350.0rg

350.org is an international campaign that's building a movement to unite the world around solutions to the climate crisis--the solutions that science and justice demand.

350's mission is to inspire the world to rise to the challenge of the climate crisis—to create a new sense of urgency and of possibility for our planet. Our focus is on the number 350--as in parts per million CO2. If we can't get below that, scientists say, the damage we're already seeing from global warming will continue and accelerate. But 350 is more than a number--it's a symbol of where we need to head as a planet.

The 10/10/10 is a day of work parties and awareness for climate change across the globe.....we are busy planning a day of action in Richards Bay, interested in getting involved, have some good ideas on how we can get people to take action to slow climate change? Then contact us, we are keen to hear from you and get you involved ! Click here to contact us

News updates

There have been two new developments on the WE TRY Campaign, firstly, ETC-Africa has been accredited as Carbon Footprint Assessors with the Carbon Protocol of South Africa, giving our clients the confidence that our work meets the highest global standards!

We have also developed a new half-day course on environmental issues for companies wanting to go "green" - this course is a free benefit to all members of the WE TRY campaign. By keeping employees involved in the sustainability of a company, we believe that you create bonding and job satisfaction at the same time. This is key to ensuring buy in for any "green initiatives" your company wants to implement, staff and management need to understand the issues they are dealing with. These courses are specifically tailored to individual company needs.

Click here for more information

Reducing global warming with white roofs

Innovations to reduce global warming are wonderful to see. Last week I was inspired by a parking lot that made all its covers from solar panels, this week I noticed an article in the September Edition of Popular Mechanics that outlines the impact of painting roofs in cities white ....quite impressive impact and so simple!

http://www.physorg.com/news140875649.html

At Source Carbon Tax for South Africa

.....first it was a carbon tax on vehicle emissions implemented in 2010. Now treasury, in its quest for a low carbon economy is proposing an at source carbon tax for industry. (read more here)

The next step will inevitably be a carbon tax on business, especially those that are not operating efficiently or taking steps to reduce their footprint. Exactly how this will work and be structured is a relative unknown, but rest assured, its coming and the time to get ahead of the pack is now!

Read more about potential Carbon Tax in South Africa here

More on Carbon Tax in South Africa from Moneyweb

Zululand Heritage Route (Route 66) Tourism Survey

The Zululand Heritage Route (Route 66) is an exciting community tourism development project of uThungulu and Zululand District Municipalities in partnership with Tourism KZN. ETC-Africa have been recruited as consultants to drive the project forward and provide direction in terms of marketing, product development, community development and SMME development along the route.

In order to better understand the current perceptions (or lack thereof) of the route and tourism in Zululand we have compiled a short questionnaire. If you are interested in tourism in Zululand or visited before or even have a business in the area, please consider taking 10 minutes to complete our survey by clicking the following link: http://www.kwiksurveys.com/online-survey.php?surveyID=KCMMKI_c6bf881c

Why should immediate action be taken against climate change?

(Article courtesy of ClimateAfrica)

Scientists have developed a number of risk scenarios for various atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations. Even the most optimistic of these provide dire warnings; without significant reduction in emissions during the next 20-30 years catastrophic climate change is very likely. It is vital that individuals, businesses and countries take responsibility for their emissions and do everything in their power to reduce and manage them. The effects of climate change The extent of change predicted by climate models is uncertain, but known effects will include:

Irreversible loss of many animal and plant species.
Sea level rises with many dangerous results (such as submersion of low lying land masses like the Maldives and salt-contaminated fresh water supplies).
Drought and flooding that will negatively impact water supplies and agriculture.
Water scarcity for communities that depend on glaciers (which are already melting rapidly in many parts of the world).
Climate change, whilst largely created in the developed world, poses the greatest risk to those in the developing world who have fewer resources for adapting to the global warming problem.

How will the poorest people on the planet deal with storms, floods, droughts and disease outbreaks?

Furthermore, the problems faced by the developing world will not be limited to national borders. The developed world increasingly depends on developing nations for minerals and agricultural products. Scarcity of resources risks war and mass population migration. Climate change is an international problem and not just a regional and local one.

Responsible Tourism in South Africa

Responsible Tourism, one of those phrases often heard and thrown about, but seldom understood and effectively practiced in a South African context. What is responsible tourism? The South African White Paper on Development and Promotion of Tourism describes responsible tourism as: "Tourism that promotes responsibility to the environment through its sustainable use; responsibility to involve local communities in the tourism industry; responsibility for the safety and security of visitors and responsible government, employees, employers, unions and local communities."

Just how important is "Responsible Tourism" in the South Africa context? A recent survey by the online travel newsletter, Travel News Now ran a pole asking: "Do your clients favour tourism products that practice responsible tourism?” The results, a staggering 69% responded YES!

However, a question that often gets asked is; “but tourists never ask us about responsible tourism when booking, so why do it?" the short and simple answer to this is that tourists expect tourism product owners to be operating in a responsible manner, if they do not experience this during their visit, they are unlikely to return or recommend your product to friends and family

Tourism KwaZulu-Natal recently produced a report on the state of Responsible Tourism, the concluding remarks say it all:

"This paper attempts to provide an overview of the accommodation industry’s understanding of and response to the desire for responsible travel on the part of tourists. By all accounts, South Africa and KwaZulu-Natal lag far behind many other countries in the world at this time. However, there are signs that some organizations, and even a few in the tourism arena, are beginning to become aware of the importance of responsible tourism practices, both in terms of conscience and in terms of economics. It simply makes monetary sense!"

Deloitte, the international consulting firm, published a report on the 7th of June about the top trends that will influence the hospitality industry in the coming years. The report focuses on 7 key trends among which is of course sustainability.

According the report: "Sustainability will become a defining issue for the industry in 2015 and beyond. Rising populations and increasingly scarce resources will provide a challenging business environment in which sustainability will need to be embedded within all facets of the hospitality industry."

Read more here: http://www.hotelworldnetwork.com/industry-research/deloitte-identifies-7-trends-will-shape-industrys-future-8336

It seems responsible tourism is here to stay and certainly not a passing fad!

To download the entire Tourism KZN report, please click here