There are many reasons for businesses in the tourism sector to engage in the sustainable agenda, it is a segment that has a social function in facing the climate and social challenges, and all the agents that make up this sector can mitigate its impact on the world. Clube Turismo, a travel agency franchise, has taken the first step in this direction by implementing a successful pilot project in its master unit in the state of São Paulo, located in Ribeirão Preto.
Sustainable tourism has always been discussed in Clube Turismo's strategies, although it was not so evident to the business stakeholders. The"Sustainability on Day"consulting line was implemented in this pilot project in the São Paulo master unit so that it was possible to measure the results in different areas of the company and give enough elements to matrix evaluate the implementation throughout the network.
Thus, during the year 2021, several actions were carried out to integrate the sustainability agenda into the travel agency strategies, such as
1-) Alignment of the business strategy to the SDGs of Agenda 2030;
2-) Elaboration of sustainability policy from materiality study with more than 60 stakeholders;
3-) CO2 emission inventory of the operation;
4-) Offsetting CO2 emissions from end-customer travel;
5-) Elaboration of sustainability report that will be published this March;
6-) Change in communication with end-customers, aiming to make them aware of the importance of responsible tourism and how to put it into practice.
Integrating business to the sustainability agenda involves a number of challenges, among them time and investment. Changes do not happen quickly, it takes a collective effort from managers and their teams to achieve the expected financial and social return. In the case of Clube Turismo Ribeirão Preto, many actions were implemented during the year, but there is a well-defined action plan planned for the next 24 months. This is because when companies propose to generate value to all stakeholders, patience is needed until everyone is aligned with sustainable values.
Some of the actions already implemented are environmental in nature
In February, part of the Clube Turismo Ribeirão Preto team and their families planted 10 yellow and pink ipê trees, with the objective of compensating the CO2 emissions of the travel agency's operation in 2021, in partnership with the ArboreSer Collective, a tree planting project in the city of Ribeirão Preto/SP.
Clube Turismo Ribeirão Preto emitted 1.85 tCO2 in 2021, which strictly speaking, would be offset by planting a yellow ipê seedling that throughout its life cycle offsets 2.9 tons of CO2. However, the travel agency in Ribeirão Preto seeking to sensitize its employees, partners, suppliers and other companies of the importance of this initiative, opted to plant a tree for each of its seven employees, which resulted in a compensation corresponding to almost 11 times more than what the operation emitted in 2021.
The customer trips were also offset with the support of the agency, which calculated the emissions generated by the passengers' itinerary using the Iniciativa Verde and IDESAM platforms, and suggested the compensation through a donation to purchase tree seedlings;This action began in September 2021 and since then three trips have been offset and a donation was made to plant 14 trees in the Atlantic Forest biomeCompensating the trips sold is part of Clube Turismo Ribeirão Preto's initiative to engage its customers who also receive a travel kit with tips for practicing a more responsible tourism.
The impact of tourism in the world
Tourism is responsible for about 8% of the world's carbon emissions. From air travel, tours, cruises and various other activities contribute to its impact on the world. The World Tourism Organization (WTO) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) launched the Glasgow Declaration for Climate Action in Tourism at COP26. This document expresses the industry's goals to halve greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 and achieve zero emissions before 2050, more than 300 companies, entities and governments are signatories to this commitment.
With this horizon in view and after a successful pilot project, the Clube Turismo franchise begins the year 2022 with optimistic perspectives to integrate sustainability into the strategies of the entire network, which will make it a pioneer in the Brazilian micro-franchise market and above all, one more member of the group of companies that seek a more sustainable and responsible tourism sector with the environment and society.
