Why Volvo’s boss is no fan of 'flight shame'

Sweden has a name for a growing trend that has air travelers feeling guilty about their carbon footprint: flygskam, or flight shame.

Greenpeace, Extinction Rebellion and activists such as 16-year-old Swedish environmentalist Greta Thunberg are fueling the flight-shame push by highlighting aviation’s role in global warming.

Citigroup predicts the flight shame will raise costs for airlines, consumers and companies.

One of Sweden’s best-known citizens is not a fan of the rising push to discourage travel. 

“I think you're on a very dangerous path when you say, ‘No, you should not fly.’ ” Volvo CEO Hakan Samuelsson told me recently. “One of the most important factors to promote cultural understanding between people is travel.”