PRESS CONTACT: Hannah Lawrence, press@stay-grounded.org , (+43) 0670 550 09 34 A week of protest across Europe is taking aim at airline advertising and sponsorships over their role in increasing demand for flying. New statistics for 6 major airlines show that every €1...
Save the date: Stay Grounded Conference 12-14th of July 2019
12 – 14th of July 2019 in Barcelona
Since green growth and carbon neutral flights are an illusion, it is time to start a degrowth process of aviation. How can this look like? What are possible policy instruments that civil society should fight for, in order to put an end to the massive privileges of the aviation industry, and to bring forward a socially just and environmentally friendly transport system?
The Stay Grounded network, together with civil society organisations and the Institute for Ecological Sciences and Technology ICTA in Barcelona, organizes the conference Degrowth of Aviation. It brings together social movements, NGOs and scientists in order to discuss concrete measures and strategies to reduce air traffic. As Barcelona is one of the cities getting overcrowded by tourism, involving serious environmental, health, housing and other social problems, special links will be made to movements for a just and environmentally sound tourism
A flight-free Conference
The conference will be flight-free, which is why several sessions will involve online participation for those who live too far away. The conference will mainly be hold in English, with interpretation into Spanish and possibly other languages.
While Friday, 12th of July, will be public, the other sessions will be reserved for registered speakers and guests who will analyze measures and strategies in planned working groups. Find the preliminary program here.
The results of the conference will be published online and used for further campaigns.
Which measures are needed to reduce aviation?
The focus of the conference will be seven parallel expert working groups which will discuss 1) advantages, 2) disadvantages, 3) political feasibility, and 4) next steps/strategies around possible political measures to reduce aviation, like:
- Taxes on kerosene, tickets or VAT
- Frequent flyer levy (progressive tax on flights)
- Limits/ caps/ bans of domestic flights, short haul flights, flights per city/ airport or low-cost airlines
- Institutional changes of travel policies
- Moratoriums on new airport infrastructure or reduced airports (like shutting down regional airports)
- Caps on tourism
- Fostering alternatives
How to participate in the conference?
If you are interested in joining one of the working groups, please send an email to anne[at]stay-grounded[dot]org. Please explain which working group you want to join, what is your connection to the topic, and what you could/would like to contribute.
We are also looking for participants who could help as volunteers with facilitation, interpretation, note-taking, and handling of the online conference. Please contact us: anne[at]stay-grounded[dot]org