Ethical Travel Specialist shares how travel agents can be more aware of what is planet-conscious

As many as two-thirds of travellers are considering travelling more sustainably in the future, according to insights. Recent reports also highlight that 70% of people want travel companies to better explain and label sustainable products, so there’s no question that people across the globe are making conscious decisions to choose more responsible experiences.

However, it may be proving to be quite difficult for agents to meet these travellers’ desires, especially as 73% of travel advisors report finding it quite, or very, difficult to find information about a supplier’s sustainability practices, according to a survey conducted by TravelAge West.

Not only this, but 20% of the survey’s respondents do not know what to look for when identifying sustainable practices, or simply find the information too confusing, and 18% feel that the information in general is too difficult to find.

To round it off, three-quarters of participants (76%) said that they felt more education was needed on this topic. Philip Rendel, Founder and DMC of Where It All Began, an ethical travel company and DMC offering sustainable travel experiences and member of Responsible Travel, states that “many agents just aren’t aware of the nuances surrounding ethical and sustainable travel.

“It’s a very multifaceted topic that requires you to know the signs and ask the right questions, and it’s a responsibility that each agent needs to take on board for steps to be made to nurture a more sustainable and ethical travel landscape.”

With Earth Day around the corner on the 22nd of April, Philip has shared the biggest indicators of environmentally conscious and ethical travel experiences, in the hopes of supporting agents in increasing their awareness on this topic and becoming more sustainable and responsible in the industry.

Take Accreditation with a Pinch of Salt

Philip’s first piece of advice is to take all formal accreditations of ethicality and sustainability with a big pinch of salt. When partnering with travel companies, Philip reveals it is easier than one may think for the larger companies to get formal accreditation, but not so easy for the small companies to get into the accreditation space.

“The audit processes of big accreditation companies like ‘TravelLife’ are hugely time-consuming tasks, which require high-level skill sets to complete and are also not cheap to access.

“For small companies in particular, this is when you should take care when reviewing their accreditations. There is a small chance that a company with fewer than five employees is going to find the time, skills, and finances to even apply let alone actually get accredited, and most of the really ethical and sustainable companies are small.”

Finding official accreditations that have been granted to companies – recognising their efforts to be both ethical and sustainable – after they’ve made a clear effort to obtain them is an indication that you can trust that they are actively contributing to a more sustainable industry.

At the same time, don’t discount a company because it isn’t accredited, as sometimes the most ethical choice isn’t accredited at all.

Transparency and Independent Auditing are Essential 

When partnering with larger organisations, Philip shares that the accreditations that these companies have shouldn’t just be something agents take at face value.

“If you’re considering partnering with a larger company, they should be transparent about their efforts to be more sustainable and have ideally implemented an independent auditing process to illustrate the actual impact they are having. If they don’t, and they have a passion for sustainability, it begs to question why they haven’t already done this.

“Anyone can say they are ‘involved in the conversation’ about their sustainability efforts, and list a whole lot of impressive statistics about how much they paid or contributed to particular ethical or environmental initiatives, but without an audit of the actual benefit, this is really just a tokenistic top-down marketing approach.”

As such, finding companies who are transparent in sharing the efforts they have made to be responsible and sustainable, and share the impacts of their actions openly, is a very good indication that they’re committed to the cause.

Look for Engagement, Not Donations

Philip emphasises that a passion for sustainability and ethicality in travel is what will always fuel the direction the industry is taking to protect the planet, which is not something money can ever buy. As such, agents should be looking for companies that are engaged, and that aren’t just using money as a means of framing themselves as sustainable or ethical.

According to Philip, “If a company is really ethical, they are going to be engaged with projects they work with locally for the long term and in a sustainable, enduring way.” “Be particularly suspicious of companies saying that they ‘sponsor’ something and frame this as their way of being sustainable or ethical, like a local school or creche, for example. This often means they are simply donating money to a project but have no real engagement with it so at any time, those donations can dry up and the project dies, which questions whether they’re truly committed to being sustainable and ethical.”

Be Conscious of the Wider Context Of What It Means to Be Sustainable

Whilst the definition of sustainable is largely consistent across the industry, it’s a broad concept and Philip emphasises that it is highly context-dependent. As a result, it’s important to take into consideration how one business’s capacity to be sustainable varies from the next.

“A tiny home-stay B&B in Soweto will be making huge strides if it recycles grey water or has solar power. If a five-star game lodge in Kruger Park does the same, that’s far less impressive, as they have the financial resources, land, time, and staff to do so.

“In fact, for certain larger establishments such as the aforementioned game lodge, it’s essential to that location to have solar power and recycle grey water, so it’s just an essential aspect of their business operations rather than a conscious decision to be sustainable.”

In other words, don’t apply one standard to all of your suppliers and consider the lengths that companies would have to go to realistically be sustainable and recognise where they’re making these decisions to go the extra mile which demonstrates a real dedication to environmental and sustainable principles.

Watch Out For Ambition In Ethicality and Sustainability

According to Philip, ambition, when it comes to sustainability and ethicality, is one of the biggest indicators that a company is committed to being responsible in the travel industry. “No matter how small, ambition in ethicality and sustainability tells you that a company are truly committed in the long-term to taking strides to support the planet and its communities.

“Does the company you’re considering using have a five-year plan, for example, to become more ethical, more sustainable and if so how? If they’ve no ambition, this tells you that they aren’t really committed to ethicality and sustainability for the long term and would be happier with arms-length donations and ‘support’.”

Ask The Hard Questions

In the cases where it might not be clear what actions a company is taking to be sustainable and ethical, it’s important to step up and ask those hard questions that will shed light on this topic.

“You are entitled to know who actually owns a business and what the shareholding is.  Particularly in Africa, there is still a great deal of heterosexual white male-dominated ownership of businesses with very little diversification into female-owned, black-owned, or shareholding with employees.

“If you do come across a business that is black-owned, female-owned, LGBQT-owned or offers shareholding outside of the directors, that’s a really good sign and in our mind, for the African context, would already tick the ‘ethical’ box on its own.” Gaining the broader picture by asking these tough, or often overlooked, questions allows you to gain a full understanding of how sustainable and ethical a company truly is.

Philip ends by sharing that it’s leaders in the travel industry’s responsibility to hold one another accountable to the high standards that need to be met to protect the planet and its communities by asking these questions regarding ethical and sustainable travel.