DISCOVA CARBON IMPACT CORRECTION JOURNEY BROCHURE

CARBON IMPACT CORRECTION JOURNEY

Among the most pressing concerns for the survival of our industry are the health of our global environment and the acceleration of climate change. Whether you believe in a doom’s day scenario or the most positive alternative outcome, tourism can only continue when the environmental integrity of our destinations remains intact or is restored.

How can we – Discova and our valued clients – ensure that this is realised?

THE WHAT

We want to measure, reduce and simultaneously remove carbon emissions when your travellers go on a Discova tour. Carbon emissions are a primary driver of climate change, and there’s no escaping the fact that when people travel, there’s a whole lot of carbon emitting going on. This is in many ways unavoidable, and at Discova we already try to limit the impact of our tours by: employing local people, choosing suppliers with effective sustainability strategies, using local supply chains, and support local community development. But together with you, we can do more.

Our mission is now something bigger with carbon impact correction. We may not be able to entirely prevent the carbon emissions of the tours your travellers take with us, but we are able to mitigate our collective effects on the environment with carbon reduction and removal initiatives. We can do so with a twofold approach:

Discova’s Carbon Impact Correction Plan aims to calculate the emissions of every activity and tour we sell, and together with our partners find alternative products and services that reduce those emissions for you. The ultimate objective is to grow your sustainable travel offerings with us.

We want to go further by proactively combatting the effects of the unavoidable carbon emissions generated by our passengers while they travel in-destination. As our client, you can also choose to invest in fully accredited sustainable energy production and carbon removal projects around the world with carbon credits. These will be accurately measured and purchased in respect to the emissions of our operations and your travellers’ trips.

THE HOW

We have decided to start with one simple, trusted approach in collaboration with Path Net Zero (PNZ). Using PNZ’s carbon calculator*, which is specifically tailored to the travel sector, we will measure and calculate all your travellers’ emissions across services booked and delivered by Discova in-destination (domestic flights, all land transportation, boats, trains and accommodation).

We take out the complexity and make measuring your impact simple and easily correctable. We want to make this as seamless as possible for you: we do all the nitty-gritty calculating for you and offer you alternative, lowerimpact travel solutions. Further down the impact correction journey, you can choose to invest in carbon removal projects that are internationally certified and recognised.

For a more detailed breakdown of how our emissions will be calculated, take a look at the Path Net Zero Calculator Data Sources document.

*The calculator is developed by travel industry experts and uses the same methodology the United Nations implements in their emission calculations, drawing on various sources, including data from the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO – a specialised agency of the UN) and the 2021 UK Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS).

THE BENEFITS (AND THOSE WHO BENEFIT)

Sustainability is not a trend, but a necessity. When you join our carbon impact correction journey, you actively confirm that belief and help your travellers to make the responsible travel choices they long for.

And if you choose to invest in carbon removal too, Discova will purchase carbon credits from a diverse portfolio of conservation and renewable energy projects, certified and verified by Gold Standard*.

These hold the highest levels of environmental integrity and offer the greatest contributions to sustainable development. They help the environment, people, and you to become a better travel provider. More specifically, they each meet certain UN Sustainable Development Goals.

Going forward, we would like to support more projects that directly benefit communities in our destinations, including an improved cookstove programme in Laos and waste water management in Thailand.

*Gold Standard was established in 2003 by WWF and other international NGOs as a best practice standard to help the world #GrowToZero. All Gold Standard-certified projects and programmes accelerate progress toward the Net-Zero ambition of the Paris Climate Agreement while catalysing impact toward the broader Sustainable Development Goals.

At the beginning of 2023, Discova retired 500 Verified Emission Reductions (VERs)

500 tonnes of CO2 emissions were saved from being released into the atmosphere

The VERs were invested into the Sidrap Wind Farm Project* in South Sulawesi, Indonesia.

The wind farm consists of 30 wind turbines and can power over 70,000 local homes!

The project meets these UN Sustainable Development Goals:

Goal 7: Affordable & Clean Energy

Goal 8: Decent Work & Economic Growth

Goal 13: Climate Action

Investing into the Sidrap Wind Farm Project was an introduction step for us. Now we want to invite our partners to join us in this carbon impact correction journey.

Find more detailed information on the Sidrap Wind Farm Project on the Gold Standard Registry.

THE WHY

It’s no secret that carbon offsetting ogranisations and plans have been met with skepticism over the past few years. We’ll be the first to admit that we didn’t jump on the train in years gone by because we had not seen a calculation process we could trust. And then PNZ emerged in the industry.

Like us, we imagine you’re looking for simplicity, reliability and international, accountable standards. Relatively young but made up of a team of long-standing tourism industry experts with demonstrated interest in environmental preservation, Path Net Zero offers just that.

Their projects are verified with Voluntary Cancellation Certificates, issued by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. They only support projects certified by Gold Standard or the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.

The “why?” answered itself easily. We can only reduce what we can measure. We can only correct when we understand the wrong. With PNZ, we can effortlessly do just that for us and you.

THE JOURNEY

STEP 1

Discova calculates the carbon emissions of the tours and activities you book with us

STEP 2

Discova finds alternative product and service options to reduce those calculated emissions

STEP 3

You work together with us on changes that will commit to targeted reductions

STEP 4

We measure and track your carbon impact improvements with regular reporting

TAKING IT A STEP FURTHER

A bonus step in the journey is if you jointly invest in carbon credits with us.

Discova bills you quarterly or annually for the offset credits purchased (if applicable) and reports annually on the total offset achieved. This can be combined into a report that includes your carbon reduction efforts (outlined in the steps above) with us over the course of a year. Additionally, you will receive a certificate for your annual contribution.

BE A PART OF THE SOLUTION

Carbon impact correction does not, in fact, have to be complicated. Our mission is to provide you with qualified data and an easy-to-use carbon offsetting system to enable you to offer accuracy and full transparency to your travellers. We measure, reduce and remove for you.

Empower your travellers to make guilt-free, responsible travel choices today.

Reach out to your dedicated Discova Account Manager or write to us at hello@discova.com for more details and to give us your thoughts.