October 27, 2020

50 Taking a Vacation from Carbon Emissions

1 hour 7 minutes

How far will you go in your quest to shrink your carbon footprint? What’s eco-tourism, and is it really ecologically responsible? International tourism accounts for 8% of all carbon emissions in the world, and transportation of all types accounts for an even greater proportion of of our carbon emissions. In the first of several episodes about shrinking our travel footprint, Dave and Erika chat with Dr. Michael Hall, Professor in the Department of Management, Marketing and Entrepreneurship at University of Canterbury in New Zealand.

According to Hall, “tourism leads to the short and long term decline of natural capital at local and global scales.” Find out what Hall has to say about carbon offsetting, public transportation, local food, and building a market to service communities of people. Hall says that it isn’t about avoiding travel altogether, but about how to travel smart!

On the GrowthBusters podcast, Erika and Dave explore the joy of sustainable living and provide a recovery program for our society’s growth addiction (economic/consumption and population). This podcast is part of the GrowthBusters project to raise awareness of overshoot and end our culture’s obsession with and pursuit of growth.

Dave Gardner directed the documentary GrowthBusters: Hooked on Growth, which Stanford Biologist Paul Ehrlich declared “could be the most important film ever made.” Erika Arias is researching the childfree/environment connection and is about to enter grad school.

LINKS

The Routledge Handbook of Tourism and Sustainability

Economic Greenwash: On the Absurdity of Tourism and Green Growth

A Radical Way to Cut Emissions – Ration Everyone’s Flights

Pandemics, Transformations and Tourism: Be Careful What You Wish For

Pandemics, Tourism and Global Change: A Rapid Assessment of COVID-19

Carbon Trading: How Does it Work?