Best sustainable tourism thesis 2020: CO2 compensation holiday flights
Melise Rikels, graduate of Tourism Management course at NHL Stenden University of Applied Sciences in Leeuwarden, won the TUI-CELTH Sustainable Tourism Thesis Award 2020 on Friday the 11th December. This award is granted to students with the best thesis on sustainable tourism in the Netherlands every year. Melise investigated to which extent Dutch holidaymakers are willing to pay for climate compensation for their holiday flight and what the optimal price for this would be.
Assessment based on UN Sustainable Development Goals
Various tourism courses in the Netherlands selected their best theses in the field of sustainable tourism. The professional jury considered 17 submissions and compiled a thesis top 3 on the basis of three categories:
- Best for Social Sustainability – Loreen Sharf of Inholland University of Applied Sciences
- Best for Environmental Sustainability – Lianne Michon of Breda University of Applied Sciences
- Best for Economic Sustainability – Melise Rikels of NHL Stenden University of Applied Sciences
One overall winner was chosen from this top 3, namely Melise Rikels. The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the contribution of the thesis to the SDGs played an important role in the jury's assessment.
Price elasticity CO2 compensation for holiday flights
In her thesis, Melise investigated the extent to which Dutch holidaymakers are willing to pay for CO2 compensation for their holiday flight and what the optimal price for this would be. She did a random check among 503 Dutch holidaymakers. She discovered that a price increase of an airline ticket through CO2 compensation does not quickly lead to a decrease in holiday flights. She calculated the optimal price for CO2 compensation on the basis of € 10.00 for European and € 20.00 for intercontinental flights. At a higher price, the income decreases.