This is how guilty UvA students feel about their flying habits
Flight shame has increased in the Netherlands between 2020 and 2023, according to figures from Statistics Netherlands (CBS). It is striking that young people feel less guilty about their flying behaviour than older people. More than 60% of 18- to 25-year-olds took a plane in 2023. Despite the damage that flying causes to the environment, young people are still boarding planes en masse. How guilty do UvA students feel about their flying habits in light of the climate crisis? “I know what the impact is, but I don’t concern myself with it.”
In a survey among students at Science Park, eight out of ten said they did not feel any flight shame; two felt a little guilty. At Roeterseiland, six students said they did not experience any flight shame, three felt a little guilty, and one did. While some are completely unconcerned about the impact of flying, others make a conscious and considered choice to fly anyway. Flying is often faster and sometimes cheaper than other modes of transport, or even the only option. Most respondents consider flying unnecessary for European destinations.
Economics and Business Economics student Thijmen van Gorkum (21) hesitantly says that he doesn’t really suffer from flight shame – after all, he’s flying to Singapore in July. He can list a whole bunch of countries he’s travelled to by bus in the past: France, Germany, Austria, Belgium, the United Kingdom and Switzerland. “Partly out of environmental awareness.” Still, he admits that he doesn’t really think about it. “I think I’ve known my whole life that flying is bad, but I also think I’ll continue to do it my whole life.”
Matus Mlynar (24), an international student at University College, also sees no reason to feel guilty about flying. “New engines, such as those in the A320neo, emit much less. This summer, I’m visiting my family in Slovakia, so I’ll be flying. A week ago, I flew to Canada for a conference, but flying was the only option. I am looking for alternatives more actively than before, but I’m not ashamed.”
Exotic holidays
PPLE student Britt Zeegers (18) fully understands why international students fly to their home countries several times a year. At the same time, it is also a way for her to justify her own flying holidays to Mallorca and South Africa this summer. “I do feel a bit guilty about it, but I think I should be able to go back and forth twice a year.” Since starting university, Zeegers has become considerably more environmentally conscious. “We often talk about climate-friendly living in class, but it’s less of a topic of conversation with my friends. In secondary school, my classmates thought it was cool if you went on an exotic holiday.”
Leonie Koster (21) studies Political Science and prefers to place the responsibility for reducing air travel with politicians rather than individuals. “Of course, it’s better to avoid flying regularly, but you can’t blame people for doing so.” She believes that politicians should bring about structural change rather than emphasising individual choices. “It’s actually paradoxical: on the one hand, I sometimes feel that it doesn’t make any difference whether I fly or not, but on the other hand, I am changing my behaviour by flying less.”
So for now, flight shame doesn’t seem to be making much of a difference; students continue to fly all over the world. But how can you get people to fundamentally change their flying behaviour? PhD candidate Yannick van den Berg researched this question. Folia asked him about it.
Is the lack of flight shame among students a problem?
“Flight shame affects people who feel individually responsible for their flying behaviour, but it is mainly intended to make us realise as a society that we need to fly less. As a result, the social norm of flying is changing, but only partly. That is a problem, but is shame the answer? We must also point to the legal framework. We can demand that everyone experience flight shame, but in the meantime, air travel is advertised everywhere around the world, and flying is also incredibly cheap. It’s very difficult to reconcile that with flight shame, because the business world and the government are doing everything they can to get you on that plane.”
How do you change that?
“At the moment, the government is not clearly communicating that we should fly less, so it remains the norm. The idea that flying can become more sustainable in the short term is still quite widespread, but it is presented in a more positive light than it actually is. The chance that we will be able to fly sustainably within ten to fifteen years is less than zero.”
“That’s why we should treat flying like smoking. So not just raise ticket prices, but really change the social norm. The positive image of air travel should disappear from the streets, starting with a ban on advertisements for flying holidays. A frequent flyer tax could also be introduced, a progressive tax on the number of flights people take. It is more fair to focus on the group that flies so much.”
So the responsibility does not lie with citizens at all?
“As a society, we have a shared responsibility, but the government should make it easier to fly less. For example, by making it clear that flying is not desirable and promoting alternatives such as the train. Investing in good infrastructure.”
So, as long as that doesn’t happen, it’s unrealistic to expect everyone to suddenly feel flight shame?
“Not entirely. There’s a reason we’re having this discussion, but it is difficult when you see how normal flying has become. It’s a central part of many holidays. Young people fly from an early age, they’ve grown up with it, so flying has simply become more a part of their lives. If you want to change that, you’ll have to make a clear shift.”
