Do you remember this news story? It involved a journey of 50,000 kilometers. But it wasn’t just any journey. It was done as much as possible without taking a plane, and took almost 110 days to complete. A crazy perspective for most of us? For Dr. Gianluca Grimalda, a social scientist, a way to tell the world about the state of the earth. And a way to contribute to its future.

In 2023, Dr. Gianluca Grimalda, a social scientist, travelled from Germany to Papua New Guinea. Research into the social impacts of climate change on earth had taken him to a place called Bougainville. The New York Times described it as “a remote, economically stricken archipelago being swallowed by rising oceans. Given the nature of his journey, and his own moral commitment to earth, Dr. Grimalda decided to travel with the least pressure on the environment as possible. Every mode of transport of the journey was carefully chosen, with no airplanes when possible. After all, of all types of transportation, aviation is considered the largest player when it comes to harmful substances, climate change and extreme weather on earth.

Trains, ferries, shared taxis and a police convoy too

And so the story, which found its way into many newspapers around the world, goes that a scientist had taken “five trains, nine buses, two ferries, two taxis, a shared car and a police convoy” to reach his destination. It was about how one man travelled 50,000 kilometres in 110 days to get to this destination and back: more than the circumference of the earth, and where possible without taking a plane.

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My decision: Crazy or normal?

The decision to travel slowly — or to choose the environment over human needs, as some might say — had cost Dr. Grimalda his job at the German Kiel Institute for Worldwide Economy (IfW). However, he has said there are no regrets. Dr. Grimalda told the New York Times that his choice to avoid transcontinental flights as much as possible was: “to have peace within myself, knowing that I did the absolutely right thing.”

“Many people tell me I’m crazy, and that I’m not going to change anything,” he also said. “To me it’s crazy to go on like a herd of sheep, going toward a cliff without trying to sound the alarm,” he added, underscoring how science’s warnings don’t seem to be getting through. “It is insane to continue with business as usual,” he also told The Guardian. “I want to invite people to shift the boundaries of what is considered normal within their own sphere of action.”

The decision for slow travel was also because he had promised Bougainville residents. Some of whom have already been displaced by rising waters by extreme weather on earth.

“Many people tell me I’m crazy, and that I’m not going to change anything. To me it’s crazy to go on like a herd of sheep, going toward the cliff without trying to sound the alarm.”

Changing our perspective for a moment

The concept of the carbon footprint may be popular, it doesn’t seem to have filtered through. There are not significantly fewer people flying around the earth, experts say. There are not significantly more people who choose alternative forms of transport for longer distances.

However, instead of looking at the ecological value of a journey, we can also change our perspective. We may review the how and why we travel. Or, we may wonder what adventures and experiences we could have by choosing “slow” forms of transportation. We could look at the benefits of doing things slowly.

Dr. Grimalda told us: “Some people ask me about my most beautiful and my most difficult moment? It was, without a doubt, on the Qolma (or Kulma) pass between China and Tajikistan.” Describing how this part of the journey had taken him to 4600 metres above sea level, he explained: “To keep emissions down, I didn’t want to have a taxi coming and pick me up. And because I was confident some truck driver would do so. It was close to sunset and the temperature was minus 21° degrees Celsius. Unfortunately, no truck driver would stop, because I had too much luggage with me. They made that quite clear when passing by by pointing at my bulky luggage. However, my hands were freezing. So, I broke into a Tajiki soldiers’ barracks. Fortunately they helped me and ordered two truck drivers; one for me and one for my luggage.”

He added: “Another difficult moment was in Turkmenistan, when I had run out of money and couldn’t pay for the visa I needed. I offered the Institute’s laptop as a pawn, but in the end they offered a $200 discount for the visa. I took the offer and finished my journey with €10 in my wallet.”

Seeing earth’s beauty

As an experimental social scientist, Dr. Grimalda also studies the behavioural and psychological bases of social cohesion. For example, the level of willingness to help others in a group or society, and about his trip he said: “The most beautiful experience was meeting so many people willing to help me for nothing in return. I counted at least 50.”

Another memorable moment took place on the Panj River in Tajikistan’s Pamir region, which marks the border between Tajikistan and Afghanistan. “It’s the so-called Pamir highway, which many tourists from all over the world come to visit,” he told us. “I did this part of the trip in a van, with 10 local guys. It lasted 20 hours, as 3 landslides blocked the way for a long time. The scenery was just stunning, with the river coloured light blue, and everything narrowed by two rocky cliffs on both sides.”

“The most beautiful experience was meeting so many people willing to help me for nothing in return. I counted at least 50.”

Science and the power of data?

“I know that giving numbers about climate change is what we should do as scientists, but we also know that this is not enough,” said Dr. Grimalda in conclusion. He added: “We also need to tell stories to really convey the urgency of climate action. That’s why I am very pleased of this documentary cut by film-maker Paolo Casalis talking about my travels. I made all the videos using a mobile phone and a gimbal. He wanted to do a film about my journey before the issue with my previous employer arose. He thought that talking about slow-travel was the best way to talk about climate change in a movie.”

“I know that giving numbers about climate change is what we should do as scientists, but we also know that this is not enough.”

The long journey: Not in vain?

Dr. Gianluca Grimalda travelled 50,000 kilometers for his round trip. Just to put it into perspective: This is more than the circumference of the earth of around 40,000 kilometres. The following modes of transport were used for both inbound and outbound journeys: 18 coaches, 18 trains, 7 ferries, 1 cargo ship, 8 vans/ shared taxis, 2 trucks/ hitchhikes, 2 police convoys and 2 airplanes. The return journey of 28,000 kilometres was possible without taking a plane. Around 7,620 CO2 was estimated to be saved during the total journey there and back.

About Dr. Grimalda

Dr. Gianluca Grimalda is an experimental social scientist. He studies the behavioural and psychological bases of social cohesion, such as the willingness to help others in a group or society, often at a personal cost. His research includes cooperation to avert climate change, income redistribution and immigrants discrimination. Dr. Grimalda also studied the cognitive effects of exposure to violence. He is involved in policy making for the International Panel on Social Progress, the ThinkTank20, and the Global Tipping Points Report.