Even The Great Barrier Reef is affected by everything you do, everything you consume, everything you waste. (Photo: Flickr @boblinsdell)

The UN has decreed 2017 the year of sustainable tourism. It’s a tricky balance, protecting the very assets that attract onlookers and admirers from–onlookers and admirers, plus far-away threats such as pollution and ozone depletion. It’s also a tough sell–witness the fall of the Fathom cruise line, which promised socially and eco-conscious tourism to the Dominican Republic and Cuba, yet didn’t quite jibe with hardcore cruisers or deeply committed activists and environmentalists.

Wolfgang M. Neumann, Board member of Rezidor Hotel Group and Chairman of the International Tourism Partnership (ITP), said in a press release: “With 2017 having been named the International Year of Sustainable Tourism by the UN, ITP decided to launch this year our ‘2030 Long Term Sustainability Targets for the Hotel Industry’. This is the ideal moment to communicate these ambitions that focus around four areas:

1. Water Sustainability
2. Carbon Reduction
3. Human Rights
4. Youth Employment”

You can make any trip environmental by paying attention to how you travel. Don’t waste resources, don’t waste trips, spend money on sustainable goods, and when it’s tough, make the most environmentally responsible choice. While we can still travel. While there are still beautiful places to see.