National Geographic: Greener air travel will depend on these emerging technologies. Electric engines, alternative fuels, and better navigation could reduce emissions—and mitigate the impacts of a global return to the skies.
Here’s a word you may have overlooked in 2020: flygskam, a Swedish term for the feeling of being ashamed to fly. In a year that saw a 66 percent decrease in flights, compared to 2019, you might think that flygskam has flown the coop.
But with a recent uptick in air traffic—and the anticipation of travel’s rebound thanks to COVID-19 vaccines—flygskam is taking flight again. The term originated in 2017 as part of a campaign to change how we fly, from the frequency of our flights to the technology of our aircraft. The goal: to mitigate the carbon dioxide emissions that experts think may triple by 2050.