I am a young PhD researcher, building up an academic network. I have decided not to sign up for conferences held in places where I have to fly to attend. The research unit I work for at the Swiss federal institute WSL supports this approach. Sometimes I have the feeling it is harder to establish an international academic network when you are not attending conferences where flying is necessary to attend. On the other hand, through Covid-19 online conferences are more common now, so I hope this will open up opportunities to connect with colleagues internationally without flying.