Achieving net-zero carbon aviation by 2050 is a generational challenge, according to a new initiative to coalesce young leaders across the industry. Emerging Leaders in Sustainable Aviation (ELSA) was launched earlier this month during the Generation 2050 panel as part of the ICAO General Assembly in Montreal. It aims to gather industry professionals 35 and younger in a common purpose that the group hopes will bear dividends over the course of their careers.
Conceived by Amy Strang, a sustainability and environment marketing manager with Airbus, the project has the backing of the Air Transport Action Group. For the past two years, she has been working with the European airframer’s ZeroE team, developing concepts for hydrogen-powered airliners.
The idea is that today’s 20- and 30-somethings can be expected to rise to more senior leadership positions in aviation from 2035 onwards and, as such, could be well placed to help the industry achieve its decarbonization objectives. “Our hope is that after someone in the industry rises through the ranks to become the next C-suite exec of a major airline or fuel producer, that they’ll know exactly who to pick up the phone to tackle a challenge,” said the group in its launch statement.
“Before I moved to France [to join Airbus], I lived in New Zealand and was a bit disconnected and lonely,” Strang told AIN. “Our generation doesn’t necessarily get to go to the industry conferences, so we need to find other ways to connect and collaborate.”
ELSA’s recruits are convening in the belief that, just as with aviation safety, sustainability is a goal that has to transcend competition between companies. “We know that aviation is a difficult sector to decarbonize, and this is something we have to do because the industry isn’t slowing down,” Strang said. “The net-zero target is possible, and it needs to happen.”
The organization is led by an executive committee of 12 young professionals that has already established a LinkedIn platform through which participants can connect. It will host online events each quarter and may also host gatherings at industry events such as IATA meetings and major airshows.
ELSA’s founders are drawn from Airbus, along with its rival Boeing, as well as from sustainable aviation fuel specialist LanzaJet and airport industry group ACI World. The group is looking to build and share knowledge around technical topics, as well as to support professional development, communications, and leadership skills for individual members.