Skimmers of the latest headlines can see its impact: historic flooding in parts of the world such as Pakistan, Indonesia and, closer to home, Mississippi. Elsewhere, historic wildfires rage in Europe and on the Pacific Coast of the U.S. What's more, record-breaking droughts reveal ancient secrets and cause troubles for river cruise lines in Europe while threatening already endangered species in countries such as Zimbabwe.
The effects of a warming planet are happening now: though they differ across the world, nearly every place on Earth has been feeling some sort of ill effect from the change in climate, and it's only going to get worse within the next century.
In a feature on the travel industry's impact on the Earth, which I wrote in April 2022, I focused on how the travel industry is changing to lessen its negative impact on the planet by offsetting carbon emissions and investing in greener technologies.
But one question remains to be seen: is the industry doing enough?
That's a more complicated question than it seems. The UN World Tourism Organization believes the global travel and tourism industry produces about 5 percent of all carbon emissions produced. Out of this percentage, 40 percent are produced by air travel alone, which is 2 percent of all global emissions.
Cruising and accommodations each comprise one percent of global emissions produced.
Since the creation of the Glasgow Declaration during the COP26 UN Climate Change Conference, many travel industry corporations and companies have become signatories or have created their own sustainability plans based upon its recommendation, which includes halving carbon emissions by 2030 and achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050.
The recommended plan is based on scientific projections of the next century to prohibit the world's global temperature from increasing 1.5 degrees Celsius; any higher and we'll see catastrophic death of coral reefs across the globe, a drastic increase in sea level ranging from one foot to eight feet and even more volatile weather patterns.
According to the United Nations' current projections, global warming will increase by 3.2 degrees Celsius by the year 2100; more than double the increase necessary to preserve much of the world as we know it.
Yet the travel industry only accounts for 5 percent of all global emissions; by comparison, the 10 largest carbon emission-producing governments in the world comprise 68 percent of all emissions produced. The industry accounts for only a small portion of humanity's negative impact on the earth, yet we are doing fairly well in our sustainability efforts compared with other industries.
I believe it is the duty of such a public-facing industry as ours to promote sustainability among every aspect of the act of travel. For who is immune to travel's positive influence? Business executives, engineers, nurses, public officials, teachers, truck drivers, pastors, scientistswhat do all these people have in common?
They all travel.
And travel, I believe, can be a fundamental source of change for people. Our industry is unique in this aspect. While the current consumer trend might be an increased interest in sustainability it's also our industry's role to not only follow the trends but to create lasting change.
The question remains: is the industry doing enough to combat climate change?
The answer? It might be, and in more ways than one. It might just be a driving force to help others take it seriously, too.
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