The Travel Corporation (TTC) has introduced verified net-zero targets validated by the Science Based Target initiative (SBTi). The company has also introduced an internal carbon fund to achieve net zero. The group’s approach prioritizes reductions and eliminates the use of offsets, and its not-for-profit foundation, TreadRight, will move to prioritize nature-based solutions, in support of its three pillars: Planet, people and wildlife.
In 2020, TTC—which comprises brands such as Trafalgar, Contiki, Red Carnation Hotels and Uniworld—launched its sustainability strategy, How We Tread Right (HWTR), setting a goal to be carbon neutral by 2030. TTC’s climate goals have been backed by a five-point "Climate Action Plan" to measure, reduce, remove, offset and evolve. In 2021, several TTC brands including Contiki and the Radical Travel Group, consisting of Haggis Adventures and Highland Explorer Tours, announced that all trips would be carbon neutral, beginning in 2022.
In a major reset to its "Climate Action Plan," TTC has set ambitious carbon reduction targets and a carbon fund to invest in achieving net zero by 2050, replacing its goal to be carbon neutral by 2030. The targets are as follows:
- Reach net zero GHG emissions across the value chain by 2050 from a 2019 baseline year
- Reduce absolute Scope 1 and 2 GHG emissions 46.2 percent by 2030 from a 2019 base year
- Reduce absolute Scope 3 GHG emissions from purchased goods and services, business travel, and use of sold products 27.5 percent within the same timeframe
- Reduce absolute Scope 1, 2 and 3 GHG emissions 90 percent by 2050 from a 2019 base year
TTC’s "Climate Action Plan" has been reset to four points: Measure, reduce, restore and evolve; replacing both “remove” and “offset” with “restore.” For its part, TTC’s TreadRight Foundation will shift to prioritize nature-based carbon removal solutions that restore the planet, in an effort to address climate change as well as the rapid loss of biodiversity.
TTC has also announced the development of an internal carbon fund. This fund will be generated through revenue from TTC brands that will be used solely for initiatives that contribute to TTC’s net-zero journey.
- To achieve TTC’s science-based targets, TTC’s decarbonization plan identifies five key areas of focus for the business’s carbon reduction efforts:
- Reduce energy use and transition to low-carbon technology at Red Carnation Hotels
- Generate and utilize renewable energy across all offices and facilities
- Reduce fuel emissions from Uniworld ships
- Secure zero-emission vehicles for TTC’s Tour Brands
- Reduce the carbon footprint of trips in collaboration with the supply chain and destinations
“Climate science tells us that we need rapid and deep emissions cuts if we are to achieve global net-zero and prevent the most damaging effects of climate change,” said Luiz Amaral, CEO of the Science Based Targets initiative. “The Travel Corporation’s net-zero targets match the urgency of the climate crisis and set a clear example that their peers must follow.”
TTC will publicly report on its carbon fund, alongside its progress against its science-based targets in future annual impact reports, with its next report due in the first half of 2023 on 2022 progress.
For more information, visit impact.ttc.com.
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