Aito launches climate crisis think tank to 'redesign' travel

Delegates at the association’s Alive and Kicking virtual conference on Tuesday (15 December) heard how the recently formed Aito Climate Crisis group would seek to “contribute to the essential decrease in global warming, whilst continuing to promote the benefits of meaningful travel”.

Director Derek Moore said the think tank would focus on issues such as overtourism, consumer travel practices and curbing carbon emissions and work alongside Aito’s Sustainable Tourism Committee.

“We feel that Aito has a duty to use our position in the industry to draw attention to these harmful effects and foster the improvement of our sector’s behaviour,” he said.

Moore revealed Aito had partnered with other travel trade association such as Lata, Atta, Pata and Bar UK to move its agenda forward and lobby politicians in the UK and overseas.

Reflecting on what he called the industry’s “most immediately critical issue” in the rapid growth of aviation, Moore argued that technological advancement to make aircraft greener would not be enough to offset an increasing volume of air travel

He also stressed the importance of working with airlines to expand at a sustainable rate.