Sustainability in Focus: An Interview with Holly Tuppen
Malena Gatti | September 27, 2021
In honor of the UNWTO’s World Tourism Day 2021, GLP Films has teamed up with sustainable travel expert Holly Tuppen to give away a copy of her debut book, Sustainable Travel: The Essential Guide to Positive Impact Adventures. Enter to win here. Earlier this month, we got the chance to sit down with Holly via Instagram Live and discuss her journey into writing this book as well as her insights on sustainable and regenerative travel, and what the tourism industry (and travellers!) can do to promote inclusive growth -- this year’s WTD theme. Catch the recording of the full interview, or read below for the highlights:
Q: Can you share how you got into sustainable travel, and how your circumnavigation trip came about?
A: My boyfriend at the time and I decided that we wanted to do a big trip so we bought a massive world map and started marking all the weird and wonderful things we’d heard about and wanted to do. As more and more ended up on the map, we started to think about linking them up rather than flying from place to place. We eventually decided that it would be really cool to start in Hyde Park in London and finish in Hyde Park without ever having gone off the ground!
Our motivation wasn’t really environmental; we thought if we didn’t fly it would force us to do more interesting and slightly more challenging things. It would take us to places we would never dream of going, places where tourists never go. Ever since then I’ve been a real believer in slow travel and the richness of the experience that comes with it. When I got back, I started working in sustainable travel and have since dabbled in lots of different aspects of the field. At the heart of most of the work that I do is the idea that less is more, that by slowing down we actually get better experiences.
Q: Can you tell us how you define sustainability?
A: The concept of sustainability is to sustain something over and over. Because the world is in a constant state of flux--in terms of the climate crisis and our realization of all that comes with it, and also politically and socially the world is always changing--this means that the concept of sustainability is always changing. For us to be able to sustain life on earth over and over again, we need to constantly be reevaluating and readdressing our systems of how we’re doing things. I think that’s where a lot of people’s confusion comes from. It’s not a clear checklist, or even something that has stayed the same over the 10 years of my career.
Q: What do you see as the future of travel and what role specifically do you see travellers playing in deciding that future; what agency do individuals have?
A: I hope that travel becomes less of the “bucket list” mentality, where people feel inclined to grab at experiences and places as if they’re commodities. It’s important to remember that the places we visit are places where people live and work, and hopefully where nature thrives. During the pandemic we’ve all been forced to slow down, and it has allowed us to step back and think: do I actually need to buy this, do I need to rush into that experience or can I slow down a bit? It’s such a basic concept that it almost sounds too basic, but it boils down to being more mindful of our impact. It’s important to think about how we’d behave if we were going into someone’s house, and then apply that mindset to every time we visit a destination, step into a community, step into a different culture, and particularly every time we step into a natural landscape.
As consumers our role is massive. Discussion is a good starting point and something we can all do -- it’s not too onerous to question and debate things. We need to ramp up our discussions around the climate crisis, talk about what we see and what we want from our travel experiences. If we see something that’s wrong we need to speak up about it. Collectively, all of those discussions have an impact on businesses and governments.
Q: Do you think that a societal change in perspective from viewing nature as something that’s optional into a necessity is something we will accomplish, and what role do businesses play in this?
A: The relationship between the consumer, and businesses and governments is very symbiotic. In an ideal world where we’re moving toward a more purpose-led economy, they should support each other to become better. As consumers, we need to be constantly scrutinizing and demanding more environmental accountability from businesses. If there’s a certain amount of pressure, businesses--and governments where the people are afforded political power-- will have to step up. Whether we get there or not, we must have the hope that change can happen and do everything we can to be part of that change at whatever scale, even if we can’t affect the global picture.
Q: How can we support and encourage the travel industry to move toward becoming more regenerative?
A: In the same way we can vote with our wallets, we can consume content created by the type of business that we want to succeed. We have power in saying ‘this is the type of travel that we believe in and we want to see more of.’
There’s also a misconception that positive-impact travel is always high-budget, far flung, and exclusive, but a lot of the best examples of these regenerative experiences are grassroots and happening more within our own communities than we might realize. It’s almost more rewarding to support these because it helps your community, and you still get that same sense of travel where you get to meet new people and learn about the place on a much deeper level, but without any of the carbon emissions. I hope that with everyone staying closer to home more of these types of experiences will bubble up.
Q: What would you consider the difference between sustainable and regenerative travel? And what criteria or standards can travelers look for to determine if something is truly regenerative rather than merely a product of greenwashing?
A: Historically, sustainable travel has been about lessening our impact on the places we travel to, whereas regenerative travel is more about how we can have a positive impact. The climate crisis is now at a point where we no longer need to just lessen our impact but we need to actually look at holistic systemic change.
There are lots of travel certifications out there and they really differ in their credibility. Some are simply a marketing platform, some have basic requirements that a business must be able to check off in order to earn their badge, and then others involve a more rigorous approach that includes onsite assessments and continuing support to improve their framework as a whole. Because of this, it’s really hard for consumers to really know.
I would advise to start out by looking for any certification because it is a good indication of some level of commitment to sustainability, even if it’s not the most rigorous certification standard. I would also scrutinize whether there is consistency in messaging about sustainability across their social media, website, etc. If there isn’t, to me it would show that a regenerative, sustainable approach perhaps isn’t central to their mission. With the level of scrutiny among modern consumers, it’s vital for businesses doing good work to share it across every platform they have.
Q: In your book you pose the question, “will we only be moved to protect the world if we experience it?” Do you think that storytelling has an important role in helping people without travel privilege feel connected to places worth protecting?
A: I think storytellers play a huge role. Right now we’re leaning on this old concept that the more information people have about something, the more compelled they’ll be to act. The difference with the climate crisis is that it’s such a massive, all-consuming issue that more information only makes us feel paralyzed. We need solutions; we need positive examples of what we can do to make a difference. I really hope that the travel media shifts from the historical tendency to make things seem fluffy and nice into storytelling with more responsibility to report from various parts of the world. We have to feel connected with the impacts of the climate crisis and with potential solutions.
Q: What was your favorite part about writing the book and what impact do you hope that it has on readers?
A: One of my favorite parts of writing this book was that I got the opportunity to genuinely celebrate all the people and businesses that I think are doing brilliant things. I interviewed quite a lot of people for the book -- everyone from rangers working out in the field to people like Celine Cousteau who’s the ambassador for the Treadright foundation.
About Holly Tuppen
Holly is a freelance writer and responsible travel expert who has specialized in sustainable travel since circumnavigating the world without flying in 2010. Former Editor of Green Hotelier and Communications Manager for the International Tourism Partnership, Holly now writes for the likes of The Guardian and Conde Nast Traveller, as well as helping travel companies and hotels to have a more positive impact. She’s also Communications Manager for conservation-led travel organization, The Long Run.
Holly’s debut book, Sustainable Travel: The Essential Guide to Positive Impact Adventures, was published by Quarto Knows in June 2021. The book is available from all online platforms and most retailers and guides the reader through making more responsible travel decisions. Its packed with inspiration and practical info.