ECO TIPS: Clean break
Nick Raistrick suggests how best to pack up some eco troubles in your old Smith bag…
How to travel, where to shop, what to buy, how to make a difference...
‘Take only photographs, leave nothing but footprints.' I have to confess, it’s a saying to which I’m a little inclined to respond ‘pass the sick bag’ – but it is a noble point. The problem is that I sometimes feel there’s a clutch of holier-than-thou’ers out there repeating platitudes and sucking the fun out of holidaying – an escape from everyday life which in the olden days was a reward to yourself for the soul-destroying, spirit-sapping routine of today’s workplace.
While most of us don’t pillage archaeological treasures, or hunt entire species out of existence as our Victorian ancestors did when they were on their jollies, let’s be brutal: our travel and tourism does have a massive impact on the places we visit. The good news is that it’s possible to travel and leave an ethically pleasing footprint – and you don’t need to wear sandals fashioned from old coach tyres to do so. We hope that these ideas help, and we always love to hear your tips, email lucy@mrandmrssmith.com.
To offset your emissions, one option is to make a donation to Climate Care. You are automatically offered this simple and easy-to-use carbon-calculating service, when you book a hotel through www.mrandmrssmith.com.
OFFSETTING IS EASY Climate Care (www.climatecare.org) doesn't just plant swathes of CO2-emitting forest; it has a bulging portfolio of projects around the world, including bio-energy, wind-energy and rainforest-restoration schemes. When you book through Mr & Mrs Smith, you can simply calculate your air miles via the carbon calculator or through our tTravel Team, and then sling some of your loose change toward this helpful organisation. At Smith, we offset all of our research trips, and by doing so try to ensure that in decades to come you won't need waders to visit East Anglia.
LET THE TRAIN TAKE THE STRAIN Driving through Europe may be fun, but it puts a lid on your G&T consumption. And why not use Eurostar and its many and varied connecting trains throughout the continent, and feel the warm glow of emissions oneupmanship at the same time? Particularly as from November 2007, Eurostar plans to be the world’s first train operator to make all journeys carbon neutral by reducing waste and introducing an offsetting scheme. A plane journey from London to Paris currently produces 10 times more CO2 than the train.
SHOPPING The good news is that shopping is allowed, provided you don’t go for the ‘clothing made from real gorilla’ look, a la Mr Burns from The Simpsons or CBB housemate, Pete Burns for that matter. Buying locally is great (as we mention in our ‘Be a greener traveller’, article by the editor of The Ecologist) especially in a country where the goods are crafted in situ rather than being shipped thousands of miles from source to high street; this can also be a good way to inject cash where it's most needed: into the pockets of local workers and their families.
Still, there are a few golden rules:
Buy from local boutiques and stalls, not from that giant global chain at the airport. And look out for products that come care of co-operatives and fair-trade producers; there are more and more of these in local markets, so it doesn't restrict you to ethno-tat you could find at the same price in Camden Market.
Be a friend to the farmer In fresh-produce-rich France or Italy – where slow food is a way of life – ask your hotel, and they should be able to steer you to the best local marketplaces. Even in the Big Mac capital of the world, farmers' markets are flourishing. In New York, Greenmarkets are the height of right-on euro-chic – we love the one in Union Square.
Ask local shopkeepers questions – where was this good made, by whom, how many dirhams/dollars/rand/real would the craftsman have received for making it? (If enough people pester, proprietors soon twig that there's a business case to provide a better deal for all.)
Read up before you go – what products are particular to your destination? Buy as locally as humanly possible: if you're travelling throughout Morocco, don't purchase your goods at the first place you find in Marrakech – wait until you’re in the village or region that specialises in the items you want. That way, the supply chains stay simple and more of your cash is likely to go to the worker. This will shave a little off the city price, too). If you see craftsmen at work, you can often buy pieces direct from the person who made it – especially true in India or Morocco.
Photos: Nick Raistrick.
Above: Schoolchildren in Galle, an area ravaged by the tsunami but bouncing back.
Top and index image: Adam's Peak, Sri Lanka Highlands.
SPONSOR, DON’T GIVE Street children often earn good money from guilt-ridden Western tourists. But if the kids are begging, they aren’t at school. Plus the money goes to the cutest, most persistent, articulate and English-speaking kids – or, as is often the case, the adults who exploit them. As they get older and seem less vulnerableand cease being cute, they’ll still be on the street but without an education. So give the money to an education project, or sponsorship scheme instead. Radio 1 DJ Mary Anne Hobbs approached Plan International after seeing poverty on her travels: ‘A small amount of money makes a very real difference. By exchanging letters with the child you’re sponsoring, you can see change taking place. Plan International’s work is such an inspiration to me; it’s a joy to support them, everyone should do it.’
NAG NICELY There used to be a time when it was impossible to get bottled water – even in countries where you didn’t trust it on tap. Enough people have griped about it that it is now available everywhere. (Which of course you should now be refilling with filtered water so as not to produce the additional waste. See section below.) Now, imagine if you did the same for the preset Siberia-setting air-con in your hotel, unnecessary plastic bags, the abundance of towels in the spa, or had a word with the giftshop selling knick-knacks made from tropical hardwood and encrusted with ivory, or you rejected that goodie bag on the plane that you don’t really need… (although if you keep crusading to that level of detail you might find your Mr or Mrs Smith has jilted you for someone a little more fun. Unless you’re Sting). Still, if enough crazy foreigners make a fuss about something, it can become the norm. (There are plenty of informal guides who will take you up the side of a volcano while blithely littering its face with Coke cans and cigarette packets. I once confronted a guide in Bali with all the rubbish he had dropped. His group, for some reason, hadn't made a peep, but as soon as I did, they all bundled on board to made a fuss.)
THINK BEFORE YOU DRINK On the subject of water, there are ethical brands out there – look out for those with biodegradable bottles, such as with Belu. There’s one UK firm that uses its profits to build water-systems projects in Africa, called One Water. Even better, use a portable water purifier so as not to generate waste; these can include water-sterilising liquids or portable filtration accessories.
Useful website links:
Climate Care: www.climatecare.org
Plan International: www.plan-uk.org
Habitat for Humanity: www.habitatforhumanity.org.uk
One Water: www.we-are-one.org.uk