June 2026
During the ACI EUROPE Annual Congress & General Assembly on 23 June 2026 in Prague, the three EU Green Airport projects — TULIPS, OLGA and Stargate — brought together over 40 senior leaders for a focused breakfast session discussion. With participants including CEOs, airport representatives and sustainability leads, the session provided a valuable opportunity to exchange views on the aviation sector’s role in delivering on the European Green Deal ambition to drastically reduce transport emissions.
From presentations to provocation
Rather than presenting final conclusions, the three projects — represented by their lighthouse airports Groupe ADP, Royal Schiphol Group and Brussels Airport — introduced five bold statements designed to challenge assumptions and stimulate debate.
These statements, grounded in insights and preliminary findings from the projects, were put to an open discussion and live vote, offering a rare glimpse into how senior airport leaders perceive the sustainability transition.
Statements shaping the discussion
The session centred on five key themes:
- Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF): While critical, SAF was widely seen as constrained by factors beyond airport control, such as production and regulation.
- Beyond CO₂: Participants highlighted the need to go beyond carbon reduction only. Local environmental impacts, including noise, air quality and biodiversity are crucial as well for airports.
- Airports as energy hubs: There was growing recognition that airports may need to evolve beyond transport infrastructure into broader energy system actors.
- Passenger and staff mobility: Reducing emissions requires influencing how people travel to and from airports, not only improving on-site operations.
- Collaboration and scaling: Without stronger cooperation and shared best practices, innovation risks remaining fragmented across the sector. The three Green Deal projects evolved in their cooperation to scale more sustainable innovations.
Alignment and divergence
The voting and subsequent debate revealed both strong alignment and notable differences across the room.
There was clear consensus that collaboration is essential to scale sustainable solutions and accelerate progress. At the same time, differing perspectives emerged when balancing global CO₂ reduction against local environmental priorities — underlining the complexity of the transition.
From insights to action
The discussion reflected the tangible work already underway within the three EU Green Deal projects. Across TULIPS, OLGA and Stargate, solutions are being developed and tested in areas such as:
- SAF deployment frameworks and incentive mechanisms
- Zero-emission airside operations and improved air quality monitoring
- Smart energy systems, storage and infrastructure
- Multimodal mobility solutions and integrated transport approaches
- Shared guidelines and collaboration frameworks for the sector
These initiatives demonstrate that the transition towards more sustainable aviation is not only necessary, but already in motion through concrete actions and partnerships.
Continuing the conversation
The Prague breakfast session highlighted one clear message: there is no single pathway to sustainable aviation. However, through open dialogue, shared learning and strong cooperation, the sector is steadily building the foundations for a greener future.
Further insights and recommendations from the session and the three projects will be disseminated through upcoming closing events and ACI webinars in the coming months. Alongside the project websites, where final results will be published before the end of the year, these initiatives will help strengthen the collective effort to support airports across Europe in advancing their sustainability transition.