Air travel, academia and climate change: Take part in an innovative democratic process at the University of Melbourne

Air travel has long played an important role in academic life, but it’s also a major contributor to climate change. After a two-year halt on flying due to COVID-19, travel possibilities are now opening up again – it’s time for a University-wide process to decide how, collectively, we should navigate the tensions between the benefits and harms of staff air travel.

Staff are invited to participate in an innovative conversation to help address emissions caused by work-related air travel.

The University’s Sustainability Plan 2030 commits to reducing staff air travel emissions by at least 10 per cent from 2019 levels by 2025. But how should this be achieved? Is it ambitious enough? Where should responsibility lie? What supports are required to minimise negative impacts and inequities?

All staff and students are invited to participate in an online conversation to ‘crowdsource consensus’ on this contentious issue, through Polis – an innovative online platform for research and democracy. You can share your views, respond to others’ comments, and see a live map of the opinion landscape as the conversation evolves.

The process will guide formal decisions within the University and will begin in September. It is supported by Melbourne Climate Futures and the Sustainability Office, with funding from the Researcher Development Unit. Training on the Polis platform will be available in early 2023.

Ethics ID (2022-23743-31062-3).

More information and registration: go.unimelb.edu.au/5epe

Enquiries: phoebeq@unimelb.edu.au