For many travelers, it can be hard to forget the impact of traveling on the environment and on people in the places they visit. Sustainable travel practices can alleviate the negative impacts of travel. Read on to explore how you can include sustainable travel practices in your next vacation and ensure that the environmental impact of your trip is more positive than negative.
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Carbon Credits
If you want to get somewhere by plane but are concerned about the environmental impact of taking a flight, which can be much more significant than the impact driving or other forms of transportation, consider buying carbon offsets. Buying offsets allows you to contribute to projects that work to reduce greenhouse gases, effectively offsetting the emissions you create when you take a flight. Some of the projects you might contribute to are wind farms or methane-capturing at farms or landfills. If you’re interested in checking out some of the projects you can support, this website has a great list.
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2. Keep it local
In much of the world, importing goods can be extremely expensive, both financially and environmentally. It takes a lot of resources to transport goods around the world and the fossil fuels used to move products are bad for the environment. Making an effort to shop at farmers’ markets instead of large grocery stores and eat at restaurants that showcase locally grown products are easy ways to make sure your money is supporting the local community rather than funding environmentally-damaging transportation practices. Eating local can also be a great way to meet people who live and work in the area you are visiting, and get a taste for local specialities.
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3. Be water-conscious
Sustainable travel takes many different forms, but one of the most important is water conservation. Before you hit the road, make sure you know how water is used and consumed in the place you are visiting – most of the world uses much less water than Canada or the United States does. When you’re traveling, reduce your water usage as much as possible by taking quick showers, turning off taps as much as possible, and bringing your own water bottle with you – this allows you to fill up on tap water when it is safe and available, rather than purchasing expensive and wasteful plastic water bottles.
Beyond offsets, local food and water conservation, there are lots of little things you can do to make sure your trip is as sustainable as possible. Saving electricity by turning off lights and unplugging appliances, not littering and not disturbing wildlife are other ways to reduce your impact. Traveling sustainably is a great way to see the world and be a responsible global citizen.
How do you practice sustainable travel? Share your story in the comment section. If you’re looking to book a trip, our travel agents would love to help.
Note: Check out #ttot (Travel Talk on Twitter) to see what other people are saying about the topic of the week.
Sources: National Resources Defense Travel, Yale Center for International and Professional Experience
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