We’re very excited about our plans for 2024. But we also know that as Journee keeps on getting bigger and better, the need for a climate action project of our own grows too.
We’re firm believers in the notion that being culturally curious is a force for good, and that travel has a net-positive effect on our world and the people who live in it. We’re also proud of the fact that the experiences we include in our trips are mostly low carbon emitting ones, contributing directly to the economies of our trusted local partners. It’s clear that there’s potential for some forms of tourism to even become increasingly regenerative towards the environment.
Yet in the midst of a climate emergency, we’re aware that flying - at least in its current form - is far from sustainable for our planet. Commercial flights alone account for roughly 3-4% of global CO2 emissions each year, while the travel sector as a whole is responsible for 8-10% of annual greenhouse gas emissions. Of course, the last thing we want to do is discourage people from exploring, but we also aren’t going to pretend in 2024 that airline travel is in any way ‘eco-friendly’.
We know that many people are concerned on an individual basis and now actively seek out ways in which to travel more responsibly. We think this is great, but it’s also up to businesses to be accountable and proactive. We differ from other travel companies in many ways - Journee trips being completely end-to-end is key among them. However, this does mean that the flights we book for our Explorers end up being included in our Scope 3 emissions totals: which is not the case for most tour operators offering experiences and accommodation only.
As a relatively young company, this hasn’t become overwhelmingly problematic just yet. But, as we strive to maximise our impact on the way the world travels, minimising our impact on the environment simultaneously has to become a priority. So far we’ve been careful, knowing that taking action at a small-scale could risk being more performative than meaningful - simply paying lip service to the issue (which we know many travel companies are guilty of doing). During the latter stages of 2023 we’ve started to ramp up the planning for our course of action.
The first step has been to begin setting up a framework for calculating our total annual CO2 and greenhouse gas emissions, with a view to bring carbon footprint labelling to Journee trips in the near future. As things stand, our rough over-estimate for total CO2e from flights and accommodation booked for Journee trips in 2023 was 1,550 metric tons. Having a tangible baseline figure is crucial to us making progress, improving our methodology for more accurate future workings and identifying the areas with potential for decarbonisation in doing so.
In 2024 we’ll be deciding on the specific initiatives we want to work with and the projects we’ll choose to support and contribute to as a company. We can’t wait to get started.