Greta Thunberg and Louisa Neubauer traveled by train to the climate convention in Glasgow, as did Prince William and Duchess Kate. On the other hand, some super-rich and celebrities traveled by private jet.
There are a lot more planes in the sky around Glasgow than usual. In which many private jets are included. More than 400 private flights, accompanied by heads of state and government, are expected to travel to Glasgow in the two weeks following the climate conference, according to the Daily Record.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson reached Glasgow not only by plane. According to the Guardian, he will also fly back to London on a chartered Airbus A321 instead of taking the four-and-a-half-hour train journey. “When it comes to combating climate change, words are absolutely meaningless without action,” he said during a roundtable with other heads of state at COP26.
He also flew to Glasgow in a private plane from the G20 summit in Rome. Just like Prince Charles. Taking a combined jet was clearly out of the question for the two British. Asked by the Guardian, a spokesman for Johnson insisted that a mix of conventional and bio-fuels would be used for the flights. According to the Palace, it is the same with Prince Charles.
Anyone who pleaded for more climate protection at COP26 but got there by private jet, Find out in our photo show. By the end of the conference on Friday, November 12th, here are some famous names to be added.
Leonardo DiCaprio is traveling professionally
Hollywood climate activist Leonardo DiCaprio, who was criticized for his manner of travel, was reported to have landed in Glasgow on a commercial plane. According to “Page Six” he was seen transiting trains at Heathrow Airport in London. The actor was heavily criticized in 2016 for traveling nearly 8,000 km in a private jet to receive the sustainability award. Now he will speak in various programs on the sidelines of the climate conference and will be present as a guest.
Leonardo DiCaprio: The Hollywood star apparently came to the climate convention on a commercial flight. (Source: Sean Kilpatrick/Zuma/Canadian Press via DPA)
Prince William and Duchess Kate arrived in Glasgow by train from London. European climate activists Greta Thunberg, Louisa Neubauer, Rikke Nielsen and Dominica Lasota also traveled by train.
Flying is a type of travel that releases most of the carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Emissions per passenger vary based on size, occupancy and efficiency. For example, a flight with a private jet has a much higher carbon footprint than commercial flights.
How high are emissions when traveling by private jet
Several heads of state were at the G20 summit in Rome before the climate summit and took a private jet or a government machine from Italy to Scotland – such as US President Joe Biden or Chancellor Angela Merkel.
According to the BBC report, the Cessna Citation XLS model, which is hugely popular among celebrities, politicians and entrepreneurs, generates 13.5 tonnes of CO2 in less than three hours of flight. If there were nine people in the plane, each would have weighed 1.5 tons. For comparison: a commercial flight on the same route would correspond to about a quarter ton per person. More fuel is used per hour, but emissions per person are lower as more people are transported.
In an interview with the Daily Record newspaper, transportation and environmental expert Matt Finch emphasized that private jets are “the worst way to travel” and that research has shown that “the majority of travel can easily be done with scheduled flights. Huh”. Finch also said, “It’s hard to escape the hypocrisy of using a private jet while claiming to fight climate change.”