Share these talks and lectures with your colleagues
Invite colleaguesCase study
The airport relevance index: A new tool for advocacy and influence — the case of Toronto Pearson International Airport
Journal of Airport Management,
15
(4),
351-360
(2021)
Abstract
Retaining and building social licence is critical to an airport’s success, but getting the attention of elected officials is becoming harder, particularly given the clamour of voices in the pandemic. Built from data that the airport likely already has, the Airport Relevance Index (ARI) is an affordable, quick and effective way of communicating the importance of the airport to politicians at the geographic level that means the most to them: their ward, district or riding. Using a case study of Toronto Pearson International Airport, an ARI is constructed to show how important the airport is to employment, business competitiveness and emissions reduction targets at the local level. Other dimensions can be easily added depending on the circumstances.
Keywords: social licence; post-pandemic recovery; community engagement; policy advocacy
The full article is available to subscribers to the journal.
Author's Biography
Mike Brown has 35 years of experience in the airport industry in strategy development, master planning, forecasting and economic impact studies. He has worked at Canada’s two largest airports, Toronto Pearson and Vancouver International, among others, and has a track record of innovation, analytical rigour and successful execution. His research interests include the impact of airports on commercial property values, using social media and internet search patterns as demand forecasting tools, household spending patterns on air travel, the implications of climate change for airport planning, the impact of ‘disruptors’ such as AirBnB on the demand for air travel and the catalytic economic impacts of airports. Mike’s unique skill is communicating complex technical information in a way that resonates with business leaders, policy-makers and front-line staff. He now runs his own consultancy and is Honorary Senior Research Fellow at Imperial College, London.
