Applied Sustainable Travel Practices

This unit guides learners to apply sustainable, ethical, and culturally respectful travel practices through hands-on planning and analysis, supporting local businesses, animal welfare, and slow-travel principles. Learners study global case examples to identify transferable strategies and prepare for capstone projects or workplace implementation in the travel and tourism industry.

Learning Objectives

• Analyze environmental, cultural, and economic impacts of different travel choices by comparing at least three travel scenarios using sustainability indicators (e.g., carbon footprint, community benefit, wildlife welfare).
• Apply principles of slow travel, cultural respect, and ethical tourism to design a sustainable multi-day itinerary for a selected destination that specifies supplier choices, community engagement activities, and measurable sustainability goals.
• Demonstrate the ability to evaluate travel companies and tourism products using recognized sustainability criteria and certifications, and produce evidence-based recommendations for ethical consumer choices.
• Evaluate international case studies (e.g., Costa Rica, Bhutan, Rwanda, Finland, Slovenia, Aotearoa/New Zealand, Borneo, Argentina, Greece, Scotland) to identify three transferable policies or business practices and create an action plan to support local economies and reduce negative impacts.