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Climate Action at International Airports: An Analysis of the Airport Carbon Accreditation Programme

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Sustainable Development Goals for Society Vol. 2

Part of the book series: Sustainable Development Goals Series ((SDGS))

Abstract

The aviation industry is often criticised over its handling of carbon emissions and consequently contributes to climate change. There has been increasing pressure for the industry to re-align its carbon management strategies with the sustainable development pathway. The industry was widely discussed during the COP25 in Madrid, Spain, in 2019 given its influence on climate change. This study is aimed at examining the handling of climate change action under Sustainable Development Goal 13 (climate action) by airports under the voluntary mechanisms championed by the Airport Carbon Accreditation (ACA) under Airports Council International (ACI). The study makes use of a critical document analysis of the 10-year annual reports prepared by the ACA and a review of sustainability reports. The study found that airports had made some significant efforts in curbing carbon emissions with the participation of 312 airports in 71 countries that cover 44.7% of the global air passenger traffic in less than 11 years of the programme coming into effect through a raft of measures. The study recommends policy framework support to scale up the efforts by airports to ensure sustainability in the transport and travel industry.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Hospitality, Tourism and PR, Vaal University of Technology, Vanderbijlpark, South Africa

    Kaitano Dube PhD

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  1. Kaitano Dube PhD
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Correspondence to Kaitano Dube PhD .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Chief Researcher & Exxaro Chair in Business and Climate Change, Institute for Corporate Citizenship, University of South Africa, Pretoria, South Africa

    Godwell Nhamo

  2. Postdoctoral Fellow: Exxaro Chair in Business and Climate Change, Institute for Corporate Citizenship, University of South Africa, Pretoria, South Africa

    David Chikodzi

  3. Department of Ecotourism Management, Vaal University of Technology, Vanderbijlpark, South Africa

    Kaitano Dube

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Dube, K. (2021). Climate Action at International Airports: An Analysis of the Airport Carbon Accreditation Programme. In: Nhamo, G., Chikodzi, D., Dube, K. (eds) Sustainable Development Goals for Society Vol. 2. Sustainable Development Goals Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-70952-5_16

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