Indulging in Paradise? EU law and policy of holiday air travel through the lens of practice theory

In his doctoral thesis Yannick van den Berg researches how EU (consumer) law and policy have failed to reduce emissions from holiday air travel. In his thesis he argues that taking a social practice theoretical approach to holiday air travel can yield valuable insights into EU law and policy on sustainable consumption, in particular by giving new ways to frame problems of sustainability. Instead of focusing on individual choice, behaviour and green technologies, the thesis shows how it can be more fruitful to understand the problem of emissions of holiday air travel as one that requires us to recraft air travel to become more sustainable, substitute air travel by rail travel and finally to see how air travel can become less ‘locked in’ to other practices like holidaying. Taking a practice approach, Van den Berg also sheds a light on the limitations of law (and policy) in addressing unsustainable social practices.