There\u2019s been a lot of fuss about aviation in recent years. Should we keep on flying without restrictions so that we can trade products and see the world? Or should we instead fly less, to reduce the harm done to people\u2019s health and the impact on the climate? We have to face up to differing interests and a never-ending stream of accurate and false information on the internet. Polarisation awaits. The Netherlands Aerospace Center (NLR) plays an important role in gathering reliable information and turning knowledge into value. NLR does this through nine strategic programs. For the series “The Aviation of the Future,” Innovation Origins speaks with all programme leaders.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For the second episode, we spoke with Rui Roosien (programme leader Impact on People and Society<\/a>) about the impact of aviation on society and the environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIn this programme, we look at the consequences of aviation at airfields and in their vicinity. We\u2019re looking at things like noise nuisance, safety, air quality and local emissions. In addition, we look at mobility as a whole. What does aviation bring us, in both economic and social terms? And what does it cost? Aviation lets people see the world easily and relatively affordably, as well as making trade possible. On top of that, the Netherlands \u2013 with Schiphol as the hub \u2013 is a major transit country. There are downsides to that too, for instance in terms of emissions from aircraft, noise nuisance and the impact on nature and the climate. The public worry about things like that.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cNLR has in the past largely focused on research into technological solutions and innovations. In this programme, though, we\u2019re looking at the social themes associated with aviation \u2013 how it affects society. Aviation is a topic that often comes to the fore in various political and other debates, in both a positive and a negative light. It\u2019s important that the information used in such debates is correct, so that governmental authorities, the commercial sector and the public can make decisions based on facts that are scientifically underpinned. Given our role as a research institute, we want to use this programme to make science more accessible, for instance by reporting understandably on the significance and the background.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The first focuses on the social debate. The aim is to provide factual information for the social debate in a comprehensible and accessible form. \u201cDrones are very much the up-and-coming thing, but we don\u2019t yet know much about how much noise nuisance these airborne vehicles create. We can carry out research like that within this programme, in collaboration with other programmes such as Unmanned and Autonomous<\/a>, of course.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnother project focused primarily on looking at what aviation and the automotive industry can learn from each other about automation. How can we make sure that humans and machines work well together? We focus above all on research into how the switch in control from human to machine and vice versa can be done smoothly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe\u2019ve also carried out various studies in a European context for making the impact quantifiable. The social impact is an important target in a range of research projects. We try to see what the best way of measuring and representing it is, so that future research will have more real-world information to get to grips with. We\u2019ve been looking at a scoring system, for instance, to determine what the relevant means of transport are for specific purposes. What operations can be carried out profitably with drones and when might a different mode of transport be better? Understandings like that are important for implementations and for the impact of innovations.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Rui Roosien works at NLR in the environment and sustainability department, where he is the programme leader of the Impact on Humans and Society programme. He loves long-haul flights to distant destinations but does worry about the potential consequences. \u201cThe aim is to get aviation to fit in better with what society demands. There are several facets to that. I think it\u2019s important to listen properly to what local residents and other parties involved are saying, for example, otherwise you won\u2019t get the necessary backing. At the same time, aviation is blamed incorrectly for things that aren\u2019t true. A plane isn\u2019t necessarily more harmful per kilometre than a car that runs on petrol \u2013 it\u2019s just easier for a plane to cover a lot more kilometres. It\u2019s crucial that the people involved are given the correct information. There are pros and cons to aviation and we need to get a clear picture of it all before major decisions are made.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The aim is to get aviation to fit in better with what society demands<\/p>\nRui Roosien<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n \u201cOur role as a knowledge institute means we carry out thorough research into various aspects of aviation. The name NLR \u2013 the Netherlands Aerospace Centre \u2013 tells you our origins, knowledge and expertise. We don\u2019t have any direct economic interest in whether aviation shrinks or expands, so we\u2019re able to gather and analyse information reliably, which benefits the debate within society. For me, an important part of this is that the experts at NLR step into the limelight themselves a bit more, explaining the research. That will let us make sure that the figures and information are interpreted correctly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThese research projects are above all important for policymakers and for the commercial sector. They give a clear picture of the pros and cons that allows a suitable strategy to be chosen. It\u2019s