Easy Tips for Eco-friendly traveling
Okay, so we may not be able to perfect Eco-friendly traveling in the Philippines. Mostly because of the need to take planes, ferries or buses to our destinations. But we can try to be better at eco-traveling by reducing our impact in other ways.
1. Eco-Traveling: Take your own Toiletries!
Unless you’re going away for a month you really don’t need to pack much in the way of toiletries.
Yes, you could hope that your hotel or hostel will provide complimentary toiletries but many are moving away from this, in their own attempts at green credentials.
Many shops sell travel-size bottles of shampoo, conditioner and shower gel. The beauty of this is you can just keep refilling them from your regular bottles, or top up at a packaging free shop, when they’re empty.
Watsons and many other shops also sell clear reusable travel bottles, in little transparent toiletry bags. Again, fill up and go. And, because they’re clear bottles, and small, you can carry them in your hand luggage.
Think about investing in Bamboo Toothbrushes and stainless steel razors, where you replace the blade, rather than plastic, throwaway razors.
Green Star Awards – the All-in-one Soap Bar. More and more local entrepreneurs are getting in on the soap bar market and create bars that offer shampoo, conditioner and body wash in one handy little bar. Check out The Eco Shift which also sells a range of shampoo and conditioner bars, which last ages.
2. Eco-Traveling: Coral/Marine Friendly Sunscreen
We need to be responsible when it comes to protecting our skin under the suns rays. Even those of you blessed with super amounts of melanin, resulting in faster tans and reduced sun burn!
We also need to be responsible for the natural environment that we come in to contact with whilst wearing sunscreen.
Human Nature does a wonderful range of high SPF water-proof sunscreens which are not only Reef-Friendly but 100% harmful chemical free. Price is no different to the cost of other sunscreens on the market and they offer a child friendly version too. The Eco Shift also stocks sunscreen.
Little tin pots of zinc oxide are great for areas of your face more prone to burning, like your nose, cheeks and forehead.
3. Eco-Traveling: Eating Local
Eating local isn’t just about finding nearby eateries, or ones run by locals. It’s about making a decision to eat local produce too, rather than items shipped or flown in from other countries because they’re out of season, or can’t be grown, where you are visiting.
Many places pride themselves on sourcing their ingredients locally, or even growing them themselves organically, on nearby allotments, and highlight this either on their website, Facebook page or on their menu’s.
Places doing just this include:
- Nonies (Boracay)
- Sunnyside Café Group (Boracay),
- The Art Cafe (El Nido),
- Cala Laiya (Batangas),
- Bohol Bee Farm (Panglao),
- Oh My Gulay Artist Café (Bagio),
- The Pig & Palm (Cebu),
- Backyard Kitchen + Brew (a farm-to-table bar and grill with multiple branches throughout Manila),
- Green Pastures (Shangri-la Plaza Mall Manila),
If you know you’re going to eat on the run a lot, or order take out, consider investing in some silicone collapsible cartons for takeout. These flatten down so don’t take up much room in your bags and are light in weight.
Invest in a personal mini cutlery set. There are heaps on the market including bamboo, wood and steel and all come in little carry cases.
Consider investing in your own re-usable eco straws. Again, available in wood, bamboo, steel and even silicone. Some companies sell duo sets which include a straight, bent and milk tea straw as well as the brush to clean them.
4. Eco-Traveling: Buying local souvenirs
The reality is that many of the T-shirts, key-rings, fridge magnets and jewelry sold in tourist destinations have been brought in from Bali, Thailand and China. So, pay attention to what you’re buying.
One locally sourced company to look out for is Tesoros. Tesoros often has stalls and sections in Malls but you can also purchase from them online. They offer a great selection of beautifully designed and finished items that will last, and all made in the Philippines.
Consider investing in locally made produce or souvenirs but make sure they are not made with natural resources that are either endangered or banned from sale (certain shells, ivory, tortoiseshell, etc).
