Abstract:

Air transport is one of the fastest growing industries today and its volume is expected to double in the next ten years. The carbon footprint of air travel is significant (accounting for four to nine % of the total climate change impact of human activity) and there’s a lot of pressure to cut down emissions and make the industry greener in all possible ways. Training functions are not an exception. Training volumes in air transport operations are relatively high due to high level of regulation and strict demands for employee competences in all parts of the air transport chain. The carbon footprint of training is generated by issues such as travelling to training sessions, accommodation, venue facilities & resources (incl. energy) and training material production. There’s very little research evidence on the environmental impact of online training in companies, but those available claim that up to 99% of reduction in carbon emissions can be achieved by switching to online staff training. For an average size company this may mean hundreds of tonnes of reductions in carbon emissions per year. This issue is closely related with the improved efficiency of online training compared to face-to-face or blended learning. This is turn generates cost-savings for example due to less hours spent on training by employees, and many other issues. These aspects together make online training an attractive option to any organization. However, to claim these benefits training organizations need to establish good understanding about the different factors that enable environmentally sustainable, cost-efficient high-quality training provision. By improving general awareness of environmental sustainability matters in education it's possible to make a significant global contribution for cleaner environment.

Airport College International Ltd. is a private online training academy which provides digital learning and competence development solutions for the air transport sector. Established in 2012, the company operates globally with representation in more than 300 airports and with offices in Helsinki and Tokyo. Following the company’s Environmental Policy, it is committed to developing online training services which support and promote sustainable air transport. Part of this vision is to help client organizations understand the environmental impact of training and to provide concrete tools for analysis and decision-making for more sustainable training provision. To allow this, Airport College is carrying out a study to map what kind of evidence exists in the topic of environmentally sustainable online training. Using this evidence, findings from various case studies and client-based data a framework will be established to map the carbon footprint of online training including comparisons with face-to-face training. It will serve as the basis for developing a tool that training departments can use to make specific calculations and comparisons on training carbon footprint using a range of parameters.

Keywords:

Sustainability, online training, carbon footprint, emissions, e-learning, staff training, workplace-based learning, L&D.