cnn
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Climate Researcher Dr. Gianluca Grimalda says he risks losing his position at the Kiel Institute for the World Economy in Germany for refusing to use a plane as a means of transport from Papua New Guinea.
Grimalda plans to return to Germany from his research trip without flying to reduce his carbon emissions by 90%, and instead aims to travel by ferries, coaches, trains and cargo ships.
However, he said the institute gave him three days’ notice to return by Oct. 2, which would have forced him to fly, according to a statement issued by the climate group Scientist Rebellion.
Grimalda told CNN that the Kiel Institute told him to “wait for a second warning/request to appear in Kiel traveling by plane” after he did not return and that “they will then issue the dismissal letter” when he does not show up. for the second time.
His September salary has not been paid and his offer of unpaid leave has been rejected, he added in a statement.
The Kiel Institute told CNN that it “does not comment publicly on internal personnel matters. On business trips, the Institute supports its employees to travel in an environmentally friendly way.”
When asked about Grimalda’s claim that he had not been paid his September salary, the Kiel Institute said it would not comment publicly on an “internal personnel matter… for the protection of our employees.”
Grimalda, an experimental economist and Scientist Rebellion activist, had been conducting fieldwork in Bougainville, Papua New Guinea, for six months, studying the relationship between globalization, climate change, and social cohesion.
Grimalda’s permission to travel ended on September 10, but his investigation took longer than originally planned due to several security threats, including one occasion when he was taken hostage by a group armed with machetes. and all his belongings were confiscated, according to the Scientist Rebellion statement.
As the climate crisis intensifies, the impact of aviation has come under increasing scrutiny. Commercial aviation causes 2.5% of global CO2 emissions each year, and demand for flights (and emissions) is expected to increase significantly in the coming years.. Alternatively, climate activists like Greta Thunberg have modeled greener ways of traveling, such as by boat or train.
“I am prepared to face all the legal and economic consequences of this decision,” Grimalda said in a statement. “Ultimately, it is also a mental health issue. “My psychological state cannot but be described as climate anxiety, and flying can only worsen this condition.”
It took Grimalda 35 days to reach Papua New Guinea from Germany earlier this year, while traveling 15,000 kilometers (9,321 miles) by land to Singapore before catching a flight for the second leg of the journey.
It is currently still in Papua New Guinea before leaving on a cargo ship on October 8 to begin its long journey back to Germany.