ICTP applauds Sir Richard Branson’s commitment to green aviation

Hawaii, USA; BRUSSELS, Belgium; VICTORIA, Seychelles; BALI, Indonesia – In our second Letters from Leaders from the book, “Green Growth and Travelism,” Sir Richard Branson sets out the reasons why

Hawaii, USA; BRUSSELS, Belgium; VICTORIA, Seychelles; BALI, Indonesia – In our second Letters from Leaders from the book, “Green Growth and Travelism,” Sir Richard Branson sets out the reasons why the aviation industry can deal with its carbon emission challenges and the actions that his airlines are taking to do just this.

Sir Richard says in summary “As the founder of a number of airlines, I am determined that we grow responsibly, and keep working hard to find new solutions that will make low-carbon aviation possible in the foreseeable future. Today, we are very focused on fuel efficiency; reducing both the demand for fuel and carbon emissions … investing in new efficient aircraft, as well as making changes to operational and maintenance procedures. … We are also looking at alternative fuels that have a lower carbon footprint. …

Personally, I believe the airline industry can go from being a polluting industry to one of the cleanest industries in the world within 10 years. Unlike other industries it only has 1,800 fuel pumps to fuel the world’s aircraft, and, therefore, once clean fuels are ready for delivery, it is easy to transform the whole industry. …

With a highly-regulated industry like aviation, policy has a large impact on how efficiently businesses operate, and whether innovation is promoted or penalized.

Cap and trade is much more environmentally-effective and cost-efficient than taxation for reducing carbon emissions. It incentivizes fuel efficiencies, and the funds can be used for both climate change mitigation and adaptation schemes. The airlines also have large social impacts – I believe that locals should benefit as much as visitors from tourism, and we should ensure that the resorts we enjoy today are preserved for others to enjoy in the future. … It’s important for us to stay positive in the fight against carbon and in attempting to overcome all problems. As I’ve said before – Martin Luther King did not get his message across by saying ‘I have a nightmare!’

Professor Geoffrey Lipman, ICTP President, said: “We strongly support this view of the future. It is why in 2013 we will be focusing our work on climate change within our overall green growth mission on highlighting positive action our members are taking to respond positively to the challenges. Our carnival- and sports-focused initiatives, led by Alston Koch with his song ‘We can beat this Climate Change,’ will be at the heart of our campaign.”

Sir Richard’s article can be accessed at www.greengrowth2050.com – Comments welcome.

Letters from Leaders available from Amazon and on www.goodfellowpublishers.com

ABOUT ICTP

The International Coalition of Tourism Partners (ICTP) is a grassroots travel and tourism coalition of global destinations committed to quality service and green growth. ICTP engages communities and their stakeholders to share quality and green opportunities including tools and resources, access to funding, education, and marketing support. ICTP advocates sustainable aviation growth, streamlined travel formalities, fair coherent taxation, and investments for jobs. ICTP supports the UN Millennium Development Goals, the UN World Tourism Organization’s Global Code of Ethics for Tourism, and a range of programs that underpin them. ICTP has destination members in Anguilla; Aruba; Australia; Bangladesh; Belgium, Belize; Brazil; Canada; Caribbean; China; Croatia; Cyprus; Ecuador; Egypt; (The) Gambia; Georgia; Germany; Ghana; Greece; Grenada; India; Indonesia; Iran; Italy; Jordan; Kenya; Korea (South); La Reunion (French Indian Ocean); Malawi; Malaysia; Mauritius; Mexico; Morocco; (The) Netherlands; Nicaragua; Nigeria; Northern Mariana Islands (USA Pacific Island Territory); Romania; Sultanate of Oman; Pakistan; Palestine; Philippines; Portugal; Rwanda; Seychelles; Sierra Leone; South Africa; Sri Lanka; St. Eustatius (Dutch Caribbean); St. Kitts; St. Lucia; Sudan; Swaziland; Tajikistan; Tanzania; Trinidad & Tobago; Uganda; USA; Yemen; Zambia; and Zimbabwe.

For more information, go to: www.tourismpartners.org .

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Linda Hohnholz

Editor in chief for eTurboNews based in the eTN HQ.

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