19 minute read
RESPONSIBLE TRAVELLER
‘Dubai Can’ initiative to reduce singleuse plastic bottle use launches
His Highness Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Dubai Crown Prince and Chairman of e Executive Council of Dubai, has launched ‘Dubai Can’, a citywide sustainability movement designed to inspire people to make a di erence through a series of initiatives.
It’s being implemented by Dubai’s Department of Economy and Tourism (DET), encouraging UAE residents to turn the tide on plastic and inspire mass action to actively reduce the use of singleuse plastic bottles. ‘Dubai Can’ seeks to motivate communities across the city to undertake simple changes such as using re llable water bottles and public water stations and installing water lters in their homes, o ces and schools. “ e initiative seeks to encourage citizens, residents and visitors to be active players in building a more sustainable future, and to contribute to saving wildlife and the marine environment,” said His Excellency Helal Saeed Al Marri, Director General of the DET.
“We hope Dubai Can will set in motion a new environmental movement across our city and the wider UAE, transforming the mindsets of people so that we can achieve positive change for a more sustainable future.”
‘Dubai Can’ bolsters Dubai’s drive to become one of the world’s most sustainable cities, in line with the Dubai 2040 Urban Masterplan. e initiative also supports Dubai’s commitment to meeting
450
plastic water bottles used per UAE resident annually
4 billion
plastic water bottles used annually in the UAE
400
years is the time it takes for one plastic bottle to decompose 1.1 million
marine creatures globally die per year due to plastic waste
94kg of plastic consumed annually by the average person in the UAE
Sources: DET and Emirates Nature WWF1 the UAE’s UN Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs) and achieving UAE NetZero 2050 initiative. ‘Dubai Can’ also complements the policy recently approved by e Executive Council of Dubai to limit single-use bags. As per the policy, a tari of 25 ls will be imposed on single-use bags used for carrying goods, starting from July 1, 2022. e policy will be evaluated over several stages until single-use carrier bags are completely banned within a span of two years.
With Dubai’s 2040 Urban Masterplan set to increase the length of public beaches by as much as 400 per cent and Dubai’s nature reserves and natural areas to be boosted to 60 per cent of the emirate too, ‘Dubai Can’ will help lay the groundwork for positive change and support sustainable communities for generations to come, said DET.
Residents and visitors to Dubai will have access to more than 30 water stations across the city as part of this initiative, with prime public locations including beaches, parks, malls and major attractions. e drinking water from the stations will be kept cool at a temperature of 10°C o ering people a refreshing, clean and safe alternative, while also driving a ‘re ll culture’.
All water stations across the city will provide the highest standards of hygiene and maintain strict adherence to municipal, healthcare and federal regulations. is includes providing clean and safe drinking water, which will be tested in accordance with Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), GCC and World Health Organisation (WHO) standards.
MSC Cruises to base its new and most environmentally advanced ship in the UAE
THE UAE WILL BE the base for the largest and most environmentally high-performing passenger ship to sail in the Middle East, MSC World Europa, from next winter.
The vessel’s Swiss-based owner and operator, MSC, will also dedicate a second ship, MSC Opera, to the Gulf region for the 2022/23 sailing season with a view to becoming the region’s number-one cruise line for holidays at sea.
From December, MSC World Europa will be based in the UAE, o ering seven-night cruises from Dubai and Abu Dhabi to Sir Bani Yas Island, Dammam in Saudi Arabia and Doha in Qatar.
MSC Opera will operate a di erent itinerary from Dubai and Abu Dhabi with visits to Sir Bani Yas Island, as well as Muscat and Khasab in Oman. The seven-night cruise finishes with an overnight stay in Dubai.
MSC World Europa is currently under construction at the Chantiers de l’Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France and will be delivered in October 2022 before she sets sail for the Arabian Gulf to operate cruises from December until March 2023. The 2,626-cabin vessel will be able to accommodate up to 6,762 passengers and will be powered by liquified natural gas (LNG), the first vessel in MSC Cruises’ fleet to use the cleanest fuel currently available at scale for ocean cruise ships.
MSC Cruises said shares the UAE’s ambition to reach net zero emissions by 2050 and the LNG-powered MSC World Europa represents a major milestone in the company’s strategy to achieve its goal of eradicating carbon emissions.
Etihad Airways adopts Boeing digital solution to up B787 e iciency
BOEING HAS BEEN selected to provide Etihad Airways with the Jeppesen FliteDeck Advisor digital solution for the carrier’s 787 Dreamliner eet to optimise operational e ciency and reduce fuel consumption.
