Do you remember this news story? It involved a journey of 50,000 kilometers. But it was done as much as possible without taking a plane. An outlandish perspective for most of us? For Dr. Gianluca Grimalda, a social scientist, a way to tell the world about the state of the earth. This is a story about a moral commitment to air travel environmental impact.

In 2023, Dr. Gianluca Grimalda, a social scientist, travelled from Germany to Papua New Guinea. Research into the social and other 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, aviation is considered the largest transport player when it comes to harmful effects on earth.

Trains, ferries, shared taxis and a police convoy too

And so the global newspaper story went 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. Everything for the least possible air travel environmental impact.

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Air travel environmental impact: A decision

The decision to travel slowly has cost Dr. Grimalda his job at the German Kiel Institute for Worldwide Economy (IfW). But, deciding to choose the environment over human needs, has given him no regrets. Dr. Grimalda told the New York Times that his choice to avoid transcontinental flights as much as possible was clear. It 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. “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 and the least air travel environmental impact 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

Is it worth choosing not to fly when we think about air travel environmental impact? We are more and more aware of its negative effects. Yet there are no significantly fewer people flying around the earth though, experts say. But, instead of looking at the environmental value of a journey, we can also change our perspective. For instance, we can think about the how and why we travel. Or, we can wonder what benefits, adventures and experiences we can have by choosing “slow” forms of transportation.

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.” This part of the journey had taken Dr, Grimalda to 4600 metres above sea level. “To keep emissions down, I didn’t want to have a taxi coming and pick me up,” he said. “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. But 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.”

“Another difficult moment was in Turkmenistan,” he added. “It was 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. “The most beautiful experience was meeting so many people willing to help me for nothing in return,” he said. “I counted at least 50.”

Another memorable moment took place on the Panj River in Tajikistan’s Pamir region. It 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 and air travel environmental impact 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 about this documentary made by film-maker Paolo Casalis talking about my travels. I filmed the images using a mobile phone and a gimbal. He wanted to do a film about my journey before the issue with my employer of that time arose. He thought that talking about slow-travel was the best way to talk about air travel environmental impact in a movie.”

“I know that giving numbers about air travel environmental impact is what we should do as scientists. But we also know that this is not enough.”

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