With climate change and environmental conservation at the forefront of our collective consciousness, today’s travel industry is rapidly evolving from traditional, unsustainable tourism to the responsible and sustainable ethos of sustainable travel. Sustainable travel, and ecotourism, is no longer merely a buzzword for the industry. It’s a growing world view. You encounter these terms all around you – in the travel section of your local newspaper, on personal blogs and discussion forums, and when researching your next adventure online. More and more people who are willing and able to travel are acutely aware of the impact they leave behind. They want to play a more active part in protecting and preserving our world, but without sacrificing that bit of wanderlust inside them. How can you travel and, at the same time, minimise your impact on the natural world and society at large? This guide will naturally lead you through the principles of sustainable travel; she will provide practical tips and ideas on how you can make your adventures more responsible.
Understanding Sustainable Travel
Sustainable travel is a holistic term encompassing environmental conservation, cultural sensitivity and economic responsibility. At its most basic level, sustainable travel refers to the responsibility that individual travellers have to minimise environmental harm and create a positive impact on the local community. Examples of sustainable travel follow the principles above: reducing the carbon footprint, contributing to the local economy, and preserving the culture and heritage of destinations. By applying these principles, all parties benefit.
Also, in a sustainable context, travel will become partly about understanding the socio-cultural dimensions of the destinations we visit. The traveller will learn about local conventions and customs, and will then be expected to behave accordingly, so as to respect the social and cultural fabric of the host society and enjoy a more connected and mutually respectful human exchange. Sustainable travel would also be about deepening our connection to the local community, spending more time understanding its challenges and opportunities, rather than staying for just one night on our way to see the next major attraction. If we don’t address the environmental impact of tourism, we will lose nature, which is the driver of most tourist activity. So, in the long term, these principles mean that tourism will become even more ecologically sensitive, making it less ecologically damaging. To sustain our enthusiasm for this activity, which is so vital for survival in certain parts of the world, we will need to travel less and, we hope, travel better.
The Benefits of Responsible Travel
By summing up what’s right, good and valuable for the traveller and the host destination, responsible travel will ensure that we travel less damagingly on our planet, that our carbon footprint is reduced. We stay in eco-friendly lodgings, produce less waste, and travel by means that do not damage nature. We thereby try to eliminate a small part of the damage caused by tourism, and heal the planet from the ravages of climate change.
The key tenet of responsible travel is that it reduces environmental impact, giving equal credence to the issues of local communities thereby encouraging cultural exchange and understanding. Equipped with personal knowledge and sensitivity to cultural differences gained while respectfully enjoying local experiences, travellers develop a global perspective and enabling a greater degree of world understanding. Responsible travel reaps the benefits of cultural immersion while respecting the identities, beliefs, motivations, cultural background and livelihood of the local society in host locations. Tourism should not be limited to one-sided enjoyment but should offer opportunities for fun, learning, as well as promoting the conservation of the natural resources and culture of our host societies.
How to Travel More Sustainably?
Most importantly, this involves taking sustainable-travel choices at every step along the journey. Perhaps the first is choosing how to stay. The most obvious eco-options are hotels and lodges that are certified for their environmental practices, such as Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) or Green Globe. You might notice that these properties have ‘green’ features like energy-saving LED lighting, composting toilets or waste-reduction programmes, or are tied in with local conservation.
Another key focus of sustainable travel is transport: travel by train, bus or carpool in lieu of flights – which have by far the greatest carbon footprint – wherever possible. If flying is the only option, then consider a carbon offset scheme to mitigate the impact. Finally, travellers can cut waste by bringing their own reusable bottles, bags and cutlery, and avoiding items containing single-use plastics. The more we all do this, the bigger the positive impact on the environment will be.
Eco-Friendly Tourism Practices
Through eco-tourism, the damage to the environment can be kept in check. The best thing tourists can do is make wildlife conservation efforts their mainstay. Tourists can either take part in these projects or donate money to them.
Through these endeavours, endangered species can be protected and saved from extinction. Biodiversity, in turn, increases tourism, which is of immense benifit to the economy of the local populace. At the same time, widlife conservation also makes participants aware of the need to protect nature.
