ABSTRACT
The context of the research reported here is an investigation into how to embed sustainability within policy. Aviation was selected because it is widely regarded as one of the most difficult areas of application of sustainability (Nijkamp 1999; Gössling & Upham 2009). Here the focus is on the interface between economic and environmental policy requiring trade-offs between, on the one hand, the benefits of fast affordable transport facilitating trade and tourism, and on the other, the drawback that this is the source of CO2 emissions implicated in causing climate change. The ‘action research case study’ proved to be effective in this context and could be useful in other studies which have similar characteristics.
