Travel Sustainably, Travel Responsibly

By Agrima Chopra

Sustainability is more than just a trend. It’s a process, the gradual increase in the awareness of the world, regarding the world. It’s hope for the planet that is achievable through the correct actions. 

“As far as sustainability is concerned, it is not just about meeting our own needs in the present, but about making sure that future generations can meet their own needs as well so that the world continues to prosper now and in the future” – energy elephant 

Sustainability has been gradually increasing in its importance since the 1970s and the birth of corporate CSR. 

However, it has been popularized or has become mainstream because of people like Greta Thunberg who went above and beyond the call of duty to voice their opinions and the urgency on the matter of sustainability. The United Nations has also time and time again brought up the fact of how important and how essential it is that we come together as a planet, protect and think about the future with a desire to change and make habitual changes for a better tomorrow. 

Sustainability and travel also have a co-relation that is exceedingly becoming relevant, especially after COVID. The birth of revenge tourism led a lot of people to transport themselves to locations for vacationing, to spend a lot of money, time and energy on travelling and perhaps not thinking consciously about their choices and actions. When travelling, the general public tends to ignore the repercussions of the choices they make when they choose to travel, where they choose to travel and how they choose to get there. 

Carbon footprint is an amazing way to analyse the impact of your actions on the environment. It seeks to find out the amount of carbon emission that has been created because of a certain activity. 

Being mindful of your carbon footprint can increasingly make you a conscious and more responsible consumer. 

Now, how do you reduce your impact on the health of the planet and still be able to have a holistic experience while travelling? 

Here are a few tips to aid with the same. 

What should your choice of location be while travelling? 

To travel more sustainably, let’s start with where to go. Choosing a location is very important when it comes to ensuring that you’re travelling with the most minor carbon emission possible. 

1 – Try to travel closer to home –

Trains and cars are by and large a much better way to get to a location than a plane or a ship. They emit less carbon and ensure a healthier environment. When you choose to travel closer to home, you can easily transport yourself through the means of a car or train. Additionally, it enables you to have less travel stress and a more fun road trip. 

2 – Choosing sustainability-friendly places –

Choosing to go to an eco-friendly destination for your vacation is also an equally good way to reduce your carbon footprint. Locations like Reykjavik, Vancouver, Cape Town etc. They have ingrained into themselves, the concept of sustainability by making it a part of their lives, something that everyone tries to undertake. These destinations are additionally also looking to make changes towards the betterment of the world and the greater good. 

Where should you stay once you’ve arrived? 

3 – Choosing eco-friendly places of stay –

Try to look for accommodations, resorts or hotels that are sustainably forward, have certifications from agencies like LEED, are big on water conservation and have means set to save energy or make its usage more efficient.  

4 – Keep your expenditure to the localities – 

While travelling, try to consciously spend only on the localities and home-grown artisans or lodgers. By doing so, you’re contributing less to the chain hotels and boosting the economy of the nation by supporting the local businesses and artisans. This helps money stay in the country and prevents wealth drain. Which in turn gives the local people an opportunity to deliver and use the money wisely and consciously. 

What are a few things you can do to reduce your carbon footprint while travelling? 

5 – Leave nature undisturbed –

Try to keep the places you visit that are surrounded by nature, untouched and undisturbed. Avoid picking flowers, feeding wildlife or dirtying the location with the garbage that usually goes unnoticed. 

6 – Offsetting your carbon footprint –

Offsetting your carbon footprint is another great way to reduce your impact on the environment. In this, you essentially analyse the prospective carbon footprint of you taking a vacation and purchase offsets that are basically contributions towards sustainability-inspired activities and donations towards reserved parks and wildlife etc. 

7 – Engage in sustainable activities –

Try not to delve into activities like elephant riding, desert biking, hunting etc. By choosing eco-friendly activities like hiking, biking, bird watching and morning jogs are not only beneficial to you as a person but are holistically good for the environment too.  

8 – Mindfully consuming resources –

While travelling we tend to forget the fact that we are still in the process of consuming resources. The same shower that you would take at home, turns into an elongated, self-worship session while on vacation. This happens because we tend to not care about our consumption during holidays. Thus practising being more mindful by keeping our water and energy consumption in check can contribute to manifolds. 

9 – Avoid single-use plastic –

Invest in a reusable cup, water bottle, and utensils to reduce your carbon emission. Using single-use plastic or use-and-throw cutlery does a lot of damage to the environment and contributes towards wastage a lot of. This can easily be cured through the usage of reusable items making it both economically and environmentally friendly for you. 

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What are some of the destinations that practice and promote sustainability? 

1 – Bhutan – It measures its growth on its accomplishment of the sustainability goals and not on its economic growth. They also have a mandate of ensuring at least 60% of forest cover in the country. 

2- Amsterdam – A pioneer in eco-friendly means of living, Amsterdam has time and again been a source of inspiration for many. Its choice of eco-friendly modes of transportation like cycling, renewable energy and reduction of carbon emissions paired with ambitious sustainability goals make it a trendsetter. 

3 – Sweden – Sweden has set ambitious targets to become fossil fuel-free by 2040. The country has implemented policies to promote renewable energy, waste recycling, and sustainable urban planning, making it a leader in sustainable development. 

4 – Freiburg, Germany – A sustainably-responsible city in Germany, Freiburg is leading the space with its renewable energy movement, with a strong focus on solar energy, sustainable urban planning, and green building practices. It spread innovative sustainability and approaches and has created a car-free neighbourhood, Vauban, and has made green City commitments. 

After COVID, sustainability has taken a turn for the good and is only going to get better with time and collective energy being put in by the majority of the population. Sustainable travelling can largely contribute towards the betterment of the same. Travelling is formed or created through passion and a strong inkling to improve or unwind, thus individuals who travel can and should be trusted with making the right choices.