Adventure Tour Convention attains carbon neutrality

The three day convention brought together over 300 adventure tour operators, adventure enthusiasts, travelers and industry leaders from across India.

To execute ATOAI and Tourism Corporation of Gujarat’s commitment to promote sustainable tourism and reduce carbon emission, a charter was drawn to calculate the carbon emission for the entire event. To successfully offset the emission, the various key sustainable initiatives were implemented which resulted in the success of this initiative.

According to Gujarat Government sources, more than 68% reduction in energy usage was observed by hosting this conference in winters which reduced cooling load as well as diesel consumption. Additionally the delegates were encouraged to minimize their carbon footprint wherever possible for their in room consumption also.

It was recognised that approximately 4,700 bottles of water per day would be utilized during the event, to eliminate the same a Zero Plastic Waste policy was implemented, which resulted in eliminating 15,000 plastic bottles. The delegates were encouraged to drink from glass or reusable bottles. Water dispensers were installed at various locations.

To avoid plastic on the badges and tags, About 400 Seed Papers for Badges and Luggage Tags were provided as a sustainable alternative. Participants were also encouraged to plant their badges. By going ‘Paperless’ in printing informational material and Itinerary, over 2000 sheets of paper were saved.The convention also emphasized on Reducing Food Wastage by displaying the amount of food wasted after each meal and encouraging participants to minimize food waste during meals, promoting conscious consumption. Further to promote sustainable dining practices during the convention plastic sachets for butter, jam, and sugar were eliminated. Government sources maintained that to offset emissions, ATOAI with Gujarat Tourism and the Forest Department of Gujarat, is planting 200 saplings near the event area which will be maintained by the forest department of the region for 15 years.

During the two-days of the event various MoUs to build capacities for knowledge-sharing on Adventure Tourism and MoU’s worth Rs. 770 cr were signed towards Film Shooting, and Infrastructure development. To facilitate ease of information a website for Adventure Tourism in India was also launched on the concluding day.

The convention also held deliberations on promoting sustainable tourism, exploring untapped locations in the country, knowledge sharing and networking. The discussions on unlocking Gujarat’s potential to be a leader for Adventure Tourism in India took place and the state government assured that in close collaboration with ATOAI, it will be carefully growing this industry, practicing and adopting all right and sustainable ways.