Happy Earth Day!  Conservation, Sustainability and Travel today! Acting now to save our beautiful world helps make sure the things we love to see when traveling, will be here to enjoy years from now. Over tourism is becoming a concern as more people are taking advantage of destinations they have dream of visiting for years.

Sustainability and conservation are two words becoming more and more a part of conversations around travel. The interest in sustainability and conservation is not something new, but many destinations, travel brands and travelers are starting to realize the importance of acting now to save precious  aspects of all parts of the travel industry.  

The words sustainability and conservation are key words in the travel industry. Most have a sustainability and conservation policy.  Why is sustainable travel so important? Let’s explore the reasons why sustainable travel is critical from an environmental, cultural, and community perspective.

But what is sustainability – Sustainable when referring to travel?  Eco-friendly travel behaviors in support of limiting the negative impacts of travel and tourism on the natural environment and local communities are initiatives travel brands are considering. One of the primary goals of sustainable travel is to help conserve the amount and quality of natural resources, preserve cultures, and protect destinations for future generations of travelers.

Some cultures and environments are effected more than others.  Not only is the concern for over tourism, which can damage the physical places we visit, but understanding how small practices can have an impact on the places we visit. 

Another word we hear related to conservation is carbon footprint which is the amount of greenhouse gas emissions caused or generated by an entity. It’s a quick way of estimating the potential environmental impact that we each contribute. Many companies are focusing on ways to reduce their carbon footprint in support of environmental health.

On this show, I highlight  how we can all become smarter about the extent of the definition of conservation and sustainability.  Adopting habits around these words and making them actionable and behavioral, means saving many aspects of why we travel.

Let’s keep this as our key:  Sustainable travel should speaks to the importance of preserving cultural identities, traditions, language, cuisine, environment, wildlife and especially communities. After all….when we visit a destination, it is vacation for us, but it is home for many others.  Once we leave, residents are still there. While we think of an influx of tourists  as great for local business, and it is.  It can also overwhelm the local population and the infrastructure.  Over time, the traditional ways of life can fall by the way side for more tourists, visitor and “new ways” of doing things.  Preserving what made the destination a great place to visit can diminish.  

I had a chance to chat with two travel professional about what their destination is doing. These initiatives are ones we can easily adopt too.

Morgan Mingle, Director of sustainable tourism Park City, UT and Eusi Skeete  USA Director of Barbados Tourism.  My first question for  both of them was how does their destination define sustainability and conservation. 

All of this may sound like a vicious circle or complex idea?  Take a listen to the show and hear what Park City and Barbados is doing and other destinations and travel brands are doing now to make a difference and how we as individuals can make a huge difference in conserving and sustaining the places we love to visit. 

The post Destination: Earth Day – Conservation, Sustainability and Travel – April 23, 2023 appeared first on Travel With Annita.