.org with any questions.
"Flying Only Contributes to a Small Percent of Global CO2 Emissions" - Is That Really True?
Carbon Offsets: A New Form of Colonialism
In this article in the Swedish newspaper @dagens_nyheter , David Kureeba, Officer of Forests and Biodiversity at the environmental organization NAPE in Uganda, talks about an important angle of the already flawed idea of “carbon offsets” - carbon offsets as a new form of colonialism, a “carbon colonialism” or “climate colonialism”.