When it comes to balancing a love of exploring, with a passion for the planet and sustainable travel, one major challenge is flying. Whilst we can strive to make more conscious travel decisions such as exploring local destinations, and using lower-carbon transport, there are often times when flying may be the only option.
In a previous post, we spoke about ‘flying shame’ and the need for collective action and awareness around our carbon footprint. Whilst it is by no means a perfect solution, one strategy for mitigating our flights’ environmental impact is through carbon offsetting your flight. Looking back on our conversation with Offsetra, we delved deeper into the practicalities of offsetting your flight, what it all actually means and how to do it…
How does offsetting your flight work?
Flying produces CO2, a major greenhouse gas contributing to climate change. The more flights, the more CO2 emissions and the hotter the planet gets. Offsetting doesn’t stop the CO2 emissions being released into the atmosphere, but it tries to counteract them. It does so through projects that remove or reduce CO2 emissions elsewhere.
There are a two main types of projects that do this:
- Avoidance projects such as renewable energy projects. These avoid the need for fossil fuels and the CO2 emissions associated with them.
- Reduction projects such as reforestation. These act as carbon emission ‘sinks’ as trees and plants remove CO2 from the atmosphere.
So, if I take a flight, and plant a tree I’m good to go?
No. There are a lot of rules involved in carbon offsetting.
Proved and Measured Carbon Reduction
Firstly, the emissions reduction needs to be proved and measured. This means that the project needs to be shown to actually be taking place. It also needs to be proven to effectively reduce CO2 emissions from the atmosphere. So, if you offset your flight by contributing to a scheme that will plant 100 trees, then there needs to be proof that this happened. The CO2 reduction from those trees is also needs to be monitored.
Funding and Additionality
Secondly, the project needs to be fully funded through carbon credits and it needs to be ‘additional’ to what would have happened if the project had not taken place. You also need to show that you are not double counting any carbon credits. So, as your contribution helped to plant 100 trees, no other contribution can be attributed to those specific 100 trees.
Permanance and Wider Benefits
Finally, the project needs to provide permanent emissions reduction. It also needs to provide additional benefits including improving biodiversity and supporting local communities. So, if it can be proved that those 100 trees are protected from being cut down, and that local communities have been employed to manage the new woodland area then you’re good to go!
Obviously the 100 tree example is over simplified and this is a lot more complicated in practice. Luckily there are international carbon standards, that show you which programs are adhering to these rules. The most common of these are Gold Standard and Verra. Others such as Plan Vivo, and Climate Action Reserve also demonstrate credibility.
How can I work out my offset?
When we offset our flight, we are trying to offset our individual CO2 emissions produced by being a passenger. CO2 emissions per passenger are influenced by many factors. These include the distance of the flight, the type of aircraft, and the overall fuel efficiency of the journey. They are also influenced by the number of passengers, which class you are flying in, and how much baggage you are bringing with you.
Thankfully, some airlines calculate this for you, and there are a number of user-friendly carbon calculators available online to help you work it out yourself. These calculators range from those such as the International Civil Aviation Organisation Carbon Calculator where you simply input your origin and destination, to those such as Atmosfair where you can also add your flight class and aircraft type.
You can then use this to work out how much you need to contribute to an offsetting program to reduce your impact.
What is the best way to contribute to an offsetting programme?
Offsetting your flight with the Airline
Many airlines have their own offsetting programs, allowing you to directly offset your flight during the booking process. The airline calculates your contribution for you, meaning little extra effort is required and it can all be done at the click of a button.
Some airlines with reputable carbon offsetting schemes are:
- British Airways CO2llaborate partnership with COOL offers you the chance to contribute to an offset program. This is either through the carbon removal via biochar production, or through mangrove restoration in Pakistan. They also offer the chance to contribute to buying sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), an alternative fuel that reduces emissions from air transportation.
- Etihad has partnered with carbon click to offer options to offset your flight. Again, you can either purchase offsets contributing to afforestation in the Guizhou Province of China, or contribute to SAF.
- American Airlines partners with Cool Effect, where 90% of each offset dollar is divided between a reforestation project in Mexico, peat swamp restoration in Indonesia and clean cook stove provision in Honduras.
This is probably the easiest method of offsetting your flight, but it is important that you check how transparent the airline is about their program. When booking your flight and opting in, be sure to check how your carbon emissions are calculated, what you are contributing to, and how much of your contribution will go to the offsetting program.
Another thing to consider is that you are limited to supporting the airlines’ chosen program. For example, if you’d rather contribute to conservation than buying SAF you may want to look for alternatives. There are a lot of programs out there, so there might be something more aligned to your values.
Offsetting your flight directly
If you need to fly with an airline that isn’t offering this, or you’d prefer to choose yourself, an alternative approach is to research your own offset schemes to offset your flight.
Some that we would recommend are:
- Offsetra where you can support conservation projects based in Brazil, Myanmar and Belize, helping to reduce emissions and support local communities. They also offer the chance to support a wind energy project in India, contributing lessening the need for fossil fuels.
- Offset is another leader in climate action, allowing you to offset your emissions based on your round-trip flight duration and number of passengers. They have a range of projects in Africa and the Americas. For example, their fuel efficient cookstoves project in Malawi not only reduces deforestation, but also improves health by reducing indoor smoke pollution and empowers women and children, reducing the need for firewood collection.
- MyClimate offers you the chance to support international projects and sustainable development worldwide. It also has a calculator helping you to work out your contribution there and then. Here, you can support distribution of sustainable cookstoves in Kenya, and small-scale farmers reforesting their land in Nicaragua.
As mentioned above, when researching these programmes it’s good to check that the program is being transparent with the contribution and that you make sure you look out for one of the certifications and criteria above.
Is there anything else I should do?
Yes, there are lots of ways we can reduce our carbon footprint when it comes to flying:
Avoid flying short distances
This one is obvious but using alternative travel when you can is the best thing to do for the planet. It may take longer and cost more, but it can significantly reduce the carbon impact of our travels.
Choose direct flights
Choosing direct flights means you are choosing shorter routes and saving fuel on taking off and landing.
Choose lower emission flights
Flights using SAF (Sustainable Aviation Fuel) and newer aircraft’s emit less carbon emissions.
Flying economy means you are taking up less space on the plane, meaning your carbon emissions contribution is lower.
A less obvious tip, but packing light can reduce the fuel used on your flight. By taking lesss baggage, you are reducing the overall weight of the plane.
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When considering flights, you can utilise platforms like Skyscanner or Kiwi to compare flight costs and identify flights that minimise your carbon emissions. Additionally, if you are able, you can offset your flight’s environmental impact through Offset.
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– G-Adventures, for small group travel with locally based guides, supporting local communities.
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Final thought on offsetting flights
Of course the best way to reduce your travel impact is to not fly at all. We also know that carbon offsetting will not stop carbon emissions being put into the atmosphere. However, there is still great value in carbon offsetting. It’s easy to mock these efforts as ‘tokenism’ or a way for people to fly without feeling guilty but it still represents a small step towards making long-distance travel more sustainable. What’s more, it raises awareness around flying’s contribution to global warming, and educates us on our carbon footprint. By knowing the numbers, it may make us think twice about that short-haul flight we were going to purchase.
Finally, in researching all the carbon offset programs out there, one thing to take home is that people are doing really great things. From afforestation projects, creating more habitats for wildlife to projects distributing more efficient fuel stoves, that empower women, these programs are accelerating more sustainable practices worldwide. If these also support a transition to more sustainable travel, then why not contribute to them?