#sustainable traveler

[websuggest]

How to be a Sustainable Traveler: 10 Highly Effective Tips

Sustainable Traveler

Traveling is a wonderful opportunity to discover new cultures, reconnect with nature and spend time with our loved ones. But with traveling, comes the responsibility to preserve and protect the environment, so we can continue to enjoy them for years to come. Here are some eco-friendly traveling tips and tricks to help you become a sustainable traveler.

1. Commute responsibly

For long distances, take a direct, non-stop flight. Most of the plane’s carbon emissions come from taking off and landing.

Within the country, try to use a bus or a train.

 If you want to rent a car, look for sustainable options like electrical vehicles. They use less fuel and produce less carbon emissions.

2. Eco-friendly stay

Stay in dorm rooms in hostels if possible.

Go camping with your friends.

Choose AirBnBs that include staying with a local family.

Look for sustainability driven hotels.

Check if they use solar power, rainwater harvesting systems or energy-efficient lighting.

Ask if the hotel has a recycling policy. If not, you can encourage them to start one by speaking to the management or leaving feedback at the reception.

3. Leave no plastic

Instead of buying plastic wrapped items on the road, pack home-made food in reusable boxes and bags.

Swap single-use plastic for reusable bottles and cups.

Carry a reusable shopping bag instead of taking plastic bags from the shop.

4. Take pride in cleaning up

Try to leave the places you visit better than you found them.

Pick up some waste wherever you go – from the mountains, beaches, jungles, or rivers.

Make things fun and challenge your friends to see who can clean up the most plastic waste!

5. Eat local

Eat and drink locally sourced.

This will reduce the CO2 emissions from the transportation of imported goods.

Eating local foods also helps local farmers and promotes growth of the local economy.

6. Shop local

Lessen your carbon footprint and buy local! It boosts the local economy, and encourages their businesses.

Avoid souvenirs that appear to be mass produced, instead opt for souvenirs from local markets or artisans.

Be careful not to buy any souvenirs made from endangered species like animal hides, ivory or coral.

Refuse extra packaging or an unnecessary plastic bag.

7. Bring good habits with you

Treat the stay as your home.

Save water by avoiding long showers and bathtubs.

Turn off the lights whenever you leave the room.

Walk, bike, or use public transport to get around whenever possible. It cuts down on gas usage and saves you money.

Put a “Do Not Disturb” sign on your hotel room. This way the housekeeping staff won’t clean your room every day.

If you’re staying in a hotel with free samples, don’t feel shy to bring those samples back with you. The staff will probably throw them away anyway.

8. Choose sustainable tour companies

Whenever booking through a tour operator, choose those that support eco-friendly travel.

Check their website for eco-friendly policies.

Some tour companies offset their carbon emissions. If you’re planning a guided tour or an all-inclusive vacation package, try to choose a carbon-offsetting vendor.

9. Purchase offset programs

When traveling, especially by plane, look for carbon offset programs.

There are countless organizations which offer carbon offsetting programs and schemes for travelers. However, before trying these projects, look whether these projects are actually sustainable.

10. Spread the word

Share your eco-travel stories with your friends and family.

Be informative and motivate them to travel sustainably.

Remember, it doesn’t matter where you’re going, you always have a choice to be sustainable and reduce your carbon footprint. Even the tiniest mindful steps can go a long way in increasing sustainability. 

[keepingitneutral]

Happier Camper's !

[useless-catalanfacts]

Xavier Olivé is the last person renting a flat in a building in the Eixample [neighbourhood of Barcelona, Catalonia], after a Dutch company has bought the whole building. He denounces that the owners have expelled all the neighbours who always lived here and now all the other flats are touristic or luxury apartments.

Despite being saddened by the situation and fearing they might expel him as well, he is decided to resist because he doesn't want to leave.

By Barcelona TV. English subtitles added by me.

Sadly, this is a common story in Barcelona and other cities and towns affected by touristic massification.

We urgently need laws that regulate housing so that locals aren't massively expelled to make room for tourists or second homes for rich foreigners, and to stop vulture funds from buying up huge amounts of property to raise the prices. But right now, as a tourist, the most important thing you can do to stop kicking people out of their homes is easy: NEVER, NEVER STAY AT AN AIRBNB, AN UNCONTROLLED TOURISTIC APARTMENT, OR SIMILAR. Always stay at certified hotels (or, of course, with friends and family if you have them there).

