In the lead up to Earth Day, Travel Indochina has released figures about its carbon offsetting program, indicating that more than 900 passengers have travelled on carbon neutral Small Group Journeys during the first three months of the year, with offsets equivalent to 310,000 kilograms of CO2 emissions.

Managing Director of Travel Indochina, Paul Hole, says the offsetting program is but one part of the company’s Responsible Tourism ethos, which covers environmental, social and educational aspects.

“We have been working with Cleaner Climate for several years now to minimise our environmental footprint, and the offset journey program is a key component of that program,” says Paul.

“Our entire Responsible Travel ethos is about ensuring we have a minimal impact on the destinations we travel to, and the impact we do have is a positive one. That means importantly, the offsets that we have been investing in contribute directly to projects within our destination region.

“Two projects within our stable of offsets include a renewable energy hydro electric power project in Dak Rung, Western Central Vietnam with investment in the local community, and a large scale wind farm in Hebei province, China, to decrease the reliance on coal fired power stations.”

Travellers can select one of nine offset Small Group Journey itineraries, which include the Highlights of Vietnam, Temples of Angkor and Highlights of Laos journeys, and which are indicated by the ‘footprint’ symbol on the website.