Privilegienblindes Reisen in Zeiten des Klimawandels

Abstract

In Germany, travelling is taken for granted without question. However, it is predominantly practiced by privileged people. This paper discusses climate conscious travelling and unfolds the associated privileges by reconstructing strategies of legitimizing travel practices. Moreover, "flight shame" is discussed as a strategy to reconstruct moral standards of privileges. The empirical basis is provided through discussions with six groups of middle-class people in rural towns as well as urban cities in southern Germany who differ in terms of age, gender and social status. At the end of 2019 and the beginning of 2020, the groups discussed the meaning of travel in their lives. In the process, they revealed privileges by taking travel practices for granted and portraying them as indisputable. Subsequently, the paper's focus shifts from the privileges of certain groups to privileged practices that have to be unblinded in the sense of making privileges visible.