These projects in Nepal and India allowed PATA to completely offset its events emissions from 2023. Photo Credit: Adobe Stock/Sudarsan Thobias
The Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) has offset emissions from
all its in-person events from 2023 through two projects in South Asia,
selected and offset with the support of PATA member Sustainable Travel
International, a global non-profit organisation promoting responsible
tourism and supporting the sustainable development of destinations
worldwide.
PATA places emphasis on avoiding and mitigating events emissions
through the selection of the destination, the venue's location and its
sustainability efforts, the proximity of official hotels to the venue,
and availability of public transport, among other strategies. For
emissions that cannot be completely eliminated, PATA supports credible
local carbon offset projects.
The first project, Tamil Nadu Wind Farm in India, entailed the
installation of a 249.9 MW wind power project aimed at generating clean
electricity through renewable wind energy. Over its initial 10-year
crediting period, spanning from 2018 to 2028, it is estimated to
annually displace approximately 707,515 metric tons of CO2 equivalent
emissions (MTCO2e) by substituting electricity that fossil fuel-based
power plants would otherwise generate within the Indian grid.
This allowed PATA to offset 139.51 MTCO2e from the PATA Destination
Forum and Mart which took place in Kuching, Malaysia, in June 2023, and
86.41 MTCO2e from the PATA Travel Mart held in Delhi, India, in October
2023.
The second project was the Improved Cookstove initiative, which
dedicated to replacing traditional, inefficient cookstoves with clean
cookstoves to mitigate household air pollution, and has been operational
since 2018 across ten districts in Nepal.
The Improved Cookstove Project has enabled PATA to offset 108 MTCO2e
from the PATA Annual Summit & Adventure Mart, held in Pokhara,
Nepal, in late May 2023. Both the Tamil Nadu Wind Farm and the Improved
Cookstove projects are registered and certified by Verra, a non-profit
organisation founded in 2007 and headquartered in Washington, D.C. that
operates standards in environmental and social markets, including the
world’s leading carbon crediting programme, the Verified Carbon Standard
(VCS).
PATA CEO Noor Ahmad Hamid said: “By choosing to offset our 2023
events' emissions in India and Nepal, two destinations where they were
generated, we are not only taking direct accountability but also
investing in local sustainability initiatives. This decision reflects
our commitment to support the communities where we operate and
underscores our dedication to environmental stewardship on a global
scale.”