Climate Tourism Declaration
Selective Asia is proud to be a founding signatory of Tourism Declares - a group of like-minded travel organisations who are collectively declaring a climate emergency, and (crucially) acting to reverse it. We have committed to be open about our impact on the environment, to actively reduce this, and to develop a more sustainable industry by advocating positive change. We are also a signatory and launch partner of the Glasgow Declaration on Climate Action in Tourism.
As part of Tourism Declares, Selective Asia:
publicly accepts the current IPCC advice that we must cut global carbon emissions to 55% (below 2017 levels) by 2030 to keep the planet within 1.5 degrees of warming
commits to publicly communicating both our plan and our progress
shall continue to work internally and with our partners to develop products with a low carbon footprint, and to actively promote and encourage responsible accommodation and modes of transport in our destinations
will encourage our suppliers and partners to make their own declarations, and (with the Tourism Declares community) to share best practice and solutions with the wider travel industry
recognises the need for systemic change across the industry, and will join others in calling for urgent regulatory action to accelerate the transition towards zero carbon air travel
What have we done since signing Tourism Declares?
We have always strived to be better and do better. In the past few years, and despite the obvious challenges created by the pandemic, Selective Asia has overhauled all operations, putting sustainability at the core of what we do.
Throughout 2022 and 2023 we set about creating our wider-reaching Responsible & Sustainable Travel Strategy that includes our Carbon Action Plan. The strategy, which is based on a set of clearly defined actions, objectives, and targets, is overseen by a sustainability team within Selective Asia, and communicated with the wider team on a regular basis, to ensure that contributions are made from across the organisation. In May 2022 we became B-Corp certified.
Our Climate Action Plan
To tackle the issues created by travel, we have put together a clear and achievable climate action plan. Our approach is informed by four elements: measure, reduce, regenerate , and communicate. We want to use carbon benchmarks and goals so that we can comprehensively monitor the impact of your trips and the running of our company.
Measuring our carbon impact | in development
We are developing a thorough method for monitoring the carbon impact of our trips, from flights to local transport, and eventually including accommodation impact, and advise our clients’ about their food’s footprint too. Not only will this help us choose the correct ways to reduce, but will also let us advise clients of the impact of each segment of their trip, enabling them to make carbon-conscious decisions and reduce their overall footprint.
Reducing our carbon impact | ongoing
To limit our carbon impact as far as possible, we are advocating good practice internally and measuring our own operational usage, and actively helping our clients to choose more low-carbon options (for instance, fewer, or no internal flights, and optimal routes that minimise transport use, better food choices, putting money back into communities).
Regeneration of habitats & wildlife conservation
After comprehensive research, we've chosen World Land Trust as our partner to help regenerate habitats, protect wildlife and support communities. Each holiday we sell will automatically include a contribution to Selective Asia’s Planet, Community & Conservation Fund.
Communication | ongoing
Honest communication has always been the pillar of Selective Asia, and now, it is more important than ever. We aim to extend this to clear open communication about each holiday’s carbon impact, along with a company-wide bi-annual carbon report of all holidays taken.
