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Sustainability / By Tess Willcox

Friday 15th May 2020

Sustainable Travel – What Is It?

Sustainable Travel. It’s a term we see everywhere, emblazoned across the websites of everything from hotels to car hire. But what does sustainable travel actually mean? If you’ve ever pondered this, then you’re certainly not alone.

A National Geographic survey in 2019 found that of 3,500 people surveyed, 42% would be willing to prioritise sustainable travel in the future, however, 15% of these travellers were unfamiliar with what sustainable travel actually looked like.

It’s heartening to think that even though we aren’t quite sure what sustainable travel is, we know it’s the right thing to do. A hard and fast definition is not easy to come by and academically it continues to be debated. But strap in and let’s see if we can clear up some of that confusion.

TECHNICAL DEFINITIONS

Sustainable development, as a term, first hit the public consciousness back in 1987 in the Brundtland Report produced for the UN. It defined sustainable development as:

“…development which meets the needs of current generations without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”.

Lofty right? It’s like a giant umbrella term under which thousands of industries sit. Essentially, it’s the academic version of ‘think of the children’.

When we peep under this umbrella of sustainable development and look specially at sustainable travel you can be forgiven for thinking it’s all about carbon footprints. However, it is an umbrella of its very own under which we can find three categories of preservation and protection: environmental socio-cultural and economic; or planet, people and profit.

IN LAYMAN’S TERMS

Venn Diagram of Sustainable Tourism

Under these terms, you can classify all the buzzwords that have made their way into mainstream advertising and some words that encompass all three:

Varied words used to describe sustainable tourism

It’s overlapping, it’s interwoven and it’s imperfect. But hey, we’re humans. Most of what we do is imperfect. The aim of the game with sustainable travel is not perfection; instead it’s back at that original definition that Brundtland gave us. Not preserving destinations as if in a museum, but instead moving with the future generations in mind.

In travelling the world our impact will never truly be zero, whether we like it or not, tourism changes a place. As soon as an explorer/traveller/tourist steps onto new soil, interacts with the local community and participates in the economy, the destination is altered. Change is inevitable but changes can be hopeful and positive, or they can have devastating consequences.

EXAMPLES OF NEGATIVE CHANGE

  • Mass produced souvenirs out price local artisans and increase land-fill waste
  • Multinational development, where the majority or all profits are shifted off-shore rather than stimulating local economy
  • “Feels like home” eateries (think Starbucks and McDonalds) push out smaller ma and pa establishments
  • Pollution and habitat destruction
  • A sole dependency on tourism for jobs and wealth

EXAMPLES OF POSITIVE CHANGE

  • Job creation in developed and under-developed communities
  • Improvements to local infrastructure
  • Economic stimulation
  • Increased awareness of environmental issues like rainforest deforestation and animal protection
  • Cultural preservation of art, language, buildings and history through education

It’s a big concept with big consequences but when you think about it, it’s actually kind of simple. It’s about balancing thirst for experience with our inevitable impact.

We need to ask ourselves one simple question when planning our next trip – can I minimise my negative impact and dial up my positive impact with my choices?

Sure, it won’t be perfect and we might not always make the very best decision but even engaging this way of thinking is a step in the right direction. After all, for sustainable travel to make an impact we don’t need a few people doing it perfectly, we need everyone doing it imperfectly.

For examples of world-leading sustainable tourism operators from in our portfolio, check out: Soneva, Bawah Reserve, Resplendent Ceylon, Sinalai Reef Resort and Spa, and Nihi Sumba. For regular updates about their endeavours and sustainability-minded initiatives, follow us on Instagram.

Sources:

  • Stone, G. (2019). For travelers, sustainability is the word—but there are many definitions of it. Retrieved from: www.nationalgeographic.com
  • Brundtland, G. (1987). Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development: Our Common Future
Soneva Fushi's Eco Centro organic garden

Soneva Fushi’s Eco Centro organic garden

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We’re on the slow journey to somewhere new and m We’re on the slow journey to somewhere new and more impactful. Its been a time for research, and reading, and slowing life, and connecting to importance, and just really uncovering why it is we do what we do. We’re fine tuning what kind of stewards we want to be in life, and in service. 

We’re coming for you soon 🤍
Being digital-nomads now, we can explore every cor Being digital-nomads now, we can explore every corner of this country and create magic for our clients. We’ve always been big advocates for the slow life at our Resorts, 2020 has given us a chance to put that into practice in life. No going back now 🤍✨
This time last year we were cruising around @disco This time last year we were cruising around @discoversoneva on every different medium possible; bike, boat, foot, waterslide. 

This year we are launching Soneva Jani Chapter 2 from our living rooms, with many changes to our brand, but one consistent message - our love for the Soneva team 🤍🦩
We are proud to launch Chapter 2 of Soneva Jani @d We are proud to launch Chapter 2 of Soneva Jani @discoversoneva today 🥳.

The last 6 months has been a wild ride, and working even more intimately with the Soneva team has been such a blessing.

Always innovative, trail-blazing and revolutionary. Chapter 2 is just the tip of the iceberg on what’s to come for Soneva over the next few years 🧡.

You can book Chapter 2 at @discoversoneva now through your brilliant travel designer.

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We need you. If you replace just one bottle of w We need you. 

If you replace just one bottle of wine, one meal out, one thing that isn’t necessary this week, you could be helping Samoa.

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It’s time to dig deep, and plant the seed for future generations in Samoa 🤍. Pledge via the link in our bio 🤞🏼

@sowfuljourneys 
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As the custodians of pristine locations and guardi As the custodians of pristine locations and guardians of places that existed long before us, @discoversoneva is built on the foundation that a business must exist for a greater purpose than shareholder returns. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀
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