King’s is proud to be an international community that serves the world. Our academics address global challenges through their research, and our many international networks and partnerships enable us to have a global impact and enrich the student experience. However, this international ambition has a significant impact on the climate.

Flights are often taken by an elite few: in academia, research shows that senior male academics travel the most while early-career researchers travel much less. Additionally, at times, early-career academics and non-tenured faculty may feel forced to fly to conferences, despite their climate concerns, due to its normalisation in academia and link to career progression and perceptions of success (EAUC Travel Better).

In the face of the climate crisis, King’s has set a target to reduce business travel emissions by 50% by 2030, compared to 2018/19 (King’s Climate & Sustainability Action Plan). However, instead of seeing a downward trend, business travel emissions are increasing compared to pre-COVID levels.

How do we minimise emissions from air travel while improving diversity and equity in academia and continuing our internal ambitions? This event will include a panel discussion and Q&A highlighting a diverse range of perspectives related to this question.

Speakers

• Veronica Daly [chair]: Chief Procurement Officer at King's College London
• Professor Luca Viganò: Vice-Dean (Enterprise and Engagement) and Head of Cybersecurity Group at King's College London
• Dr Richard Milburn MBE: Teacher at the School of Security Studies at King's College London
• Dr Debbie Hopkins: Associate Professor in Human Geography at the University of Oxford

King’s has been reviewing its travel policy in collaboration with the community, which is due to be published in summer 2024. As an effective policy requires continuous engagement, learning and listening, we invite you to join this event to learn and share your thoughts.

This event, the second in a three-part series of events exploring our air travel emissions, is open to the King's community and targeted at those who engage in business travel.

Watch a recording of the first event, which took place during Climate & Sustainability Month 2024: