The best travel apps: Carbon Offsets

Updated over 1 year ago

Air travel constitutes 2% of global greenhouse gasses. It's not the biggest piece of the pie, but it's enough we should consider buying carbon offsets to minimize our impact. They aren't perfect: critics like to say offsets imply we're "neutralizing" our impact when in reality you can't actually "take it back." It's already happened #nobacksies. Instead, you end up just paying someone else to cut their emissions so you don't have to.

It's true to an extent. The "ideal" solution is to not fly, but that's ultimately impractical. We often have to fly, like for business. Most people also aren't going to instantly change their habits overnight. Making it easy to buy high quality offsets is a lot better than nothing, and the increased awareness will ultimately help nudge us all in the right direction.

Tip

Some major airlines, like United and Delta, let you purchase offsets when booking your flights as an add on which can be easier.

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ClimateCare Carbon Calculator

Step 1: Calculate your carbon emissions

This straightforward calculator will tell you how much carbon emissions your flight or drive created.

There are a lot of carbon calculators, so why'd we choose this one? First, we wanted the calculation to be reasonable. After trying out 6 different recommended ones, ClimateCare's was in the middle. Second, ClimateCare is frequently cited as one of the most reputable climate change organizations.

NativeEnergy

Step 2: Buy carbon offsets

Take the carbon amount ClimateCare's calculator gave you (in tonnes) and then stick it into NativeEnergy's "Buy Now" option on the top right. Check out and you're done!

Why did we choose NativeEnergy? It's frequently cited by high reputation organizations like the Sierra Club as one of the best carbon offset vendors: they have high impact projects and are transparent.

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