also important that everyone in the Netherlands remains aware of the facts. That lets you form a properly grounded opinion and even change your behaviour if needed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cHuge amounts of information can be found online. Whatever your opinion may be about a given topic, there\u2019ll always be information available that backs your point of view. That makes providing correct information increasingly important. There are various ongoing consultations here, including one with the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, to see if we can work together on providing information. I hope that we\u2019ll also be able to do the same in future with other institutes such as TNO, RIVM and the technical universities, for example. When we at NLR write a report about emissions from aircraft, for example, we don\u2019t always know exactly what that signifies in terms of health effects. That facet is more typically something for the RIVM. Each party has its own domain of expertise and collaborating in the provision of information is what will let us get the most complete set of details out there.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" There\u2019s been a lot of fuss about aviation in recent years. Should we keep on flying without restrictions so that we can trade products and see the world? Or should we instead fly less, to reduce the harm done to people\u2019s health and the impact on the climate? We have to face up to differing […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1640,"featured_media":506583,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"views\/single-partner.blade.php","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"advgb_blocks_editor_width":"","advgb_blocks_columns_visual_guide":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[26049],"tags":[83492,48777],"location":[6763],"article_type":[6758],"serie":[],"archives":[],"internal_archives":[],"reboot-archive":[82815],"class_list":["post-470986","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mobility","tag-aviation-of-the-future","tag-nlr","location-netherlands","article_type-interview","reboot-archive-green"],"blocksy_meta":[],"acf":{"subtitle":"Limit aviation or allow it to keep growing? Different interests must be considered. An interview with Rui Roosien, programme leader Impact on People and Society at NLR.","text_display_homepage":false},"author_meta":{"display_name":"Linda Bak","author_link":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/author\/linda-bak\/"},"featured_img":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/NLR_2023_054_32_preview.jpg","coauthors":[],"tax_additional":{"categories":{"linked":["Mobility<\/a>"],"unlinked":["Mobility<\/span>"]},"tags":{"linked":["Aviation of the future<\/a>","NLR<\/a>"],"unlinked":["Aviation of the future<\/span>","NLR<\/span>"]}},"comment_count":"0","relative_dates":{"created":"Posted 2 years ago","modified":"Updated 2 years ago"},"absolute_dates":{"created":"Posted on February 27, 2024","modified":"Updated on February 27, 2024"},"absolute_dates_time":{"created":"Posted on February 27, 2024 3:00 pm","modified":"Updated on February 27, 2024 3:00 pm"},"featured_img_caption":"","series_order":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/470986","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1640"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=470986"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/470986\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/506583"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=470986"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=470986"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=470986"},{"taxonomy":"location","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/location?post=470986"},{"taxonomy":"article_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/article_type?post=470986"},{"taxonomy":"serie","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/serie?post=470986"},{"taxonomy":"archives","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/archives?post=470986"},{"taxonomy":"internal_archives","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/internal_archives?post=470986"},{"taxonomy":"reboot-archive","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ioplus.nl\/archive\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/reboot-archive?post=470986"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}What exactly does the Impact on People and Society knowledge programme involve?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
There are three cornerstones to the programme<\/h2>
The second cornerstone looks at technological development, in particular relating to aviation in the future. NLR looks at things like the technological options for improving safety or tackling noise nuisance.
The third concentrates on airports and their surroundings. For instance, NLR develops tools for setting up and maintaining good cooperation between the parties involved and all their different interests.<\/p><\/div>\n\n\n\nCould you give an example of a project that is in this programme?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n
About the programme leader<\/h2>
\u201cIt\u2019s important to make tough choices now so that aviation will in future be able to stay within acceptable limits for people and for the natural world. We\u2019ve got to allow for the fact that the public are worried about emissions, as well as for the people who are employed in aviation.\u201d Roosien sees it as his personal mission to get anyone and everyone involved in the discussion about the future of aviation.<\/p><\/div>\n\n\n\nWhat are the mission and vision of this programme?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n
What is NLR\u2019s role in this?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Why are studies like these important for society?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Providing correct information is becoming more and more important<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n