TRAVEL BASICS
What is sustainable travel
AND HOW YOU CAN BECOME A MORE CONSCIOUS TRAVELER
Go for a hike in your own country - Kinderdijk Netherlands (Prints available in the shop)
Explore destinations by foot and go off the typical touristic track - Venice Italy (Prints available in the shop)
We at Pukkie.co love to travel and explore new cultures. We travel to various places in the world and more often then not, as far away as possible. We are obviously not the only ones. There are 1.4 billion international arrivals each year, this is 56 times more then in 1950 (UNWTO*). And these numbers are rising each year by an average of 6%. You might say this is great, we support local cultures and nations who depend on tourism but most of the time tourism is actually gradually destroying the environmental resources on which tourism itself depends. And here comes sustainable travel into sight. A term often used in the modern world but many times misunderstood or misused.
Let’s first look at the term sustainable, what does it actually mean. Sustainable: able to be maintained at a certain rate or level, in relation to the environment: conserving an ecological balance by avoiding depletion of natural resources. Sustainable travel means finding a way that tourism can be maintained long-term without harming natural and cultural environments. Sustainable travel should minimise the negative impacts of tourism and ideally be beneficial to the area in which it takes place.
* The United Nations World Tourism Organization
Environmental, social and economical
As a tourist we should be mindful about the way we travel and our impact on the local environment. We should focus on 3 aspects: environmental, social, and economical. This starts with minimizing our carbon footprint, plastic and water usage, etc. But should continue into the social and economical aspect, where we should support local businesses, local employment and the local economy. So don’t go to the first big international chain that throws around sustainability certifications, these certifications are most of the time only greenwashing* their operations, and give a false perspective. Aim for locally run hotels or bed and breakfasts.
* Greenwashing: the process of conveying a false impression or providing misleading information about how a company’s products are more environmentally sound
Explore the countryside and stay at local bed and breakfasts or camp at locally owned campsites - North York Moors National Park England (Prints available in the shop)
Tourism is responsible for roughly 8% of the world’s carbon emissions. Whereby up to 50% is due to transportation (sustainabletravel.org). Offsetting your flight ticket by donating to a carbon offset scheme sounds reasonable. But look at this: it would take an acre of forests a year to absorb the same amount of CO2 emissions of a one-way flight from London to New York (sustainabletravel.org). How is our small fee to offset our ticket justifying our world travels as sustainable?
Explore by bicycle, it is the perfect way to explore the direct surroundings or the city - The Achterhoek Netherlands
Stay close to home
Try to minimize our international travels and explore more destinations close to home. Ogilvy made an amazing advertisement for the Deutsche Bahn (German Rail): “No Need to Fly - Around the world in Germany”. They used frequently googled images to reference travel destinations in Germany. The advertisement showcases so clearly our social media brains-washed perception to travel. We all want to visit the most "instagrammable" spots in the world. Yes that’s a real word, instagrammable: visually appealing in a way that is suitable for being photographed for posting on the social media application Instagram. While picking our next travel destinations we are focused on the worldwide global postings on social media and forgot to explore our direct surrounding. Often as beautiful when looked at from a tourist perspective. Try it out by showing your city or region to a friend who is new. Bring along your camera and explore local shops and restaurants. You will be surprised by how satisfying it is.
Let’s enjoy our worlds beauty in the best way we can!
Advertisement: "No Need to Fly - Around the world in Germany"
Sustainable travel overview:
TRANSPORT AND PACKING
- Try to explore close to home
- To get to your destination try to choose a train or bus, then shared car and lastly plane or boat
- Explore your destination by foot or Bicycle
- Utilise public transport and minimise taxi rides
- Pack light and only essential items
- Pack eco-friendly essentials, for example your own drinking bottle
- Minimise single use plastics
ACCOMMODATIONS AND ACTIVITIES
- Stay at locally owned places, boutique hotels and bed and breakfasts
- Check sustainable certificates for hotels or hostels but be aware of “green washing”
- Go camping
- Ask your local host for tips on how to explore the city
- Follow local tour operators or local companies offer guided tours
- Minimise wildlife tourism, and only participate if it done responsibly for the animal and environment
FOOD AND SHOPPING
- Eat at locally owned restaurants
- Eat local cuisine and seasonal dishes, ask the locals for recommendations
- Buy locally grown foods and at local markets and vendors
- Don’t over buy cheap “Chinese made” souvenirs, but invest in actual local souvenirs and gifts from local artisans
- Buy only necessary clothing and only buy sustainable good quality products
PHOTOS: Janneke Eggink
Camping and road-trip in Scotland (Prints available in the shop)
