Can We Fly Around the World Without Worsening Climate Change?

On Thin Ice

Airports and airlines broke new traffic records in 2023, and pollution from tourism is set to increase massively in the next five years. So what can we do to make aviation–and our own long-distance travels–more sustainable in the near future, reducing air travel’s contribution to global warming?

Join host Paolo Bosonin as he picks the brains of Alex Honnold, superstar climber of the Oscar-winning movie Free Solo, and Nanna Baldvinsdottir, Icelandic energy entrepreneur developing aircraft fuels made with hydrogen.

Alex shares his philosophy for offsetting carbon emissions by installing solar panels, and reflects on modern-day exploration, based on what he learned while working with scientists during expeditions to Guyana and Greenland, with National Geographic.

The guests discuss the best strategies to decarbonize air travel in the short term, starting with putting an end to subsidies for fossil fuels. Nanna explains her plan for scaling up the production of sustainable aviation fuels, which come with some trade-offs and the challenges of sourcing the CO2 and water necessary to make e-SAF.

On Thin Ice is produced by Iceworm Media, in partnership with the Bally Peak Outlook Foundation.

Head to ballypeakoutlook.org/ to learn more about the Bally Peak Outlook Foundation, which is on a mission to safeguard the world's fragile mountain habitats from the adverse effects of global warming and excessive tourism.

Production credits:

Original Music: Nadir Cassim

Editorial advisor: Dave Vetter

Graphic Design: Guillaume Ory

Video editing: Mohsin Ali

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