Sustainable Tourism: Avoiding Plastic Bottles

Plastic bottles and their damage to the environment

The world is constantly changing. This affects a thousand factors that make us human, whether social, political, or even environmental factors.

As time goes by, human beings are more aware through the use of social networks, of how the planet is affected by climatic factors that can end with the earth, our home.

One problem that directly affects our environment and nature is the excessive use of plastic.

According to the Oceanic Society, sustainable tourism can help to get rid of pollution by focusing on eradicating the use of plastics in many natural areas.

Furthermore, according to The Nature Conservatory, the production, and incineration of plastics are major contributors to climate change. Plastic waste also chokes our waterways, pollutes our oceans, kills wildlife, and infiltrates our food chain.

“If current trends continue, by 2050 there will be some 12 billion tons of plastic waste in our landfills or polluting the environment, the equivalent of nearly 80 million blue whales“.

This is a fact that, as travelers, citizens, and human beings, should alarm us. As lovers of nature and the deep admiration we have for it, it is our duty to take care of it as the mother it is for us.

But, how?

Eliminating plastic consumption quickly is almost impossible. However, with actions and implementations like the Water-To-Go team is doing, we can start thinking and contributing to a brighter future for ourselves and future generations.

At Vibe Adventures, we share the commitment to changing the world step-by-step. It may be difficult, but never impossible! Let’s keep admiring the beauties of our planet for many more years to come!

The use of plastic bottles in the Caribbean and in Central America

In Mexico and Central America, the consumption of plastic bottles is increasing. According to Alberto Pacheco, UN Environment expert, the Caribbean and the Central American Pacific are the seas that accumulate the largest amount of garbage in the entire American continent, mostly plastics.

“The problem with garbage is that it is transboundary, you throw it away in Panama but it can reach any other country. That is why it is useless for the effort to be made by only one country,” said the expert.

This allows us to observe that most of the plastic waste (mostly bottles) would end up polluting an entire continent.

This problem of not being sufficiently aware of the consumption of plastic bottles has gone very far due to the lack of ecological participation of companies with high power and income such as Coca-Cola, and Bonafont, among others.

Realizing that these companies and their exploitation of plastics cannot be stopped immediately, it is time to raise awareness and share tools such as those of Water-To-Go, to make a change both as individuals and as a community.

You can simply have with you any time you travel, a water bottle that may help you to stop buying plastic bottles. This also can make your trip more comfortable!

Let’s hope that as nature-loving travelers, we begin to opt for these options that allow us to reduce plastic bottles and the harm they cause to our planet Earth.

How to be a responsible traveler?

Indeed, to make a change and start being responsible travelers, we need a lot of awareness and education. Sustainable tourism can function with people’s cooperation and willingness to do better things for our planet.

In the Americas, there is still a lack of empathy and information about the serious damage to the planet caused by the consumption of plastic bottles. However, it is not a problem only in Latin America, it is a problem that concerns all human beings.

Some top 10 tips for being a responsible traveler are these below:

• Consume local products and services to promote development.
• Don’t discriminate and respect the culture wherever you go.
• Do not litter.
• Promote fair and dignified working conditions.
• Save different resources such as electricity and water.
• Take a Water-To-Go Bottle or a similar one with you wherever you go. Avoid continuing to contribute to pollution through plastic bottles.
• Choose sustainable agencies or tour operators.
• Choose well the transportation system you will use.
• Share your best tourism practices.
• Learn to listen to some pieces of advice from locals.

Vibe Adventure’s sustainable plan

At Vibe Adventures, we strive to make our tours educative and fulfilling, in which travelers can interact with local populations, learn about their traditions, and culture and connect with their core values.

This promotes tolerance between representatives of different countries/regions as they learn and better understand each other’s cultures.

At the same time, by visiting smaller off-the-beaten-track destinations, we support local employment, increase local travel consumption, and thus benefit the socio-economic development of communities. Among others, we are willing to contribute to achieving UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Some of our ways to achieve them are:

Good Health and Well-Being 👨‍⚕️

When organizing tours, apply best practices from already existing resources on health for guidance (e.g. those from WHO & WTTC).

Clean Water and Sanitation 💧

We educate travelers about appropriate water behaviors, explaining global water quality and scarcity issues (including those in Mexico), thus attempting to shift the negative implications of the use phase associated with many consumer products.

Responsible Consumption and Production 💡

We implement tourism products and services that appropriately address sustainability trends.

Climate Action 🌎

We retrofit the lighting systems of the facilities to energy-efficient LED lighting and reduce the internal demand for transport by prioritizing telecommunications and incentivizing a mixed (office/home) working scheme. 

Life Below Water 🌊

During tours in the coastal areas, we raise travelers’ awareness of effective ways to properly dispose of their waste to discourage littering promote responsible behavior, and grab their attention about illicit practices that put marine species and resources at further risk of harm, exploitation, or depletion.

Life on Land ⛰️

During hiking tours, we educate travelers on proper behaviors when visiting forests or natural areas, including interaction with local cultures. 

Partnerships for the Goals ✅

We stick to and promote the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism to both our customers and service providers.

Finally…

saying this, we love cooperating with different companies with the same vision, we can encourage people to change their habits to save our only natural home. The Earth.

Comment below, which other tips would you recommend to get rid of plastic bottles and to be a responsible traveler?

Which other options are important for having sustainable tourism?

Let us know below!