Isn't the problem here - whether we are talking about road/rail/air travel is about our expectations of our complete lives. As an earlier correspondent said not to go to international conferences is career suicide. Child carer here so know the problem but all those people sat in cars - probably can justify that too. If I don't take the car I don't have a job because child care doesn't start early enough and I want to live where I do because there are good schools etc etc.
We all define our status somehow - air miles, car ownership, job title or house ownership. Tackling global warming (climate change) challenges all that.
Frances Drake
________________________________
From: A forum for critical and radical geographers on behalf of Jon Cloke
Sent: Wed 05/09/2007 15:05
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: geographers and ALL travel
As a confirmed cyclist and public transport user who's reached a fairly
advanced age never having owned a car and hoping to die without ever having
owned one (knees and fitness allowing..), why are you concentrating on air
travel?
Some years ago I worked for a while in Oxford where my house was about 4
miles from my work-place. I cycled or ran to work every day, and as I
travelled down the Cowley or Marston Road the queues of cars stretched for
miles - on my bike I would look through the rear windows as I sped past, and
in every car bar a very few there would only be one person, the driver,
sitting in splendid isolation as their collective fumes made the morning air
filthy.
At about the same time I got to know some GPs and doctors who worked at the
John Radcliffe Hospital through a rowing club I belonged to, and they told
me that virtually every child born in Oxford quickly developed some
combination of respiratory difficulties because of the temperature inversion
effect that kept the traffic fumes from escaping the city environment -
substantial numbers of those children went on to develop asthma and other
long-term respiratory ailments as a result.
Now, every time I hear discussions about air travel, my mind always goes
back to those dumb, selfish motorists, happily wasting years of their lives
sitting in traffic queues as they steadily poison their own children,
physically with their exhaust fumes and psychologically with their car
obsession.
Jon Cloke
From: "North, Peter" <[log in to unmask]>
Reply-To: "North, Peter" <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: geographers and air travel
Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 10:52:21 +0100
I felt that Sophie was making some very good points and as geographers we
should do more. On one side, CURRENT air emissions are not a major source
of CO2 when compared with domestic and industrial emissions and - especially
- methane emissions from our (and my) addiction to a high protean meat and
dairy-based diet, yet it is important to make sure that this does not grow.
Yet we also seem to see no alternative to conference jet setting - it would
be seen as professional suicide. I was surprised to hear two very highly
respected colleagues who are more than aware of the issues discussing a new
grant one had received, with the other saying appreciatively "and do you get
to travel?" I wondered if the penny had dropped yet?
We would lose significant networking opportunities and perhaps we should
look to cutting out week end breaks and intra- European flights first, but
should we not as geographers be discussing our attitude to professional
flights more (and in particular, the status associated with the
international conference circuit), how we could pressurise universities to
invest in videoconferencing etc ?
I'm not advocating a hair shirt here - 2004 I flew from the UK to NZ return
three times in a year. Didn't give it a thought. I'm not sure I would do
that now.....
Do I need to go to the AAG?......
Peter North
Department of Geography
University of Liverpool
-----Original Message-----
From: A forum for critical and radical geographers on behalf of Sophie
Wynne-Jones
Sent: Wed 05/09/2007 10:12
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: geographers and air travel
Hello all
I am emailing with regards to a number of points that were raised at the
IBG last week in relation to our responsiblities as geographers to reduce
our air travel in the face of climate change.
I was greatly concerned that a number of geographers feel unable to act in
this regard despite a deep appreciation of the problems involved and the
difficulties with carbon off-setting. As was noted in the 'Sustainablity
-Post-mortem?' session, the reduction in air travel and subsequent up-take
of video-conferencing as a possible alternative is something that has been
embraced in many other professional areas, and I was wondering why, as
such well informed academics, we are so slow to react in this area.
I am not suggesting that this alternative should be enforced in any way,
merely that the possibility could become available to those of us who do
not wish to fly. Furthermore, I do not see that it would have to result in
a reduction of networking opportunities. For example, would it be possible
to have a British meet of the AAG, with interactive links to the sessions
in Boston but also enabling some face to face meetings? Obviously this is
not a perfect solution, but could it be a step in the right direction -
and an alternative provision for individuals that wish to reduce their air
travel.
I would be interested to hear peoples thoughts and other ideas.
Thanks
Sophie Wynne-Jones
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