Carbon neutral: saviour or scam

zoom

Jeffery: for people to embrace carbon neutral they need to understand what is involved.

World Travel Market's (WTM) Responsible Tourism Day promises to "lift the lid" off of carbon neutral, according to WTM chairman Fiona Jeffery.

The day will include a discussion seminar entitled Carbon neutral: saviour or scam to explore the myths and realities of carbon neutral policies in the travel and tourism industry.

"I am a bit of a sceptic so I think we need to take the lid off it," said Jeffery.

"For us to really embrace it people need to understand what is involved; what works and what doesn't. People are putting a lot of investment and a lot of talk into carbon neutral, but none of us really know if it is going to be the answer."

The session will take place during Responsible Tourism Day on Wednesday November 14 at the World Travel Market in London's ExCeL exhibition and conference centre.

Key objectives of the day include helping to drive change by urging more responsible behaviour among the tourism industry and the travelling public, and taking greater responsibility for contributing to sustainable tourism.

"We know that consumers are increasingly demanding of responsible travel within their companies and organisations and that is going to be the key market driver moving forward," said Jeffery.

The day also aims to explore the issues of how countries and destinations can be made more sustainable, with case studies examining best and worst practices, and to harness the influence of WTM as an international business forum to encourage the industry to drive the responsible tourism agenda forward.

"Another subject close to our heart is water and why the shortage of drinking water is such a critical issue for the industry," said Jeffrey.

"Poverty reduction is a major driver in terms of travel and tourism - one of the reasons we say travel and tourism is a very positive benefit - but is it a mainstream concern or is it just a token gesture."

Companies that want to get involved with Responsible Tourism Day can visit the dedicated website wtmwrtd.com and apply for a RTD logo to show their support of the day. The RTD advisory panel will then assess the company to ensure that it meets the required criteria, before licensing it to use the logo.

"That way we are assured of the integrity of what we are doing," Jeffery added.

"This is a unique opportunity for governments, the travel industry, local communities and travellers to show that it is practical contributions that count, not just talk."

To date more than 100 companies have applied, including some that have no involvement with WTM.

Print | Email | Discuss this article |

USER COMMENTS (0 COMMENTS)

POST A COMMENT

CLICK HERE TO POST A COMMENT

Add your Comment All posts are sent to the administrator for review and are published only after approval. ArabianBusiness.com reserves the right to remove any comment at any time for any reason. Please keep your responses appropriate and on topic.
Name *
Remember me on this computer
Email *	(Your email address will not be published)
City
Country
Subject *
Comment *
Notify me of further comments
Security Code *
Please click post only once - your comment will not be published immediately.