If you rent an apartment that is being marketed to tourists where there's a housing crisis for locals, or an Airbnb anywhere, you're effectively destroying the local community.

[mensministry]

Angsila Oyster Scaffolding Pavilion, Chonburi, Thailand,

Chat Architects

[chalogreen]

Exploring Eco-Friendly Packaging

What is Sustainable Packaging?

Sustainable packaging uses materials and production processes that yield a minimal environmental impact. The aim is to be environmentally friendly.

Benefits of Sustainable Packaging

Biodegradable - They are made from either plant-based or recycled materials that naturally degrade without leaving toxic waste.

Compostable - Decomposes naturally through commercial compost processes. Leaves no trace of plastic.

Recyclable - Commodities consisting of post-consumer recycled paper are recyclable.

Accountable Materials - For example, mushroom fibers, banana leaves, and algae reduce the over-reliance on plastic and the excessive processes involved.

Ethical production - the use of sustainably sourced, locally produced, and fairly traded materials has proven to improve lives while having a lighter impact on the environment.

Small Carbon Footprint - Eco packaging vastly reduces the carbon emissions resulting from traditional manufacturing and waste.

Simple Swaps

Paper or Plastics - Go for paper envelopes, boxes and filler made from recycled content. Don’t use plastic poly bags and bubbles.

Glass vs Plastic - Choose glass bottles over single-use plastics because glass is infinitely recyclable.Support plastic reduction initiatives.

Compostable vs. Styrofoam - Replace styrofoam peanuts with compostable corn starch alternatives. Support the ban on non-recyclable products.

For stylish, zero waste, environmentally friendly packaging solutions pay a visit to Chalogreen. They manufacture their products which are entirely plant-based thus saving the planet.

[lotusinjadewell]

Vietnamese modern architecture made from bamboo. Credit to designcitylab (Instagram).

[growt-social]

[moodboardmix]

“THE ICON”

THE ICON is a new kind of flag bearer for sustainable water mobility. 13.15 meters long and with a maximum speed of 30 knots (55 km/h), THE ICON is the pioneer of a new type of watercraft with battery electric propulsion.

The vessel is equipped with a pair of 100 kW electric motors that convert 240 kWh of energy, supplied by six batteries from the BMW i3, into an impressive range of more than 50 nautical miles (about 100 km).

Courtesy: DesignWorks (BMW) and TYDE

[asteroidtroglodyte]

“We curate our own experience here”

I love you fandoms I don’t participate in I love you activists for problems I don’t have I love you people with different lived experiences from me I love you spicy hot takes I love you rambling analysis I love you other people’s Blorbos I love you thoughts I never would have had on my own i love and adore all of you especially the ones who surprise me keep it up I love you all

[stainedglass-sketchbook]

This is so funny to me bc this is about my tav who is very much not the dark urge! just a bit of a freak

[courtney-deserved-better]

i wanna have the time to work on this mkulia rivals to lovers tdi reboot rewrite fic so bad... y'all don't know the depths of backstory i've summoned for mk...

[angelsymbol]

did anyone else see the newest watcher video

[keepingitneutral]

"Moca" Mobile Dwelling

Courtesy of Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia (IAAC)

[useless-catalanfacts]

Nit dels ciris (Candle Night) in Vilafranca, Castelló, Valencian Country. Every year, in early August the village of Vilafranca celebrates this festival with more than 10,000 candles decorating the streets.

Vilafranca is located in Els Ports, a very rural area that is struggling with depopulation due to the lack of investment and, as a result, lack of opportunities for its inhabitants. Candle Night was created to shine a light of hope for the local population and to help make Vilafranca known in order to attract visitors and give economical opportunities to the area.

Photographer: Jaume Morera (jaumemore on Instagram).

[mensministry]

OLM Nature Escape - Eco Aparthotel,

A Design Boutique Hotel Sand in Taufers, Italy

Andreas Gruber Architekten AGA

[allykakamatsu]

KH X GI Out of Context, Part 2 Electric Boogaloo