A 400-kilowatt Tesla solar power plant supplies 95% of the energy in the Xigera Safari Lodge, a hotel of the Red Carnation Hotel Collection in the Okavango Delta in Botswana.
The travel company
Travel Corporation, which owns and operates 40 travel brands – including managed vacation companies, hotels and transportation companies – has announced a five-tier climate change plan to achieve carbon neutrality by 2030 and continue existing efforts to meet its sustainability goals.
The plan, announced on Earth Day when President Joe Biden pledged to cut U.S. greenhouse gas emissions in half over the same period, calls for the privately owned Travel Corporation to implement not only the five steps of its new plan, but a new one as well Online Impact Hub launches “at Impact.TreadRight.org, where consumers can track the progress of the effort. In addition, the company and its nonprofit Treadright Foundation are donating $ 100,000 to two” nature-based “carbon removal solutions, Project Vesta and GreenWave , invest.
While Cypress, California-based The Travel Corporation first launched its sustainability strategy in 2014, formal efforts to tackle carbon emissions began in 2019, CEO Brett Tollman said.
More from Personal Finance:
The most popular spots Americans are booking this summer
Top-notch frequent flyer programs can reduce travel costs
This is what travel could look like after a pandemic
“By that time, the US had pulled out of the landmark Paris Agreement and we felt we had to find our own way to reduce our emissions and become industry leader,” he said. “I welcome Joe Biden’s re-entry into the Paris Agreement.
“This will hopefully accelerate innovation in clean energy, electric vehicles, carbon capture and removal, as well as other areas where investment is urgently needed to support the transition to a low-carbon economy,” added Tollman.
The new climate action plan directly addresses the first two goals of The Travel Corporation’s sustainability strategy, which focus on the company’s carbon footprint: get 50% of the company’s electricity from renewable sources by 2025 and become carbon neutral by 2030. Climate change The vast majority of scientists believe that global warming is linked to an increase in emissions of carbon dioxide, methane and other greenhouse gases into the atmosphere.
The Travel Corporation’s climate protection plan
The climate protection plan approved by The Travel Corporation consists of five points:
- Measure up: Measure emissions from business travel and travel.
- To reduce: Build on reduction efforts and set yourself ambitious reduction targets by mid-2022.
- Remove: Invest in new technologies and nature-based solutions to remove excess carbon from the atmosphere through the TreadRight Foundation.
- Offset: Buy carbon credits to offset unavoidable emissions, including phasing out carbon-neutral driving between 2022 and 2030.
- Develop: Keep learning from others, investing in new technology, and supporting strategic alliances that make Travel Corp. and enable the industry to transition to a low carbon economy.
Source: The Travel Corporation
The travel and transportation industries are often cited as the main producer of these emissions. “Decarbonising air travel is a critical next step towards a low-carbon future and there are technological advances in this sector that we welcome and are eager to see,” said Tollman. “Our climate protection plan prioritizes the reduction and elimination of emissions.”
The actions will affect the Travel Corporation’s 20+ offices, 18 Red Carnation Hotels, 13 Uniworld ships, six accommodations, over 500 vehicles and more than 1,500 itineraries operated by 40 run vacation brands worldwide including Contiki, Trafalgar and Insight Vacations become.
As part of this effort, the company has installed solar panels at Uniworld’s headquarters in Encino, California. Implementation of a 400-kilowatt Tesla system that supplies 95% of the energy in the Xigera Safari Lodge in Botswana; and in the resorts of Chateau de Cruix in France, Haus Schöneck in Austria and Ashford Castle in Ireland switched to 100% renewable electricity.
By January 1, 2022, Travel Corporation will have carbon-neutral offices and business travel through its carbon offset partner South Pole, and the Contiki division will also be completely carbon-neutral.
Regarding the potential cost or impact on prices from the measures, Tollman said the impact is worth it. “Our efforts to incorporate sustainability into our business are not new. They have evolved since our foundation was launched,” he said. “This has not resulted in higher costs, but certainly has resulted in higher value.”
Despite the setback in environmental policies and measures in some areas of US society, Tollman is not concerned about the impact on bookings. “Regardless of political ideologies, we welcome travelers from all over the world,” he said. “That’s why our sustainability goals affect the way we work. So it’s not up to the traveler to agree or disagree with our practices, it’s just the way we do business.”
Comments are closed.