USTOA has a vision of travel to save the world.

In the year Tourist arrivals have risen from 25 million in 1950 to 1.4 billion in 2019, and experts expect the number to reach 1.9 billion by 2030. With the growing number of people on the move comes the opportunity to positively change our impact on the world. Interesting travel options And Responsible. To help build a sustainable future for tourism, the national, nonprofit United States Tour Operators Association (USTOA) is encouraging travelers to be more responsible about where, how and with whom they travel.

At the center of this collaborative effort is Suzanne Greenfield, otherwise known as Sustainable Susie. She is one of many USTOA Tour Member Guides, who believe that through sustainable practices, travel can be a force for good. As the protagonist of a new comic from USTOA, Sustainable Suzie spends issue #1 traveling the world fighting pollution, ignorance and greed. Following Susie’s lead, you can explore the world in search of alternatives—from sustainable destinations like Korea, Tenerife, and Norway to airlines doing their part like United—good for intrepid travelers and better for the planet itself.

We look at the history of South Korea

Photo credit: Korean Buddhism Culture Group

Sustainability Suzy’s first stop is South Korea, where sustainability has been a fundamental part of Buddhist life for more than 1,600 years. Focusing on a plant-based, zero-waste diet, dedicated monks live their lives with a minimal footprint on the temple grounds, ensuring that food doesn’t have to be complex, exotic or harmful to the environment to be delicious.

Those interested in immersing themselves in the Buddhist way of life are in luck: Templestay offers the opportunity to choose from a number of Buddhist temples throughout South Korea where you can learn from monks and enjoy meals in harmony with nature. .

Those looking for a more comprehensive overview of the country, both past and present, may instead opt for Alexander + Roberts’ eight-day “Discover Korea” tour. This journey begins in Seoul, where guests can watch the changing of the guard at the city’s 500-year-old Gyeongbokgung Palace or taste the kaleidoscope of food from over 5,000 vendors at Gwangjang Market, one of the first and largest in the city. The nation.

To the southeast, visitors to the coastal city of Gyeongju can scale Mount Tohamsan on the way to Seokguram Grotto, a UNESCO World Heritage Site featuring an 8th-century Buddha statue overlooking the sea. Later, at Golgulsa Temple, you can train in Buddhist martial arts sunmudoparticipate in a monastic tea ceremony, and enjoy a healthy, traditional lunch on site.

Let nature shine in Tenerife

Photo credit: Tenerife Tourism

Enduring Suzy After traveling to Europe, our next stop is in Tenerife, the largest of the Canary Islands, off the coast of Spain. Those who are impressed by its wild beauty should remember that it takes a lot of effort to keep things clean.

The Council of the island of Tenerife works to maintain a balance between tourism and nature, using travel funds to fight local poverty and inequality while fighting to combat the effects of climate change. The council does this through public projects that touch everything from landscaping to waste disposal, which has been named a Biosphere Tourism Destination by the Tourism Institute in 2021.

The island’s “zero footprint” policy makes almost half of its land under strict environmental protection, making it an extremely attractive destination. The western waters of Tenerife, known as the Teno-Rasca Coastal Special Protection Area by the European Union, are home to 21 species of whales and dolphins, as well as numerous turtles and seabirds.

Spain’s highest peak is located in the Teide National Park, and beneath it lies a cave containing some of Europe’s largest lava tubes, waiting to be explored. If that’s not enough, visitors can enjoy 185 miles of bike paths through the island’s forests, with a visit to one of its many historic towns, such as the UNESCO World Heritage Site of San Cristóbal de la Laguna.

Those traveling to Tenerife on their own can seek the expertise of a travel consultant from a USTOA tour operator such as GOGO Vacations to help design an itinerary that suits their needs. In the capital of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, do you want to spend some time visiting the Calatrava trail, the seafront sea hall or the Museum of Natural and Human Wonders? Perhaps you prefer to spend your time in the Biosphere Reserve Anaga Country Park with mountain walks and refreshing ocean drops? You can do all this and more by working with travel experts, getting the most out of Tenerife while doing your part to preserve the beauty of the island for generations to come.

The future of Norway is history

Photo credit: Hans Peter Sørensen and FarOutFocus/Visit Norway

In the final stop of this edition, Sustainable Suzie heads to Norway to spend the night watching the Northern Lights. However, travelers should not ignore the land beneath those cosmic colors. The heart of any trip should be a visit to one of the nearly 1,200 fjords that make up Norway’s 18,000 miles of coastline, each narrow inlet carved into the mammoth mountains by prehistoric glaciers.

Derived from the Old Norse for “passage”, these waters have been well-trodden for centuries, but of late Norwegian tour operators have turned to electric and hybrid electric boats with underwater drones, allowing passengers to admire wildlife with low-to-no emissions, limited noise pollution and minimal environmental disturbance. . He believes that by supporting innovation and sustainability, everyone will benefit not only environmentally and economically, but also educationally in the long run.

Goway Travel’s Norway Highlights tour offers guests five full days to explore the country’s cultural and natural beauty, fjords and all. Starting in the western city of Bergen and ending in Oslo, it provides ample time to take in Norway’s historic sites, including a visit to Bryggen Harbor, a 12th-century trading center and one of the remaining examples of Hanseatic wooden architecture.

Of course, travelers will also see the country’s rugged fjords, Aurlandfjord and Nærøyfjord, with narrow faces rising nearly 5,000 feet, surrounded by native flora and fauna, spectacular waterfalls, and underwater moraines (lots of rocks and silt) covered in ice. Helping to describe Norway’s legendary landscape.

Getting there and staying there

Photo credit: United Airlines

Reducing the impact of long-haul travel will place particular pressure on aviation. As the Airline World’s 2021 Eco-Airline of the Year, United Airlines is committed to protecting its destinations for future generations—committing to a 100 percent reduction in greenhouse emissions by 2050.

Since 1990, United has improved fuel efficiency by 45 percent. In establishing the Eco-Skys Alliance, the airline will set the tone for corporate partners to act on sustainability through carbon reduction policies and technologies.

The airline says it will reduce its carbon footprint by “up to 80 percent” while continuing to use sustainable aviation fuels, including zero-emissions, the development of hydrogen-electric aircraft and carbon capture. “Lifecycle-based” flight efficiency helps reduce carbon footprints, and United offers multiple direct flights to Korea, Tenerife and Norway so you can make sure your route to these more sustainable destinations is as sustainable as possible.

To Seoul, United offers a daily direct flight to Seoul from San Francisco, as well as other nonstop flights from Los Angeles, Honolulu, New York and Toronto to Asiana, part of the Star Alliance. And the airline flies direct from Newark to Tenerife three times a week. Also departing from Newark and operating three days a week, United has flights to Bergen, and frequent nonstop options from Newark to Oslo with Star Alliance member Scandinavian Airlines.

Choosing ethical ways to see better airlines, USTOA tour operators and other destinations that are doing their part to help us travel more responsibly is one key step in addressing the trend, which the World Meteorological Organization says has increased fivefold. Climate and climate-related crises in the last fifty years. Travel can be a force for good—both for the planet and for travelers—if we can learn from the responsible practices of our neighbors to move forward in the spirit of Suzy, the Great Sustainable Hero.

Visit the USTOA website Follow Suzy’s travelsfind tour operators and inspire your own responsible and amazing adventure!