Tipping Points: The Climate Podcast
Jun 4, 2026 · 35 min · 13 segments
In this episode we answer the questions: How significant is aviation for your personal impact, and what practical things can you can do about it?
Chris PocockHostNathalie SeppkeHostAnd today we try to do some myth busting and try to give you information that you could use to make a more conscious decision about flying.
And with this, Chris, maybe start about why is it important to talk about flying?
Yeah, so this one's important.
So for most listeners, taking a flight is the single biggest choice in terms of impact that you will make at any point over your year.
We'll get into why, but it's the single biggest thing.
So of all of our episodes, it's probably the key area where people can make different choices to lower their own impact.
To talk about the global perspective quickly.
Interestingly, flying actually only takes up 2.5% of global emissions, which doesn't sound very high.
It's 4% if you account for something called contrails, which we'll get into later.
It's the impact that it's likely to have in the future if we keep going on the same trajectory.
So it's like a very, very heavily weighted set of emissions towards a very, very small group of people.
And aviation is very much targeting, obviously, growing significantly and being able to make flights more accessible for more people.
And if we keep going on that path, then the amount of emissions that flying could take up is absolutely enormous.
So it's this like weird, like dual problem in the sense that, well, of course, I don't want to stop other people from flying.
But on the other side, it's like, well, if we go that way, then it's really problematic in terms of the emissions it produces.
And today we try to do some myth busting and try to give you information that you could use to make a more conscious decision about flying.
And with this, Chris, maybe start about why is it important to talk about flying?
Yeah, so this one's important.
So for most listeners, taking a flight is the single biggest choice in terms of impact that you will make at any point over your year.
We'll get into why, but it's the single biggest thing.
So of all of our episodes, it's probably the key area where people can make different choices to lower their own impact.
To talk about the global perspective quickly.
Interestingly, flying actually only takes up 2.5% of global emissions, which doesn't sound very high.
It's 4% if you account for something called contrails, which we'll get into later.
It's the impact that it's likely to have in the future if we keep going on the same trajectory.
So it's like a very, very heavily weighted set of emissions towards a very, very small group of people.
And aviation is very much targeting, obviously, growing significantly and being able to make flights more accessible for more people.
And if we keep going on that path, then the amount of emissions that flying could take up is absolutely enormous.
So it's this like weird, like dual problem in the sense that, well, of course, I don't want to stop other people from flying.
But on the other side, it's like, well, if we go that way, then it's really problematic in terms of the emissions it produces.
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