Cutting our carbon footprint from aviation
08 Mar 2023
New travel policy to halve our emissions from flying – how are we doing?
Our University is aiming to limit annual emissions from air travel to 50% of our 2018/19 level (pre the Covid-19 pandemic). This is important as it is essential that we all change our behaviour as part of the global need to address climate change.
To do this, we have changed our travel policy as part of a wider project to reduce our total carbon footprint, not just from our business travel but also our buildings, fleet vehicles, what we buy and our investments.
To monitor our progress, we are comparing carbon emissions for business travel for each quarter of this academic year (2022-23) with the same one of 2018-19.
And so far, so good. Over the last two quarters our air travel emissions were approximately 42% of our pre-pandemic emissions during the equivalent quarters. That’s a reduction of over 5,000 tonnes CO2e.
Vice-President for Social Responsibility, Professor Nalin Thakkar said: “Whilst it is good that we are under the target, just as we’d hoped, we will continue to closely monitor this to ensure we continue to reduce our carbon footprint.
“I would ask colleagues to continue thinking about how they can both reduce their travel compared to pre-pandemic levels and choosing low carbon travel options where possible.
“You can access a range of support to do this, and you’ll be part the global community that is addressing climate change and protecting the earth for future generations.”
Guidance and support for staff
We are providing guidance and a range of support to those of you who are affected by the policy change, including a ‘top-up fund’ to cover additional costs.
For a table reporting the emission figures and details of support for staff, please visit: