Being an environmentalist an someone who LOVES to travel can be a conflicting ordeal… while your heart yearns for sunrises and mountain peaks, driving an ICE vehicle can make you feel like your destroying our planet for just wanting to explore. As someone who deals with this struggle, I have tried to gather the best tips I could find to help you and I make our adventures just a little more sustainable and planet friendly.
I’d love to hear your ideas as well, so if there’s something you do that isn’t mentioned here, feel free to reach out to me on Instagram and share! My handle is @tys.adventure ☺️
Carbon Offset Programs: Many organizations offer carbon offset programs where you can invest money in projects that reduce carbon emissions, such as renewable energy projects, forest conservation, or methane capture initiatives. While most Carbon Offset Programs help businesses and organizations, there are a few that you can contribute to on an individual level.
Organizations to look into:
Plant Trees: Trees absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, so planting trees or supporting reforestation projects can help offset your carbon emissions. While planting your own trees is one solution, I recommend donating to one of many organizations who plant tress in deforested areas. The last thing we want is to plant non-native trees in areas they don’t belong. I’m a big fan of https://www.onetreeplanted.org and personally donate to them on a monthly basis along with contributions from my company Nani Summit Creative.
Other notable organizations would be:
Drive Efficiently: While this doesn’t directly offset carbon emissions, driving efficiently can help reduce fuel consumption and, consequently, carbon emissions. Practices such as maintaining a steady speed, avoiding rapid acceleration and braking, and keeping your car well-maintained can all contribute to improved fuel efficiency. If you’re fortunate enough to have a vehicle with Cruise Control, utilize that to help keep a steady and consistent speed. It’s a money saver(and indirectly a planet saver as well).
Choose Carbon-Neutral Products and Services: When I plan my trips, I look for accommodations, restaurants, and activities that prioritize sustainability and have implemented measures to minimize their carbon footprint. Supporting businesses that are committed to environmental responsibility can indirectly offset emissions. I try to pack my own food for longer trips, this helps me keep up with my vegetarian diet and cuts the amount of food related waste I create in half. Reusable water bottles and larger water storage vessels are also key in cutting down plastic waste that ultimately won’t be recycled(even when advertised as such).
Calculate and Compensate: When I’m planning a trip, I try to calculate my carbon footprint by using a carbon footprint calculator to estimate the emissions generated by my trip. After I figure out roughly how much CO² I will be putting out, I compensate accordingly by investing in carbon offset programs or planting tree’s.
Apps That Help Lessen Your Impact: TreeCard is one of my favorite iPhone and Apple Watch apps out there. You can plant trees daily by just walking as you normally would. No need to manually upload your hikes or walks, the app automatically connects to your Apple Health app to measure how many steps you’ve walked. Outside of planting trees, you earn points that you can redeem as discounts with eco-friendly companies, or use the points to donate to more specific humanitarian efforts. This is an unpaid mention, I just really love their team and their app! You can download TreeCard here: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/treecard-walking-step-tracker/id1556120981
Spread Awareness: Encourage others to offset their carbon emissions as well. By raising awareness and promoting sustainable practices, we can all contribute to a broader movement towards carbon neutrality.
Remember that while offsetting carbon emissions is a valuable step towards mitigating climate change, it’s also important to prioritize reducing emissions at the source by adopting sustainable practices and minimizing energy consumption whenever possible. Also when traveling to a place that offers public transportation, opt to use their transportation network instead of driving!
Safe travels friends 💚
Ty’s Adventure