Comment: Sustainable tourism is challenging but rewarding

Can a travel agent make a difference when it comes to sustainability? 

 

 

If you’d asked me that question three years ago, I’d have been tempted to say, ‘Not really’.  But thanks to a concentrated effort by a small working party in our business, and an increased focus across the industry and our customers, I now believe differently.

 

The biggest challenge for us to date has been how to train the Designer Travel team on the language of sustainability – what all the “terms” mean. Then it’s been all about turning our learnings into meaningful and practical steps to make a tangible difference.

 

Our original starting place was to pull together a storybook for our customers explaining how they could take small but practical steps when they’re in resort to lighten their impact on the locals. These steps include spending their money locally, conserving water, reducing plastic waste and avoiding plastic straws.

 

Since then, our journey has picked up at pace. We looked long and hard at training opportunities, recognising that even industry webinars, podcasts and newspaper articles talked about sustainability subjects that we had little or no understanding of. We also partnered with training provider Kiwano Tourism and signed up for 50 places on their Level 1 masterclass.  

 

Greenwashing and more 

 

With a new vigour, we developed a far better understanding of key industry challenges, including greenwashing being targeted at travel agents from every direction; tourism leakage; carbon’s real impact on the planet; the balancing act we face when sending the right people to the right destinations; and looking for solutions to overtourism. 

 

Many of the team, like most travel people, are passionate about animals and animal welfare. Developing a practical policy for all has been a priority for us. Animal encounters and interactions happen all over the world, and providing customers and the team with guidelines has prompted everyone to think hard about the rights and wrongs of experiencing those once-in-a-lifetime moments that involve local wildlife. 

 

Is it right to ride on a donkey in the blistering heat up an incline? Walking with lions may result in some amazing pictures, but lions are not and should not be treated like domestic pets. It’s cruel and may depend on medication to keep the animal calm and “safe”. I am sure we have all watched the odd Facebook reel featuring animal encounters that might have been acceptable in years gone by but are now just disturbing to witness.

 

A force for good

 

Now we understand a little more, we are moving into a new phase of identifying which hotels, resorts and different modes of transport are making a real effort to help make travel a force for good. Recognising that there is not a central database or one scheme to grade how well a company or a destination is doing in helping to look at the planet, we are looking at ways that let us provide our own personal recommendations (and our customers’ thoughts too) when it comes to choosing a property that really is trying hard to focus on sustainability.

 

We now have an 18-month training calendar that features webinars, training courses and more, and caters for all levels of our team, who are keen to make a difference.

 

Fundraising for overseas causes has provided us with some heartwarming moments. As travel agents, it’s lovely to see we can make a real difference to communities we visit both on our own personal holidays and during educational trips. 

 

Whether it’s fundraising for a local animal charity, raising money to buy a water pump for a school in India or buying football kit for children in Africa, these moments light up our lives. 

 

We will continue to look for opportunities where we can get involved and prove that welcoming visitors to a resort is a positive thing to do.