Australian-based tour operator, Intrepid Travel, who offers tours to southern and East Africa, has introduced a carbon labelling initiative that discloses the carbon footprint on more than 500 of its tours, including its top 100 trips.

The initiative aims to better educate travellers about the impact their trips are having on the environment, which will help them make more informed decisions about travel and choosing certain products and services.

The new carbon labels are displayed on each individual trip page on the company's website by showing the total CO₂-e (carbon dioxide equivalent) of the trip per traveller per day.

The emissions are calculated to include the overall carbon footprint, including accommodations, transportation, food provided during the trip, activities, the local operations' office emissions and waste. The number is then increased by 15% to account for anything not initially calculated.

A study commissioned by the company found that 64% of adults worldwide had no idea what their carbon footprint was, while another 60% were more likely to book trips with a company that was transparent about their environmental impact. The study also found that only 38% found it easy to find that information. 

"Without higher government regulations or the need for Environmental, Social and Governance disclosure, it is nearly impossible to hold businesses accountable for reducing their emissions. We cannot shy away from our impact, and we cannot effectively reduce what we do not measure. With carbon labelling, we can increase customers' understanding of their footprint while advocating for this level of measurement and transparency to become an industry standard," said Sara King, GM of Purpose for Intrepid Travel.

In addition to the roll-out of carbon labels, Intrepid will continue to develop lower carbon itineraries. In 2024, it will have approximately 4 000 fewer flights on trips (compared with this year) and will discontinue all scenic flights.