5 ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY WAYS TO TRAVEL
Taking care of the planet means exploring responsibly
It’s fantastic that you’re considering what you can do to help reduce your impact on the Earth. Never fear though, there are environmentally friendly (or friendlier) ways to travel that won’t stop you getting out there and exploring. Besides, the more you explore and experience, the more respect you’ll likely have for nature and the world, the more you’ll want to protect it. Win-win for everyone!
Exploring your own country can be as exciting as traveling across the world, and better for the environment.
Explore your backyard
This one is pretty straightforward. Your own country has tons to offer, and plenty to explore. It may not seem as exotic, but trust me, go be a tourist or an adventurer in your own home, it will surprise you. Plus it has the added benefit of not requiring a flight, which is a huge factor in the deterioration of our climate.
Self-powered travel
We all know I’m a big fan of self-powered travel. Whether on a bicycle, in a canoe, propelled by your own two feet, or whatever else you can dream of, I encourage it. Not only is it an environmentally friendly way of traveling, but it opens the world up to you in a way you couldn’t even imagine.
You will connect with the space you are exploring and the people who open their lives to you in a way you couldn’t imagine. And at the end of your trip, the Earth, and your body, mind, and soul, will thank you.
Sometimes it’s nice to spend longer in one place than to move quickly through a bunch.
Planes, trains, and automobiles.
I know we’re always seemingly in a rush, but consider taking trains, buses, boats, or any other form of multi-passenger ground transport instead of flying. It may take longer, but the carbon footprint will be much lower, and the climate will thank you.
If you’re short on time, instead of flying around to explore more in less, the environmentally friendly way of traveling is to explore less in more. Don’t try to see all of Argentina in two weeks. Instead, think about taking a deep dive into one part of the country. Get to know northern Argentina well enough to be mistaken for a local, and save the rest for another day.
Eat local
You hear this all the time at home, and it holds true when you travel as well. Eating local means the food that isn’t normally found in that region doesn’t have to be shipped across an ocean for you. Plus it has the added benefit of supporting the local economy.
Besides being environmentally friendly, eating local is also delicious and sometimes surprising. You might find a dish you’d never heard of that become the mouth-watering highlight of your trip, or even a whole new style of cuisine you had never experienced before. So really, not only will the environment thank you, but your stomach will too.
We need to travel responsibly so we don’t destroy their homes.
Gear gear gear
Any type of travel requires things, whether it’s highly technical gear or just a regular suitcase for your stuff. The problem is we often purchase gear for one specific adventure, and then it lies around until we buy something new, and toss the old gear away.
Instead of falling into that cycle, consider:
borrowing and lending gear
repairing instead of replacing
buying used gear
By doing any combination of these things, you’re helping to keep functional items out of the landfills, and the Earth applauds that. As an added benefit, it will also save you money, so there’s that. And check in with your outdoor gear store, or directly with the company who made the gear, sometimes they’ll fix it for you in an effort to keep their companies responsible.
So there you have it, not too painful, right? The more we explore responsibly and find environmentally friendly ways to travel, the longer these incredible places will exist for us to appreciate. So get out there and see what our beautiful world has to offer, respectfully of course.
