This might be the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear sustainability: Clean, renewable energy, energy efficiency, recycling and upcycling, circular economy, sharing economy, carbon offsets, etc. Supporting travel brands, destinations, and initiatives that do not harm our environment.
Socially responsible travel supports the people and lifestyle of the destinations we visit.
This includes fair treatment of workers, human rights, philanthropy, and responsible community development. What’s the point of visiting a place and spending your time, energy, and money there if you leave the people and place worse-off than when you arrived?
Sustainable travel is cognizant of the history and culture of a place: respecting traditions and cultural norms and supporting businesses that foster those traditions without any cultural appropriation. It’s about empowering communities to develop tourism and their destination on their terms. In his book Abstract Wild, Jack Turner talks about the “aura” of a place – it’s inherent wildness and authentic nature. Sustainable travel seeks to keep that aura intact.
Every decision we make as, well, humans generally, has an impact on the people around us. As travelers, we’ve made the decision to visit a place to experience its authentic nature, people, culture, etc. In doing so, we have the potential to negatively impact those very things that we want to keep intact for generations of future travelers.
We can also choose to spend our time and money supporting businesses and activities that seek to create net-positive impact on the people and places that we visit.