Etihad has already found bene ts from the use of FliteDeck Advisor. During a trial on several of its 787 Dreamliners, the airline found that the digital solution delivered cruise fuel savings of 1.4 per cent, saving an average of 350 kilograms of fuel and 1,100 kilograms of CO2 per ight.
Since 2019, Boeing and Etihad have collaborated on sustainability e orts focused on the airline’s B787 Dreamliner eet, including on Etihad’s participation in Boeing’s ecoDemonstrator programme, where the FliteDeck Advisor solution was initially trialled. In 2021, the two companies renewed and expanded their sustainability alliance to focus on enhancing the e ciency of navigation and ight operations, airframe technologies and sustainable practices to reduce emissions.
With 39 Boeing Dreamliner airplanes currently in operation, Etihad is the largest operator in the Middle East of the 787, a family of airplanes designed with superior e ciency which allows airlines to pro tably open new routes to y people directly where they’d like to go in exceptional comfort.
Boeing’s strategy to decarbonise aerospace is focused on four key areas spanning eet renewal, operational e ciency, renewable energy and advanced technology.
DID YOU KNOW?
The 18 ‘energy trees’ around Terra – The Sustainability Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai, are made from 97 per cent recycled steel, supporting more than 1,055 solar panels, while Terra, designed by UK studio Grimshaw, is topped with a 135-metre-wide solar-panelcovered canopy. The pavilion can generate up to 4 gigawatt hours of electricity a year — enough to power about 370 average households.
Business travel, the responsible way
Employee travel is one of the business world’s greatest contributors to carbon emissions
HOW AIRLINES AND TRAVEL MANAGEMENT COMPANIES IN THE GULF ARE HELPING COMPANIES MEET SUSTAINABILITY TARGETS GEMMA GREENWOOD WORDS
Employee travel is one of the business world’s greatest contributors to carbon emissions, dominated by car and air travel. is was clearly demonstrated during the pandemic, which halted most commuting and travel, resulting in global cardon emissions dropping seven per cent, according to a recent report by the World
Economic Forum (WEF).
With travel now resuming – to the o ce and to meetings and business events domestically and overseas – there is an opportunity for businesses to introduce and implement policies that prioritise sustainable travel.
However, evidence suggests uptake of such policies is patchy.
A recent report by the Global
Business Travel Association (GBTA) found companies want to make their travel programmes more sustainable, with almost half (48 per cent) of those surveyed expecting an increased focus on the social and environmental impact of business travel post-pandemic.
But only 25 per cent cited social and environmental impact as one of their top three priorities and only one-third (35 per cent) have a sustainability programme that includes business travel.
GBTA found the most common practice was to measure the carbon footprint of all travel (58 per cent), but less than a quarter of those surveyed were implementing other sustainable travel measures.
Companies with large programmes were most likely to have a sustainable travel policy and to mandate sustainable suppliers, while those with mid-size programmes were more likely to use data to drive greener decisions.
While sustainable travel and actively seeking sustainable suppliers is not as common practice as it should be, in the GCC, key travel industry stakeholders, including airlines and Travel Management Companies (TMCs), are doing their utmost to help companies and their employees travel more responsibly and meet their carbon emission goals.
In the aviation sector, Abu Dhabibased Etihad Airways has earned a reputation as a sustainability pioneer, having rolled out several groundbreaking initiatives over the past few years, most recently programmes that make it easy for corporates to o set their travel and meet their Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance (ESG) targets.
“Most corporates have now netzero goals, but it’s hard to champion sustainability alone,” says Mariam Musallam AlQubaisi, Head of Sustainability and Business Excellence at Etihad Aviation Group (EAG).
“You can have more meaningful impact if you join hands with those who are like-minded; we need to do this together, and at Etihad, we work with our partners to help people make conscious choices.”
Choose Well
“As the national carrier of the UAE, we have a strong mandate to transition to maintain sustainable development, and Etihad has evolved into a carrier that is eco-friendly, without compromising on quality,” continues AlQubaisi.
ABOVE: Etihad’s Boeing 787 Greenliner LEFT: Employee travel is one of the business world’s greatest contributors to carbon emissions
Erik Magnuson, VP Product Management, Mobility & Payments, CWT
ABOVE: Emirates and GE Aviation will operate a B777 test flight with 100 per cent SAF later this year
“We carry 90 million passengers annually; that’s the eyes and ears of a captive audience of 90 million people who we can educate to travel sustainably. is is re ected in our new slogan, ‘Choose Well’.”
Etihad’s overarching sustainability ambition is to achieve net zero emissions by 2050 and halve 2019 emissions by 2035.
Since 2019, the carrier has been working with Boeing and GE to test new green technologies – including the use of sustainable alternative fuels (SAFs) and ecofriendly in- ight products, as well as optimising ight paths – on its Dreamliner eet, with a speciallythemed Boeing 787 Greenliner at the helm.
At November’s Dubai Airshow, Etihad announced it would be complementing its Greenliner programme with a similar initiative focused on maximising the opportunities presented by the inclusion of the Rolls Royce XWBpowered Airbus A350 eet. e airline’s rst A350 entered service at the end of last month.
Etihad has also received IATA Environmental Assessment stage 2 accreditation in four key operational areas: facilities management, ight operations, Etihad technical division, Etihad Catering Services. e IATA Environmental Assessment (IEnvA) programme is a blueprint for airlines to achieve sustainability in all air and ground operations. ese initiatives pave the way for Etihad’s sustainable growth, set benchmarks for other airlines, and of course, serve to reassure passengers that Etihad is doing its utmost to operate a green eet in the air and on the ground.
Conscious Choices
Building on this momentum, the airline has recently ramped up its activities to help travellers and businesses make ‘green’ choices, providing options to reduce their carbon footprint.
In December, its loyalty programme, Etihad Guest, launched Conscious Choices, rewarding travellers with Tier Miles and additional benefits for carrying less baggage on board and offsetting their flights’ carbon emissions using Etihad Guest Miles.
In their daily lives, when not flying, members can earn Tier Miles by offsetting everyday emissions such as driving, cooling their home or cooking meals; donating miles to a green cause; and by purchasing sustainable products from the Etihad Guest Reward Shop.
Hot off its heels, in January, Etihad launched Corporate Conscious Choices, designed to facilitate and deliver corporate partner sustainability goals through carbon offsetting, sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) investments and green surcharge fares.
The programme specifically targets organisations committed to reducing emissions and operating sustainably, with rewards and incentives designed to proactively support ESG initiatives and employee behaviour. Benefits span four core sustainability pillars: SAF Investment, Green Surcharges, Corporate Conscious Miles and Carbon Offsets.
This was quickly followed by the February launch of the Etihad Mangrove Forest in collaboration with Environment Agency Abu Dhabi (see page 13), offering guests, corporate accounts and partners the opportunity to adopt mangroves in Abu Dhabi to reduce their carbon footprint. Using a digital platform,
ABOVE: Etihad Mangrove Forest the Etihad Mangrove Forest will enable guests and partners to invest in carbon removal for AED 18.5 (US$5) per mangrove, where the individual trees can be tracked online or through an app. The guest receives a unique tree code, geolocation, and virtual access to their tree for the next 10 years, with the option to gift the tree to their loved ones and name the tree to create a one-of-a-kind experience and bond. The Etihad Mangroves Forest site has been chosen specifically due to its protected status under the Environment Agency Abu Dhabi, which guarantees its ability to remove carbon from the atmosphere for at least 100 years. Using the platform’s app, investors can ‘chat’ with their chatbot-enabled tree, while also being able to track every tree with satellite maps and access data, including CO2 consumption metrics, which can be tracked and offset against emissions.
Savio Vaz, Vice President – Government & Corporate Travel at dnata Travel Group
Emirates tests new fuels
Fellow UAE airline Emirates is also mapping out its strategy in support of the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA’s) industry commitment to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050.
“We do this through investment in the newest generation of aircra , which are set to be delivered from next year, maintaining a eet of young aircra that provide greater fuel e ciencies, supporting initiatives that contribute to the deployment of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) and we intend to operate a Boeing 777 test ight on 100 per cent SAF later this year for future certi cation,” it says.
Emirates will partner with GE Aviation to conduct the test ight, operated by an Emirates Boeing 777300 ER, powered by GE90 engines, and is expected to demonstrate how widebody commercial aircra using jet fuel made from alternative sources can lower lifecycle CO2 emissions compared to petroleum-based fuels with no operational issues.
Emirates is also participating in the Carbon O setting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA), as an interim strategy to address emissions that cannot yet be reduced by other means such as technology and SAF. e carrier says that while its current e orts are focused on reducing its own impact, it is looking into “various options to help those customers who would like to make more sustainable travel choices”.
“We are conscious that any programme that Emirates o ers must be of high quality, transparent and veri able,” adds the airline.
Like Etihad, Emirates acknowledges that in pursuit of net zero, “it is going to take the uni ed e orts of all stakeholders across the aviation and travel ecosystem to get there”.
TMC guidance takes centre stage
Travel Management Companies are playing a pivotal role in helping their clients make sustainable travel decisions.
For global Business Travel Management Company CWT, “seeking and surfacing environmentally responsible travel solutions is a primary focus”, according to Erik Magnuson, the rm’s VP Product Management, Mobility & Payments. “ e company has o ered robust sustainability analytics to its global customers for more than 10 years now and we continue to innovate in this space.”
In September 2020, CWT, which in the UAE is represented by CWT United Arab Emirates, independently owned and operated by Orient Travel, introduced responsible consulting to its clients, facilitated by its awardwinning ECO (Employee Climate & Organisation) framework.
“It provides guidance towards a truly balanced and sustainable approach to business travel,” says Magnuson. “Our recommended approach to responsible and sustainable travel to our clients is to remember their triple bottom line – People, Pro t, Planet.
BELOW: Companies require a holistic view of the carbon emissions impact of their corporate travel programmes
ECO measures employee wellbeing, climate impact and organisational performance.
“Most organisations would measure cost for pro t and carbon for planet, but the people element can o en get le behind in reporting and decision making,” says Magnuson. “ at is why we created a Traveller Wellbeing Index to numerically evaluate the impacts travel can have on an employee. is ensures that every recommendation or strategic change made to reduce climate impact will not have signi cant negative impacts on employee wellbeing, which we feel is critical in measuring sustainable success.”
In 2022, CWT plans to introduce built-in sustainability and traveller wellbeing initiatives. is responds to customer demand for sustainability information at point-of-booking and to help reinforce responsible travel choices
to their employees, with a CWT survey nding 87 per cent of global customers want this.
Net Zero targets
Magnuson says investors, employees and partners are scrutinising closer than ever before, a business’ targets and commitments to sustainability.
“Europe has led the way in sustainability standards and regulations, and we expect other regions to follow suit as demand for corporations to demonstrate tangible commitments increases in line with ‘net zero’ targets,” he says.
“Complete and accurate carbon reporting is therefore the number one tool for measuring sustainability progress and promoting best practices.”
CWT has developed a carbon emission calculation methodology speci cally for travel and notes that once organisations have an accurate CO2 data source and full understanding of their current travelrelated carbon footprint, they are “able to venture into more advanced levels of sustainability management”.
“For example, CWT helps deliver goal tracking and predictive analytics modelling to clients around their travel volumes and carbon footprint. Rebounding from COVID, organisations worldwide are beginning to resume travel with the added pressure of reducing their carbon impact.”
Magnuson says CWT’s clients are becoming much more sustainable travel policy savvy, with a global survey conducted last year revealing 67 per cent of customers acknowledged sustainability goals as more important since the pandemic.
Building on this momentum, educating CWT’s customer counsellor community to e ectively guide clients to develop the right policy components now is a focus, adds Magnuson, and to ensure they are housed within the TMC system, so they are accurately re ected at the point of booking.
Making the right supplier choices is crucial too, notes Magnuson.
“ at’s becoming table stakes in what customers are expecting,” he says. “We recently launched an innovative o setting programme with Etihad however, we are working with all carriers in the region and globally by helping our client’s access and choose suppliers against a common sustainability standard to establish a responsible travel programme.”
Data-driven results
inking on a similar wavelength, Savio Vaz, Vice President – Government & Corporate Travel at dnata Travel Group, part of the Emirates Group, says “purchasing corporate travel is a complex process, which includes multiple stakeholders and suppliers in the value chain”.
“Our approach at dnata Travel Management is to review every element of the customer journey, from airlines, hotels, transport providers, and others, to see how we can proactively drive positive change with suppliers and align to global standards when it comes to CO2 tracking and reporting,” he says.
“We are very proud our destination management division is a Travelifeaccredited partner, giving further creditability to the sustainable o erings we are providing to our customers across the board. We have also partnered with preferred technology providers to o er seamless hybrid meetings and events.”
Sustainable travel policy guidance is a key focus at dnata Travel Group, he notes, with account management teams providing information and guidelines around direct routes, working with greener eets and suppliers, and providing green travel options at the time of booking.
“We can also support our customers to accurately track travelrelated emissions baseline and future emissions targets. With this in mind, we are in the process of creating a ‘green’ dashboard for our customers through our online travel reporting solution, Travel Insight. is reporting enhancement will provide deeper insights into the key drivers that contribute to emissions, based on customer data. By making proactive changes to travel policies and traveller behaviour, our customers will have the ability to predict the positive impact that such changes will make on their emissions output.”
Vaz says the provision of quality data aligned to global standards will continue to remain a key priority for sustainable travel solutions in the foreseeable future.
“Customers require a holistic view of the carbon emissions impact of their corporate travel programmes. is is only possible if suppliers can provide accurate and timely data, which meets a benchmark in terms of standards,” he says.
“ e value of a TMC is to consolidate this data from multiple sources, make sense of it, and provide trusted advice and recommendations for our customers to achieve their sustainability goals.”
