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Suggested Citation:"Wrap-Up." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Economic and Social Sustainability at Airports. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25408.
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Page 14
Page 15
Suggested Citation:"Wrap-Up." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Economic and Social Sustainability at Airports. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25408.
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Page 15

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14 Wrap-Up Mary Vigilante, Synergy Consultants, Inc. Rapporteur Mary Vigilante provided closing remarks for the event and offered what she considered major takeaways. Vigilante noted challenges, innovations and ideas, and potential areas for research. Her closing takeaway thoughts should not be construed as reflecting a consensus of the planning committee, the conference participants, TRB, ACRP, or the National Academies. A major challenge was defining the social element of sustainability. Many airports had been in a listening mode (regarding topics such as staff welfare, community outreach, and effects on a community) and were now entering a mode focused on educating and change (regarding topics such as diversity, inclusion, and competency of leadership). The challenge was to determine what would define the future: would it be social programs in the supply chain? Job needs of the next generation? Leadership competency? Additional challenges centered around reporting by airports on human rights and social metrics. Few best practices had been determined so far. Airport culture contained the conflicting challenge of maintaining the status quo (what airports knew and were comfortable with) as opposed to an uncomfortable or difficult new approach. Vigilante also thought that it important to balance fair wages with the cost to concessionaires. For future studies, it would be important to focus on what narrative was being developed. Vigilante noted several innovations and ideas that were contributed by individuals throughout the event that she thought especially valuable, including • Food donations to pantries, food banks, the United Service Organizations, and others; • Recycling and composting; • English as a second language classes or other educational activities for employees; • Protégé programs to help grow tenants; • Airport measures to educate stakeholders on mitigation tactics for human trafficking; • Use of technology to collect data and improve conditions for stakeholders, community members, employees, and others; • Development of innovation labs at airports to test new ideas and improve stakeholder experiences; • Opportunities for passengers with layovers; • Volunteer opportunities; • Tours of an airport or a nearby city; • Airport interactive displays; and • Connection to Café to socialize passengers.

15 Vigilante highlighted potential research topics that she thought were worthwhile on the basis of discussion from the event. Research topics included the following: • Examination of airports that are tracking and reporting sustainability metrics and whether their insurance rates, insurance payouts, or options for access to capital are different from those of airports that do not track and report these metrics; • Guidance for general aviation airports completing socioeconomic impact studies; • Research on what drives employee satisfaction; • Guidance on project management that includes equity as a necessary skill; • Guidance on best practices or examples of social equity projects at airports; • Compilation of leadership/C-Suite best practices related to social and economic sustainability; • Research on space at an airport that a community could use; and • Effects of and opportunities for public–private partnership funding of social programs.

Next: Appendix A. Program Agenda »
Economic and Social Sustainability at Airports Get This Book
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TRB’s Airport Cooperative Research Program (ACRP) Conference Proceedings on the Web 23: Economic and Social Sustainability at Airports is a compilation of the presentations and a summary of the ensuing discussions at May 7-8, 2018, forum in Washington, D.C.

The meeting brought together individuals from airports, airlines, academia, consulting, local and regional government, general sustainability professionals, and others. The forum included sessions on social sustainability, economic sustainability, keynotes on mitigating human trafficking and innovative development at airports, and interactive breakout discussions delving into myriad social and economic sustainability topics.

ACRP organized the event as part of its series of convening activities titled “ACRP Insight Events.” ACRP Insight Events are forums that foster dialogue among professionals across sectors, institutions, and industries.

ACRP Insight Events convene airport industry leaders and subject matter experts in various fields to encourage discussion and promote broader and deeper insight on topics of significance to airport operators. These in-depth, face-to-face gatherings are designed to promote communication and collaboration, foster innovation, and help identify areas of future interest and research, especially for topics of emerging importance.

Copies of the slides of presentations made at the form are available online. The literature review prepared for the event is also available online.

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