The Travel Corporation, (TTC,) whose award-winning travel brands include Trafalgar, Contiki, Uniworld Boutique River Cruises, Insight Vacations, Red Carnation Hotels, and more, releases its second annual Impact Report, sharing progress against the group’s five-year sustainability strategy How We Tread Right (HWTR). Launched in September 2020, HWTR’s 11 sustainability goals are anchored to the United Nations Global Goals, in an effort to advance the shared mission to MAKE TRAVEL MATTER®.
One of the most notable achievements since the launch of HWTR is the replacement of TTC’s goal to become carbon neutral by 2030 with the more ambitious goal of reaching net zero GHG emissions by 2050, designed to address TTC’s impact on climate. The other issues addressed by the 11 goals include food, waste, travel experiences, diversity, equity and inclusion, and wildlife.
In 2022, TTC became the first tour operator to launch a Carbon Fund: an industry-leading fund designed to enable investment in green technologies selected for their ability to decarbonise the business. This fund was announced last year when TTC became the first global tour operator to have near-term, long-term andnet zero targets validated by the Science Based Targets initiative.
With decarbonisation as its priority, TTC has made progress towards achieving its goal of sourcing 50% of electricity from renewable sources and reducing food waste by 50%, both by 2025. Some examples include TTC moving five additional offices and accommodations to renewable sources bringing its total to 26, and Evan Evans introducing its first zero-emission electric vehicle to its fleet. With food waste technologies implemented at 20 additional Red Carnation Hotels and Uniworld ships in 2022, the combined food waste savings last year equated to more than 284,000 meals.
In addition to driving impact through the 11 measurable goals featured in its strategy, How We Tread Right, TTC and its family of brands also work to protect our planet, its people and wildlife, through its non-profit TreadRight Foundation. In 2022, TreadRight funded nature-based solutions GreenWave and Project Vesta for the second consecutive year, in addition to community development and wildlife conservation initiatives such as Rainbow Railroad, the Tourism Pathways Project, Lakota Youth Development, Wilderness Foundation Africa, and Wild Entrust.
“While we’re immensely proud of the impact we achieved in 2022, we’re equally aware of the work that remains ahead of us,” says Shannon Guihan, The Travel Corporation’s Chief Sustainability Officer and Head of TreadRight. “TTC’s Carbon Fund, launched last year and detailed in this Impact Report, moves beyond the leadership of achieving near-term, long-term and net zero validated targets, and illustrates how we intend to make this transition, in real terms. The sector needs to avoid the many distractions that are out there towards real change and seek measurable impact, which is exactly what we are focused on.”
Key highlights from TTC’s impacts in 2022 include:
PLANET
- Introducing an industry-first Carbon Fund
- Replacing the goal of carbon neutrality by 2030 with the more ambitious goal of net zero by 2050
- Becoming the first global tour operator with validated near-term, long-term, andnet zero targets
- The reduction of Scope 1 emissions by 27%, Scope 2 emissions by 42% and Scope 3 emissions by 45% from 2019
- Sourcing 44% of total global electricity needs from renewable sources, up 20% over the previous year
- Moving 5 additional offices and accommodations to renewable energy, bringing the total to 26 properties
- Implementing food waste management systems at 20 hotels and ships
- Achieving a combined food waste reduction of 120 tonnes, equating to more than 284,000 meals
- Reducing printed brochures by 64% from 2019
PEOPLE
- Including at least one MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experience* on 62% of TTC itineraries
- Our collection of MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experiences* across all TTC brands reached 571
- Increasing TTC itineraries visiting developing regions by 50% from our 2021 baseline
- Establishing 5 partnerships globally to widen our hiring pool to include traditionally underrepresented people
- 6 brands focused on Pride and Women-only itineraries to help foster diversity, equity and inclusion
- 3 marketing partnerships with diversity, equity and inclusion as the main focus
- 19 active identity circles under TTC IDEA, TTC’s employee resource group
- Completing 7,471 hours in 2022, reaching a 46% completion of our goal since the launch of HWTR
WILDLIFE
- Ensuring 100% compliance with our animal welfare policy across all itineraries
