Travellers at heart, you never stop thinking about your next trip: you dream of trekking to the top of a volcano in Indonesia, exploring the lunar landscapes of Ladakh or hidden treasures of Burma… But these amazing places are far away and you are aware that flying is very polluting: is it responsible to increase your footprint on the environment while ignoring the climate crisis that exists today? Tourism is responsible for 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions and, when we realise the importance of the situation, we hesitate. But don’t worry, it does not mean you have to stop travelling.
Have you ever heard of carbon offsets?
Every day, we are responsible for the creation of carbon emissions through the elimination of our waste, the consumption of electricity, our transportation and so on. With the pressures of climate change bearing down on us, it is more important than ever to reduce our ecological footprint as much as possible for the good of our planet.
Reducing our impact on the environment is the idea behind carbon offsetting: it involves calculating the carbon emissions generated by our activities, and compensating them by financing a CO2 emission reduction project. For example, you can finance a reforestation project that benefits the planet through the absorption of carbon and greenhouse gases by the trees planted.
While carbon offsetting does not erase your ecological footprint and is not a miracle solution, it can be a good practice to minimize your impact on the planet and travel more responsibly.
How does it work?
If you want to limit your impact on the environment while continuing to travel, you can apply the principles of carbon offsetting to your flight.
- There are many online calculators available to evaluate the impact of flights in tons of CO2 using the Bilan Carbone methodology, for example www.myclimate.org. After filling in your flight information (departure/arrival airports, number of passengers, etc..) you will get a cost that corresponds to what you should spend to compensate your trip.
- Then you can choose to contribute financially to a humanitarian or environmental project of your choice. Not only do you participate in a project that reduces CO2 emissions, but you also make a positive impact on the environment through the sustainable development of the project area, therefore improving the lives of the inhabitants.
- Finally, you can opt to receive other tips to help you reduce your impact on the environment either on a daily basis or while traveling.
Carbon offsetting is one of the solutions that can help you reduce your impact on the planet.
Convinced by this initiative? It’s now up to you to go for it!