01 Oct 20

Meeting the Climate Challenge

Dave Community

Recent months have seen an escalating concern that is translating into action amongst Tourism businesses regarding the very real threats of climate change. (This is only fair considering that the Travel industry plays an ever increasing role in contributing to rising emissions!)  At the recent World Adventure Summit in Sweden, it was estimated that transport, tourism and aviation contribute 8% of total global emissions, a figure that can no longer be ignored by the Industry at large.  The good news is that many businesses are taking accountability and immediate action to reduce their impacts, especially in the adventure travel sector which has traditionally led the way in responsible travel practices.

TOURISM DECLARES A CLIMATE EMERGENCY

Recently a network of leading travel companies and individuals around the world have come together to declare a climate emergency. As part of our climate positive commitment, RAW Travel has joined as a founding signatory of TOURISM DECLARES
Together we are publicly committing to accelerate our emission reductions in line with the advice from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) which calls for a 55% cut in global carbon emissions below 2017 levels by 2030.

All signatories have committed to these five actions:

  1. Develop a ‘Climate Emergency Plan’
  2. Share your commitment and progress publicly
  3. Cut carbon emissions through transparent, measurable and increasing reductions per trip
  4. Work together to encourage suppliers and partners to make the same declaration
  5. Advocate for change across the industry and call for urgent regulatory action to accelerate the transition towards zero carbon air travel.
PIONEERING ‘CLIMATE POSITIVE’ PROGRAM

Given some of the drastic changes in climate that we have been witnessing for many years around the world in our destinations, we feel we need to take immediate action to not only address the impacts of our current operations but go beyond that and become a positive contributor to lowering carbon emissions from past activities. In 2020 RAW Travel is aiming to become Australia’s first climate positive hiking company. We’ve committed to going beyond achieving net zero carbon emissions by removing more carbon dioxide from the atmosphere than what we emit we will not just help protect our planet but actively contribute to its recovery and regeneration.

“We recognise that climate change is one of the greatest threats humanity has faced and air travel is a significant part of the problem. We all need to urgently increase our efforts to reduce our negative impact”, says RAW Travel Founder Dave Reynolds. “Our commitment to being climate positive is mission critical. We must shift urgently, it’s not a ‘nice-to-have’. For RAW Travel, this is an extension of our business philosophy and core values. And our customers expect us to look after the places we visit”.

We have been actively working to reduce our footprint across all operational aspects. The remainder of our footprint is offset, including all on-ground components, staff commute, business travel and head office emissions.

PARTNERSHIP WITH TASMAN ENVIRONMENTAL MARKETS

We have partnered with Tasman Environmental Markets to support high quality, third-party-verified carbon offset projects. Under our ‘1 walk, 1 tree’ program, we are also planting native trees for every customer, contributing to local biodiversity programs and the establishment of bio-links.

The added bonus of our carbon positive program is that costs are not passed onto travellers. Under our ‘10% for the planet’ initiative, we donate 10% of our annual profits back to carefully selected sustainability programs.

We look forward to welcoming you on this journey with us!

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