Many places in the Philippines have local Co-ops and community projects which sell hand-crafted or hand-made products. Items include coco, pineapple and mango jams, bags, decorated coconut shell bowls, bamboo straws.
Research what your destination is famous for and bring that back as Pasalubong. For instance:-
- Boracay has the infamous Calamansi Muffins from Real Tea and Coffee, as well as a Distileria Barako‘s Sirena Gin and Kanto Salted Caramel Vodka
- Bagio – Strawberry Jam
- Bulacan – Inipit
- Los Banos, Laguna – Buko Pie
- Ilocos Sur – Robusta Coffee
- Cebu – Dried Mango or peanuts
- Bicol – Pili Tart
- Quezon Province – Yema Cake
- Cagayan de Oro – Vjandep Pastel
- Sagada – Handwoven Bags, clothes or tapestries
- Ilocan – Pinilian
- Aklan – Pina
- Mindanao – Mabal Tabih, Bagobo Inabal or Dagmay
5. Eco-Traveling: Getting to your destination.
Eco-friendly travel around the Philippines will probably be your hardest achievement, because the Country’s tourist destinations are often Islands or Archipelago’s. It’s difficult to avoid using planes, ferries or many of the old buses or trikes used to connect with locations.
The Transportation Industry generates 20 billion tonnes of CO2 and 15.79 billion tonnes of Nitrous Oxide (N2O) every year (Source: CO2 and other Greenhouse gas emissions by Our World in Data).
The World Health Organization (WHO) places the Philippines “among the countries that are most vulnerable to the negative effects of climate change”
Transportation Options, by least to most eco-friendly:
Road Transport (Car/Coach/Bus) – Cars, mini-vans, buses and coaches actually contribute around 72% of all World transportation Greenhouse Gases simple due to the large numbers on the Worlds roads (Source: What is #GREEN24? Air Asia).
So, if you’re looking to journey by car at least try to car-pool with others, or hire a mini-van, rather than take several cars. Travel outside of rush hour time, where possible, as sitting in a traffic jam is when your vehicles emissions are at their worst.
Ferry – Maritime transport contributes a 13.6% share of transports greenhouse gas emissions. Ferries and Cruise Ships continue to use the “dirtiest” fuel and, unlike the Aviation Industry which has already switched to cleaner fuel, the maritime industry is not required to improve this until 2030.
Ferries do compete with the local airlines for having the most routes to Philippine destinations and can carry more passengers than the average plane, as well as option a range of passenger ticket ‘classes’ to choose from, ranging from a seat, public bunk bed areas through to a private cabin.
Plane – Planes (Aviation) are only just behind Ferries and ships, emitting 13.3% of the transport industry’s greenhouse gas emissions. Planes remain the most popular way for travellers to reach destinations in the Philippines. The Aviation Authority has implemented standards in terms of the use of ‘cleaner’ fuels and some also have a Carbon Footprint offset program.
Trains – Trains only account for 0.5% of the Worlds transport industry Greenhouse Gas emissions. Unfortunately the Philippines only has a total of 77km’s of train line and most of that is in the capitol of Manila. PNR, however, runs an electric train service from Manila to Calamba Laguna (where Jose Rizal was born). Plus, more lines are being added.
No matter how you travel, you will be contributing to Global Warming and Greenhouse Gas emissions, unless you walk or ride a bicycle there.
What you can do is research the transport companies that you plan to use and find out what they do to offset their Carbon Footprint. This should be found in their Corporate Social Responsibility statement and may include activities such as Tree or Mangrove Planting.
If that’s not enough for you, you can look into offsetting your own individual Carbon Footprint. There are lots of companies which offer this. Myclimate.org, for instance, provides a simple tool to calculate and compensate for your travel emissions.
cooleffect.org, terrapass.com, standfortrees.org and carbonfund.org not only help you to offset your carbon footprint with a donation or contribution, but also allow you to select which project you want to contribute to.
Remember: Every bit counts. You don’t have to perfect your Eco-Traveling in one hit, but you can at least adopt new practices and attitudes that will reduce your impact on the environment.
