Ryan Spies, Alaska Airlines’ executive director of sustainability, is no climate perfectionist. Yes, you drive an EV – but you also eat a carbon-intensive cheeseburger every now and then.
Most important, he says, is when people work to drive big change: getting involved in collective action, being careful who you vote for, and being intentional with your dollars. Spy also encourages consumers to contact companies directly about sustainability issues.
“Any company I’ve been in, if a customer writes with a complaint or a suggestion or pleads with passion, those go within the company,” said Spies. “That moves the needle.”
It’s a philosophy that changes the way he does his day job leading sustainability efforts in Alaska — operating nearly 1,500 daily flights on its main route, Hawaiian Airlines and regional subsidiaries. Scouts oversee climate reporting and public policy, employee engagement, efficiency and waste reduction.
The focus is on increasing the production and use of sustainable aviation fuel, or SAF. Alaska is a founding pilot of the Cascadia Sustainable Aviation Fuel Accelerator, an initiative launched in January that aims to establish the Pacific Northwest as a global leader in SAF development.
Read on to learn more about the spies’ sustainability journey. His quotes have been edited for clarity and length.
At what point did you realize you had to work in sustainability?
It was almost 20 years ago. I was an engineer in the Navy, which was totally ineffective in sustainment, and I saw Al Gore’s movie “An Inconvenient Truth,” Al Gore’s movie. I have always considered myself an environmentalist and someone who understands that we need to take care of the planet, but I had no idea of the serious problem we were going to face. That inspired me to quit my job, go back to school, get an MBA, and focus on strategy and how we make companies do their part, and use the power of business for good.
What worries you most when it comes to solving climate change?
Most people understand that it’s a big problem, but most people don’t feel empowered to do something about it. And look, I am a father of three young children. I understand that we all have daily challenges, and these big challenges are not something we can give our mind or time space to. So my biggest concern is that it just drops in importance. I don’t expect everyone to do something every day about it, but I hope that we will find a way to make things like our government and governments around the world able to deal with these big challenges.
What makes you most optimistic about the planet?
I see how quickly solutions to the climate crisis can be developed and implemented. Sixteen years ago when I started in this space in a real way, the promise of renewable energy was there, that it could save you money in the long run, but you couldn’t turn around and make money quickly. Today I see strong growth of those solutions and cost reductions making them more affordable solutions. If you want to install new energy today, the best choice is solar and storage. There is no longer an economic argument against them.
If you could invent one climate solution overnight, what would it be?
How to make the world’s densest battery. If you can do that, you can pair it with clean renewable energy. EVs are a good example of where there’s been a lot of progress: They’re obviously a profitable way to travel, and I love that, but in the airline business, we’re nowhere near that. It’s just a physics problem. The most dense batteries today are 300 watts per kilogram. Jet fuel is 14,000 watts per kilogram. It’s not even close.
Coffee with any weather leader, past or present – who do you prefer?
I had coffee with Al Gore, so I’ve earned that. It was New York Weather Week. I was invited to the breakfast of these leaders and the unexpected guest was Mr. Gore. It was nice to be able to talk to him.
Which limited sustainability solution needs more attention?
The idea of doing things together is very important – it takes many people in different roles and organizations to move big things. Here in the Pacific Northwest, we started this collaboration with many partners called the Cascadia Sustainability Aviation Accelerator. We consider ourselves a leader here in Washington state and the region, but we cannot solve the sustainable jet fuel problem alone. We know we need a state, we know we need Boeing, we know we need big companies, we know we need universities.
What’s one metric you over-look as a climate leader?
The price of oil is on all of our minds. And it is difficult because our costs are very high in the airplane, but on the other hand, the higher the price, the less demand there is and that is probably a good thing for the climate, to speed up other solutions. I run into that every day, and that was before the Strait of Hormuz was closed, and it will be long after it reopens. That’s a global metric that moves mountains.
The scope of the climate challenge is amazing – how do you tackle this task?
Control what you can control, influence where you can, use your passionate voice, but also understand pragmatic facts. Businesses are here to make money, and you won’t always win the climate argument. When I think about influencing other leaders, other parts of the organization, for me it’s about meeting them where they are and understanding what their priorities are and seeing how our priorities align. Ultimately, most people don’t think about the weather and how their work can affect it. That’s my job.
What impact do you hope your work will have in 20 years?
Which means it moves us away from a carbon-heavy lifestyle. We have the power to make these changes happen, and I think we will all benefit from them. Even if you don’t care about the weather or don’t think it will affect your life, how it will affect it, and therefore how we can improve the health of everyone on earth and all those to come. I hope my work contributes to that.