Furthermore, there is a need to develop a sustainable, local business that can flourish in conjunction with eco-tourism and contribute to the local economy. In this regard, Tourists should pay attention to purchase legit goods and services from local businesses in sustainable ways. For instance, they should buy organic, locally produced food and drink. In addition to this, tourist should acquire hand-made commodities directly from crafting people. Through selling their commodities to tourists, these local businesses not only improve their livelihoods by contributing to their income but also increase their dependency on nature, that is, they are incited to establish sustainable or “green” principles, which promote the best practice for conservation. The tourists should pay attention to consumption of energy and water, since their consumption can be considerably high, and they should follow the stipulated rules regarding consumption of energy and water which could deplete local water table.
The Role of Technology in Sustainable Travel
Advances in technology are also key to encouraging more sustainability in travel, as they support travellers’ eco-friendly decision-making and empower them to make informed choices while planning their travels. Websites and apps can provide insight about available green accommodation, sustainable transport options and various aspects of responsive travel. In other words, by supporting more conscious and conscious decision-making processes, travellers can increasingly think deeper about these issues when travelling or planning their trips.
Moreover, technology fosters the development of the sharing economy, which promotes sustainable travel. The sharing economy primarily focuses on providing lodging and transport solutions to travellers from local operators through peer-to-peer platforms such as Airbnb and Uber – quickening tourists’ transition into the sharing economy. A study found that Airbnb had significantly lowered travellers’ per mile carbon emissions when renting a house in comparison to when they would have stayed at a local hotel. This is part of the industry’s effort to implement renewable energy and waste management technologies that enable the industry to sustainably manage itself, mitigating and adapting to environmental threats. The shift towards low-carbon tourism is within sight in southeast Asia, where technology is paving the way, from accommodations to sustainable shipping. Sustainable startups such as Moevenpick founded in 2013 engage local communities in experiential ecotourism in the Beibu Gulf in China. For instance, Samal Light House Eco-Retreat in the Philippines offers scuba diving excursions to ecologically protected reefs, allowing travellers a natural experience with the sea life. These services are opening up exciting opportunities for sustainable global tourism. Meanwhile, Asian companies are also providing new options for shipping their products to a larger global audience, through ‘slow transport’, while reducing carbon emissions. Some examples include the cargo ship Silk, co-funded by the J веtmlabs program and established in 2017, and the Vietnamese cargo boat Thái binh – s story supported by the People’s Choice Award of the Slow Wealth campaign.
Tips for Practicing Sustainable Travel
To travel sustainably, it takes an awareness of incorporating these practices well before, during and after the trip. During pre-travel, investigate your destination’s environmental and cultural context so you can make decisions about where to stay and what to do and not do, before even leaving for your trip. Pack light, and as few disposables as possible, which helps reduce waste. Minimise single-use items by bringing your own – and, if you absolutely must bring some, reduce their single-use potential.
Try to make your trip as environmentally friendly as possible: join guided tours with local experts, visit nature reserves, support community-based tourism, and contribute to local conservation and cultural preservation efforts. Minimise your environmental footprint by reducing water and energy use, recycling as much as possible, and following local guidelines about disposing of solid waste. Then, when you return home, continue spreading the message. Your friends want to hear about your trip, so tell them. Share your experiences and insights, and pass on your newfound knowledge about travel. Invite your friends and family to join you on your next sustainable tour. Don’t worry if your social circle doesn’t immediately spring to action. We’ve all been there. Just be persistent, and you will find your voice. Understand too that you are leading a movement for global change. Your small actions, shared with the right people, create a rippling effect that ultimately helps more people travel more sustainably, everywhere.
Conclusion
Not being sustainable or eco-friendly comes at a very high cost for future generations – which means that sustainable travel and eco-friendly tourism are increasingly seen less as a lifestyle trend or dipstick to ‘feel good’ with, and more as our only viable option – as a practice to learn, to navigate and to make as normal and mundane as possible if we are to look after our planet properly and fully benefit from our journeys. Through a greater understanding of what being a traveller actually entails, a conscious change of attitude and the embracing of responsible choices, and guided by the access and opportunities provided by technology, we can all be part of this process of change and transformation. We can all become better, more sustainable travellers. We all can, and should, travel more consciously. We all can spread the word about sustainable travel as a torch that ignites our hope for future generations who will feel the very same incessant desire to travel all over the world – a place that we must preserve as beautiful and diverse for generations to come.