Responsible Tourism

"Carbon Offsetting"

By far the biggest environmental impact from any travel abroad is that caused by flying. Air travel as a whole presently accounts for some 3% of greenhouse gas emissions. This may not sound much, but on a typical return flight from the UK to India, each passenger is responsible for the release of nearly 1.9 tonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere.

In addition to working with responsible tour operators, the STC encourages all our clients to compensate for the impact of their travel by offsetting their carbon emissions.

'Carbon Offset' involves making a donation to a charity or company which supports projects aiming to reduce the atmospheric levels of CO₂ - recognised as having a major effect on climate change. The STC supports international wildlife conservation charity, Friends of Conservation, (FOC). Amongst other activities, FOC promotes rainforest regeneration and fuel efficiency programmes, helping to mitigate the environmental 'cost' of air travel. For information on carbon offsetting, please visit the FOC website: www.foc-uk.com.

50:50 Carbon Offset Scheme:

As an encouragement to our clients to offset their emissions, the STC will contribute 50% of the offset donation, provided that the school or pupils wish to donate the other 50%. Payment for the donation is made directly to FOC, which the STC will then match.

For more details on Friends of Conservation and the projects they support, please visit their website.