I hadn’t flown for a few years but took a trip to NYC from my home in London. On the way back, I remember saying to myself “this might be the last time I fly”. Something told me that this artificial experience that I knew was terrible for the environment had to stop. That was around six years ago. My work pattern changed afterwards. I had never been a regular flyer, but would jump on planes for work when I needed to. But I turned my back on that and made the commitment to myself to only work locally, or in countries I could reach by train.
Deciding not to fly has had a huge impact on me, it’s put me more into the mentality of buying local and working to keeping my footprint down.
There may be two more flights in me, to see close family members 3,000 miles away. I’m gearing myself up for this possibility, feeling completely torn about not wanting to be responsible for so many emissions, but it’s been 8 years since seeing them. Going on this potential trip feels like last chance disco to see people who I’m so close to I don’t think I can bear the thought of never seeing them in the flesh again.
Composer, pianist and founder of ClimateKeys, a worldwide initiative that coordinates concerts by musicians and climate change experts who lead conversations with the audience. ClimateKeys has a no-fly policy; concerts are organised where the musician lives and local speakers are sourced. In this way, ClimateKeys is a ‘glocal’ project, happening in multiple countries but carried out locally.