Travellers Choice member Greg Close has launched
Trees For Travellers, a hyper-local carbon offset initiative.
Close – the owner and founder of Live The Dream Travel, which recently moved into a new shop front in Strathalbyn, southeast of Adelaide on the edge of the Adelaide Hills – says the concept is simple: every time a customer books a holiday, his agency buys and plants a tree.
With Australians more aware than ever before of the carbon emissions their international journeys generate, Close says his customers have universally embraced the
Trees For Travellers program, which is on track to plant 50 new saplings in its first month.
“I was really impressed during the recent Travellers Choice Conference in Melbourne at the number of preferred suppliers putting emissions reduction and sustainability front and centre,” says Close. “Afterwards, when I thought about it, I couldn’t see any reason why our small business couldn’t also contribute on a local level.
“We looked at the carbon emissions an individual customer might typically generate on a holiday, then started investigating different native trees and their capacities to absorb carbon.
“After consulting with the experts at State Flora in nearby Murray Bridge, we decided to begin with Eucalyptus torquata (commonly known as Coral Gum) which performs well in South Australia, growing up to 11 metres in height.
“Our goal is to plant 1,000 trees this calendar year, while continuing to look for additional ways to ensure that at a local level we work to create a more sustainable planet.”
