United Nations takes a stab at eco-friendly travel with Green Passport campaign

by Anna Brones on

With 900 million international travelers in 2007 alone, the strain of tourism on the environment is becoming more and more apparent. Travel has such an impact on the global climate that the United Nations launched its Green Passport campaign this past weekend at the Berlin Tourism fair. Intended to inform travelers on how to consciously plan and execute their holidays in the greenest way possible, Green Passport is the UN’s attempt at raising tourists’ awareness of how they can positively affect sustainable development through their travel choices.

Launched by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), the internet-based campaign, available in English, French and Portuguese, will hopefully offset the effects that the growing industry has on the global environment. “By browsing the Green Passport web site consumers will be able to find practical tips to help them reduce their environmental and social footprint while they are on vacations. Tourists will discover that traveling green is not as hard as they imagined,” said Stefanos Fotiou, head of UNEP’s tourism unit.

The Green Passport website is designed to look fun and user-friendly, and you can even submit your own green travel tips. Browsing through the website it’s easy to see the UNEP did their travel homework, they have links to popular sites like Seat61 — the train traveler’s bible. But Green Passport isn’t just about greening your travel transportation, a large part of the program is focused on traveling responsibly. In other words, educating yourself about your destination and culture before going and while there, respecting the local population and customs.

My favorite quote from the online passport however, has to be this one: “And remember, when appropriate, balloons, horses, donkeys, sailboats and dog sleds are also transport solutions.” Never doubt the UN’s sense of humor.

What shade of green traveler are you?

by Anna Brones on

“Green” has turned into a hot word, especially in the realm of travel and ecotourism. Last week Aaron asked the question “does global warming make travel unethical?” giving us some interesting ideas on air travel and when to choose to not fly. But beyond cutting back on long plane rides, a lot of travelers take a variety of steps to make their journeys more green. So how green of a traveler are you? Go Green Travel has come up with a list of three definitions of green, determined by how many eco choices you make when you travel.

Pea Green Travelers – Pea green travelers are the ones who care about the environment, and they will choose a green option if it is cheap and easy, but they are not going to go to great lengths to make changes in their normal traveling habits.

Forest Green Travelers – These are the travelers at the opposite end of the spectrum; they do everything in their capacity to travel green. They don’t take planes, they only eat in organic restaurants, they carry a tent with them or they couch surf, and they most definitely wear environmentally friendly travel clothes.

Kelly Green Travelers – Kelly green travelers fall somewhere in the middle. They are conscious of the impact of their choices (whereas pea green travelers are only conscious part of the time), but because of time and budget constraints they may not always choose the greenest method of travel like their forest green friends.

Read the whole Shades of Green Travel article here.

Green Map: another great eco-travel tool

by Anna Brones on

Writing an article for Matador Travel about Stockholm last week, I came across a helpful site called Green Map. A US based non-profit, Green Map is a global collaborative committed to sustainable development through map making. To put it simply, the organization works with people around the world to make maps that chart communities’ environmental, cultural and green resources. The end goal is to create sustainable networks that offer healthier and greener choices for both locals and tourists.

Many of the maps are can be downloaded, which is especially useful if you travel with a PDA which would allow you to travel with an electronic version. Need to find an organic cafe in Copenhagen, where to compost in Manhattan, or nature trails to hike in Singapore? Green Map has the answer, making it — in my opinion — one of the most helpful tools for green travel.

Check out the site and take some time to browse around.

Gadling’s top five US Airports for public transportation

by Grant Martin on

Public transportation plays a critical role in the structure of a metropolitan area. In addition to supplying cheap transportation suited for all city dwellers, it’s an economically and socially conscious alternative to gas guzzling personal vehicles. This network should support the city, be inexpensive and be well connected to the airport. It should also be well organized so that travelers can connect from the terminal into the public transit system and to their final destination easily; it’s part of what makes a city fluid.

Europe’s got it down. Anyone can plop down at Charles de Gaulle, hop an RER and be into the city center in a half hour. Even if you fly into Beauvais you can take a train down into Gare Du Nord at a reasonable pace.

But what about the US? In the land of SUV’s, twelve dollar cheeseburgers and McMansions, are we that well connected?

Some of us are. We at Gadling have compiled our list of five favorite airports that are best connected to public transit. We’ve ranked them by virtue of their accessibility, cost, ease of transfer into the city and reach of the system. And the winner?

  • Chicago: Both O’hare and Midway are well connected to the El — the former on the Blue Line northwest of the city and the latter on the Orange Line southwest of the city. Chicago’s elevated trains run deep into the loop and extend like fingers into the suburbs, and you can get almost anywhere in the city for that $1.75
  • Washington DC (Reagan): While DC’s metro system does have annoying graduated fares depending on how far you travel, you have to admire its accessibility to the city. One can be off the airplane, across the street, through the subway and into Chinatown in a heartbeat.
  • San Francisco: The Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) is solidly connected to SFO and parametrically covers the entire San Francisco Bay. They too have a graduated fare system, but the cleanliness and efficiency of the system are well worth it.
  • Boston: Despite its early closing time, Boston’s MBTA is also well connected to the Logan airport. Three or four stops on the blue line will take you to the subway center, where you can connect to nearly anywhere in the system, all for no more than 2$.
  • New York (Laguardia): Even though most people hate the three New York co-terminals, you have to give LGA credit for being the cheapest to get to. If you’re in one of the smaller terminals you can quickly get out of security and onto the M60 or a Q33 down to Roosevelt, then transfer anywhere in the city, again for 2$.

Your city not on here? Leave a comment and tell us why you think it belongs.

And stay tuned for Gadling’s worst US airports for public transportation coming up.

Take Your Recycling on the Road

by Catherine Bodry on

Well, don’t really take your old newspapers and empty soda cans with you. But do bring your environmental ethics.

We’re all a little bit different on the road than we are at home. But that doesn’t mean that it’s okay to be a green-lovin’ environmentalist who wouldn’t dare use a disposable paper cup for a latte on the home front, and a McDonald’s take-out grubber abroad.

It’s not easy to be green when you’re traveling. Dirty tap water, tight luggage space, and quick travel all make reusing products extraordinarily difficult.

You don’t have to be perfect, but there’s resources out there to help you be better. The Go Green Travel Center is a whole website dedicated to green-friendly travel, offering suggestions for transport and trips, plus other tips for travelers all shades of green.