Sustainable travel is one of those murky terms that everyone agrees sounds good, but not many people really understand what it means. This week we are chatting with two sustainable travel experts who share their views on what it is and how it impacts everyone, no matter who they are or where they go.
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Sustainable travel is perhaps one of the least well understood terms in the travel industry and yet, it’s also one of the most important. Many people equate it with responsible and green travel, which is can be but those definitions don’t tell the full story. At its heart, sustainable travel takes into account the impacts that travel has and addresses the needs of visitors, the industry, the environment and host communities. In other words, it seeks to make travel sustainable well into the future for everyone involved. I know, it’s complicated, which is why I devoted an entire podcast episode to the subject.
Joining us on this week’s episodes are two experts in the world of sustainable travel who share their definitions of sustainable travel, why it’s important and how the average traveler can explore the world more mindfully and sustainably.
This week’s guests
Audrey Scott is one half of the husband-and-wife storytelling team behind the award-winning travel blog Uncornered Market, recognized as Best Responsible Tourism Blog at WTM. She is a writer, speaker and consultant who works with destinations, travel companies and sustainable tourism organizations to develop, position and market community-based and adventure tourism products, social enterprises and culturally responsible destinations. She advocates for travel as a force for good that can benefit local communities, travelers and businesses.
Keith Sproule is dedicated to utilizing tourism as an economic tool for the sustainable development of local and regional economies. He has worked in Asia, Africa, Central Europe, the Middle East and the Americas. In the course of his career, he has traveled to over 130 countries. As an analyst and tourism development specialist, he has focused in particular on the economics of cultural heritage and nature-based tourism, most often in association with rural communities on the edge of wilderness. Currently serving as the executive director of Abercrombie & Kent Philanthropy, a leading private sector travel philanthropy with the mission to “positively impact lives and livelihoods in the communities where A&K guests travel.” Sproule manages a portfolio of 42 projects in 21 countries.
Links to related resources:
20 Sustainable Travel Tips: How to be a Good Global Traveler (Uncornered Market)
Traveling in the Age of Overtourism: 10 Ways Travelers Can Help (Uncornered Market)
How Social Media Influencers Can Use Their Power to Combat Overtourism (Uncornered Market)
Redefining Tourism: 20 Tips for the Mindful Traveler (Uncornered Market)
Abercrombie & Kent Philanthropy
Suffering unseen: The dark truth behind wildlife tourism (National Geographic)
https://www.bookdifferent.com/en/ (Information about booking green hotels)
https://www.footprintcalculator.org/ (understanding impact not only of travel, but life in general)
This is my favorite episode of your podcast thus far! Thank you for sharing this!