Reduce first
Reduce first may 10, 2011

Kyoto protocol requested the ratifying countries to implement measures for a reduction in climate active gases. Three main reduction routes have been envisaged (Emission trading, Joint Implementation, Clean Development Mechanism) (UNFCCC, 1993). Since these mechanisms mainly address institutional compensation smaller companies and private people can find it difficult to become active in directly and indirectly reducing their output of climate active gases (Fragnière, 2009). As a result so called "free" compensation or reduction measures have become popular. Most of these do not directly address the reduction of energy consumption and greenhouse gase (GHG) reduction on place but offer compensation mechanisms through investment in GHG reducing projects: that focus at i) renewable energies, ii) increasing energy efficiency, iii) capturing GHG and iv) reforestation.
Tourism is still a relatively small contributor to energy consumption and GHG (5 %), which could, however, change in future with arising middle classes and triple by 2035 (UNEP, 2010). It could seem that free compensation mechanisms would offer a solution to this (at least this is how it is sometimes communicated on web pages) and every traveller just could compensate for his emissions by paying the respective amount of money. But what seems to be an easy task at first glance becomes very difficult yet impossible when looking closer at it. The compensation approach has several shortcomings: i) it is difficult to assess the amount of energy or GHG produced by a trip and, thus, the amount that has to be compensated; ii) psychologically it can reduce the will of the compensating subject to take decisive steps towards energy saving due to the fact that he or she is already "compensating"; iii) socially: compensation often is done in developing countries forcing these countries to implement reducing measures while the people in the industrialized world keep on producing CO2 and other GHG, it has, therefore, a egocentric, even colonialistic attitude; iv) the term compensation is misleading, at the time of compensation the CO2 is already produced which cannot be undone (which lead authors to the conclusion that the correct expression should rather by something like: "climate contribution" (Fragnière, 2009). In the view of these shortcomings we should be directed versus a "a priori" in situ implementation of CO2 reducing measures in the industrialized world.
mondoeco takes a different approach, we promote direct energy (buildings are responsible for on third of the worlds energy consumption (UNEP, 2008)) and resource saving in the visited touristic infrastructures and areas. The structures on the mondoeco internet portal implement everyday eco-friendly measures, this measures can be small (counter measures against energy and resources spillage) or big (photovoltaic, solar pannel or similar infrastructures) but should mainly be directed towards active reduction of energy waste and resource spillage in general instead of compensating for already existing consumption.
The traveller does a direct investment in structures inclined towards sustainable measures, environmental costs due to his visit are lower than in an average receiving structure, he/she can find people sharing same sustainable beliefs and, possibly, find a fruitful atmosphere to widen the horizon of everyday ecofriendly measures. Moreover, having a glance at our destination suggestions it is possible to find highly interesting, sometimes little known hiking areas, cultural events or parks in proximity of the structures or possible even close to home. Thus, making a trip in the local area often a more valuable experience than a long distance journey.

 


1 UNFCCC, Kyotoprotocol, http://unfccc.int/kyoto_protocol/items/2830.php
2 UNEP, 30 ways in 30 days, page 7, 2010: http://www.unep.org/Documents.Multilingual/Default.asp?DocumentID=651&ArticleID=6812&l=en&t=long
3 Fragnière, Auguste, La compensation carbon: illusion ou solution? Presses Universitaires de France, 2009.
4 UNEP, Kick the habit - A guide to climate neutrality, 2008: http://www.unep.org/publications/ebooks/kick-the-habit/Pdfs.aspx  

Source: mondoeco


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