Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
57
General Resources for Green Travel
In addition to the resource for Tokyo listed above, the following websites pro-
vide valuable wide-ranging information on sustainable travel. For a list of even
more sustainable resources, as well as tips and explanations on how to travel
greener, visit www.frommers.com/planning.
• Responsible Travel
(www.responsibletravel.com) is a great source of sus-
tainable travel ideas; the site is run by a spokesperson for ethical tourism
in the travel industry.
Sustainable Travel International
(www.sustainable
travelinternational.org) promotes ethical tourism practices and manages
an extensive directory of sustainable properties and tour operators around
the world.
• In the U.K.,
Tourism Concern
(www.tourismconcern.org.uk) works to reduce
social and environmental problems connected to tourism. The
Association
of Independent Tour Operators
(
AITO;
www.aito.co.uk) is a group of
specialist operators leading the field in making holidays sustainable.
• In Canada,
www.greenlivingonline.com
offers extensive content on how
to travel sustainably, including a travel and transport section and profiles
of the best green shops and services in Toronto, Vancouver, and Calgary.
• In Australia, the national body that sets guidelines and standards for eco-
tourism is
Ecotourism Australia
(www.ecotourism.org.au).
The Green
Directory
(www.thegreendirectory.com.au),
Green Pages
(www.thegreen
pages.com.au), and
Eco Directory
(www.ecodirectory.com.au) offer sustain-
able travel tips and directories of green businesses.
•
Carbonfund
(www.carbonfund.org),
TerraPass
(www.terrapass.org), and
Carbon Neutral
(www.carbonneutral.org) provide info on “carbon offset-
ting,” or offsetting the greenhouse gas emitted during flights.
•
Greenhotels
(www.greenhotels.com) recommends green-rated member
hotels around the world that fulfill the company's stringent environmental
requirements; although there are no member hotels in Japan, the website
describes what it means to be a green hotel.
Environmentally Friendly
Hotels
(www.environmentallyfriendlyhotels.com) offers more green accom-
modations ratings, including three in Tokyo.
•
Volunteer International
(www.volunteerinternational.org) has a list of
questions to help you determine the intentions and the nature of a volun-
teer program. For general info on volunteer travel, including opportunities
in Japan, see www.volunteerabroad.com/Japan.cfm.
3
hybrids, however, with Toyota introducing
the Prius many years back and Honda's
Insight now the best-selling car in Japan.
For a look at sustainability in Japan and
grass-root organizations, or to get involved,
go to www.greenz.jp.
