Tourism

Over the past two decades, the number of international tourist arrivals more than doubled, surpassing 1.4 billion in 2019. While this tourism boom promoted economic growth and personal fulfillment, it often came at the expense of the environment and local communities. As tourism surged, it came hand in hand with gentrification, crowded streets, pollution, and habitat loss.

What is sustainable travel? Traveling sustainably means being aware of the impact of tourism on the environment and adopting good practices to reduce the negative effects.

Planet Earth has limited resources and mass tourism puts their existence at risk. Therefore, sustainable travel is a way to preserve nature, instead of commodifying it to attract tourists.

The Seven Principles of Leave No Trace provide an easily understood framework of minimum impact practices for anyone visiting the outdoors. Although Leave No Trace has its roots in backcountry settings, the Principles have been adapted so that they can be applied anywhere — from remote wilderness areas, to local parks and even in your own backyard. They also apply to almost every recreational activity. Each Principle covers a specific topic and provides detailed information for minimizing impacts.

Tourism is responsible for roughly 8% of the world’s carbon emissions. From plane flights and boat rides to souvenirs and lodging, various activities contribute to tourism’s carbon footprint. The majority of this footprint is emitted by visitors from high-income countries, with U.S. travelers at the top of the list. As the number of people who can afford to travel grows, so will tourism’s environmental footprint.

It’s not easy to resist our instinct to get up close to wildlife. Scientists even have a name for it – the biophilia hypothesis – which suggests that humans possess an innate tendency to seek connections with nature. But keeping your hands off is usually always in the best interests of the animals involved.

“Green” became synonymous with “eco-friendly” or “environmentally conscious.” So green travel came into vogue as a broad term used to encompass ecotourism and responsible travel practices, which generally strive to benefit the environment and the social and economic well-being of the local people.

Our world is a wealth of diverse peoples and rich traditions. Because travel brings us to far corners of the globe, it is an unparalleled opportunity to meet people from different backgrounds and learn about their ways of life.

While travel enriches our lives and broadens our horizons, it also has the power to support the communities we visit and improve their quality of life. Tourism creates much-needed jobs and income for underserved populations, such as women and rural communities, and brings money into developing countries. Along with providing local economic benefits, tourism can help preserve traditions and foster cultural awareness and pride.

Trying local cuisine is such an exciting part of traveling! And eating as the locals do is also a great way to support sustainable tourism.

This means avoiding big food chains and restaurants, and avoiding imported food and grocery. Instead, shop in local markets for produce, and pop into small restaurants for meals. By doing this, you are supporting the local food chain and you are supporting the local economy.

One of the most remarkable aspects of travel is that each new adventure represents an opportunity to benefit communities and conserve environments in the destinations we visit. With more than one billion tourist arrivals each year, that’s over one billion opportunities to make a difference!

Sustainable travel is about making smarter choices in every aspect of the trip. It starts at the beginning, when booking transport and accommodation, and comes into play when seeking out local experiences and being conscious of where you’re investing your tourist dollars.

Over the past year, we’ve seen how a global crisis can bring travel to a sudden halt. Though the pandemic remains front of mind, there is another crisis that will bring even graver consequences for humanity and imperil the destinations we love. That threat is climate change.

In recent years, tourism came under heightened scrutiny for its contribution to the climate emergency. We began hearing terms like “flight shaming” as people became more aware of their impact. Tourism does play a role in the climate crisis, there’s no denying that. In fact, a 2018 study found that tourism accounts for 8% of the world’s carbon emissions. On this webpage we provide a breakdown of the different activities that contribute to tourism’s carbon footprint.

Today, transportation is tourism’s main source of greenhouse gas emissions. On average, planes and cars generate the most CO2 per passenger mile, with tour buses, ferries, and trains coming well behind. In recent years, the number of people traveling internationally skyrocketed as airfare became more affordable. Similarly, between 2005 and 2016, transport-related tourism emissions increased by more than 60%.

The term sustainable travel refers to the adoption of sustainable practices with the aim of minimizing the negative impacts and maximizing the positive effects of tourism.

The outdoors is for everyone. Yet, diversity, equity and inclusion in the outdoors are all facets that need continuous improvement. Learn what efforts you can take and the ongoing movements to make the outdoors a place for all.

We believe in making sustainable travel choices easier for everyone.

If done with respect for local communities, environments and biodiversity, travel can broaden horizons, reduce barriers and bring people closer together. We aim to promote a more sustainable travel industry, so we can collectively preserve a world worth experiencing.

Emissions from aviation are a significant contributor to climate change. Airplanes burn fossil fuel which not only releases CO2 emissions but also has strong warming non-CO2 effects due to nitrogen oxides (NOx), vapour trails and cloud formation triggered by the altitude at which aircraft operate. These non-CO2 effects contribute twice as much to global warming as aircraft CO2 and were responsible for two-thirds of aviation’s climate impact in 2018.

As it is currently difficult to reduce emissions from this sector, flying less is the only way to reduce emissions in the critical decade before 2030. Flying less could mean taking a more sustainable mode of transport, such as train, or changing your destination to one which can be reached by less climate-intensive means. It could also mean teleconferencing instead of attending business meetings, or going on longer individual holidays, rather than several short, carbon intensive, trips.