World Environment Day (5 June): a South African programme is changing how the tourism industry thinks about its impact

A South African-led initiative is redefining what it means to be a responsible traveller and it’s not about skipping the trip.

DURBAN, 1 June 2026:  With World Environment Day observance on June 5, tourism and travel will no doubt be top of the list of discussions around its impact on the environment and climate change. Down on the southern tip of Africa, a quiet yet significant shift is underway, changing how the tourism industry thinks about its impact

A pioneering pilot programme led by travel company kimkim, in partnership with the Wilderness Leadership School, ETC Africa, and The Eco Travel Boutique, is helping 25 South African tourism properties measure, understand, and reduce their carbon footprints and giving travellers the tools to make their trips count for more.

South Africa’s wild landscapes are doing more than they look like they’re doing. For example, the Kruger National Park alone, roughly the size of Wales, or the state of New Jersey stores hundreds of millions of tonnes of carbon in its soils, trees, and grasslands. These ecosystems are functioning climate infrastructure, and they depend on communities having a tangible economic reason to protect them. Ethical tourism, structured to channel real revenue into local employment and conservation, is one of the most effective tools for ensuring that reason exists. The question isn’t whether to visit, it’s whether your visit makes the place stronger.

Rhino Sands: Nestled within pristine riverine forest and thoughtfully designed to minimize environmental impact, Rhino Sands blends into the natural landscape, offering an immersive wilderness experience while helping to protect the delicate ecosystems that make the African bush so extraordinary. Credit Rhino Sands

“The greatest environmental challenge isn’t travel it’s disconnection,” says Duncan Pritchard, Director of ETC Africa. “When guests witness wildlife, engage with local communities, or simply stand in a wild place, that’s when real conservation commitment takes root. Measuring a property’s carbon footprint gives that commitment a measurable backbone and the early data from this pilot has been revealing. Off-grid properties are achieving, on average, half the per-bed-night emissions of their on-grid equivalents. And across the programme, properties that actively measure and manage their footprint are seeing emissions reductions of more than 20%  not through radical overhaul, but through the simple discipline of paying attention.”

“Our goal with every traveller is to help them connect to the community and culture of their destination,” says Kaelyn Harris-Vincent, Brand Marketing at kimkim. “When tourism is done thoughtfully, it really can be a force for good. By year’s end, every participating property will carry Verified Impact branding  so travellers can see exactly what their stay is contributing to.” 

Programmes like this one can only do so much. The properties are doing the work, measuring, reducing, verifying. But the traveller is the other half of the equation. And the most impactful choices available to guests are often the least obvious ones.

In Toto Retreat: At properties such as In Toto Retreat on the Garden Route, sustainability is embedded in everyday operations, where small, thoughtful decisions combine to create a measurable positive impact for both people and the planet. Credit In Toto Retreat

Eight Things Most Travellers Never Think to Do (But Should)

Beyond the basics, here’s what the most impactful travellers actually do differently:

1.    Ask where the food comes from. Food transport accounts for more than 10% of total greenhouse gas emissions at most remote safari properties. Ask whether produce is sourced locally and know that locally raised meat can have a lower carbon footprint than vegetables flown in from overseas. Local sourcing matters more than the type of food on the menu. Properties that can answer this question fluently are usually the ones worth staying with.

RHINO SANDS: LOCAL FOOD, LOWER FOOTPRINT: Choosing locally sourced food is one of the simplest ways travellers can reduce their environmental impact. Produce and ingredients grown or raised close to a destination require less transport, helping to lower emissions while supporting local farmers and communities. Photo Credit: Rhino Sands

2.    Skip the safari wardrobe. The fashion industry produces more carbon emissions annually than international aviation and shipping combined. Buying an entirely new wardrobe for a two-week trip, a habit that safari-outfit content has quietly normalised can rival the footprint of the flight itself. Pack what you have. Neutral tones are already in most wardrobes. The wildlife doesn’t care about the brand.

3.    Flag dietary requirements weeks before arrival, not at check-in. Remote safari camps often sit hours from the nearest town. A last-minute dietary request can mean a 200 km round trip for a single ingredient; unnecessary emissions, unnecessary cost, and a flustered kitchen. Tell them at booking. Good operators will be grateful; great ones already ask.

4.    Ask for a guide with roots in the area. A guide who grew up in or near the area brings a depth of knowledge that no training programme fully replicates,  the seasonal patterns, the local history, the sounds that don’t appear in field guides. Request one specifically. And when you tip, tip generously: that money enters a local economy directly.

Gwegwe guide:  LOCAL KNOWLEDGE MATTERS
Guides who have grown up in or near a destination offer visitors unique insights into local culture, history and wildlife. Supporting local guides helps ensure tourism benefits communities directly and meaningfully. Pictured here is Asanda Phiwani, a local Pondo guide that shares his knowledge of the natural world as well as local history and culture at Gwegwe Beach Lodge. Photo credit: Gwegwe Beach Lodge

5.    Resist the urge to chase the next wildlife sighting. Game drive vehicles are typically the single largest source of carbon emissions at a safari lodge. Every unnecessary kilometre has a cost. More importantly, the guests who come home with the best stories are almost never the ones who ticked the most boxes, they’re the ones who sat at a waterhole for an hour, or followed a dung beetle across a road, or asked their guide to stop the vehicle and simply listen. Don’t push your guide to race between sightings or even better, request more walking safaris. The bush rewards patience in ways a highlight reel never captures.

eBikes- a exhilarating alternative to game drives with zero fossil fuels. Photo Credit: GweGwe Beach Lodge

6.    Choose one longer trip over two short ones. The carbon cost of a long-haul flight is concentrated in take-off and landing. A two-week trip to Southern Africa carries a meaningfully lower emissions-per-day profile than two separate one-week visits. The experience is also categorically better, by day three, you’re no longer adjusting. You’re actually there.

7.    Ask about the property’s carbon programme before you arrive. Not every lodge that says ‘eco’ has done the work. Ask whether they track their emissions, whether those figures are independently verified, and what specific conservation projects your stay supports. Good properties will have real answers. Others will learn to.

In Toto Retreat: At properties such as In Toto Retreat on the Garden Route, sustainability is embedded in everyday operations, where small, thoughtful decisions combine to create a measurable positive impact for both people and the planet.

8.    Ask how you can leave more than you took. The best lodges will have answers ready: an anti-poaching initiative you can contribute to, a community garden project, a rewilding programme that needs support. Ask anyway, even if they don’t. The questions travellers ask are one of the most underestimated forces in this industry. Properties pay attention to what guests care about. If you ask, they notice. If enough people ask, things change.

The kimkim Climate Action Pilot Programme is implemented through the Wilderness Leadership School, with technical expertise from ETC Africa and market access supported by The Eco Travel Boutique. By the end of 2026, all participating properties that complete the programme will carry Verified Impact branding, providing travellers with transparent, independently verified sustainability credentials.

International Climate Action Pilot Programme in South Africa Positions Tourism as a Force for Conservation

The Kimkim Climate Action Pilot Programme,  currently engaging 25 tourism properties across South Africa is challenging the dominant climate crisis narrative around travel, positioning tourism not as the problem, but as a vital part of the solution.

The programme aims to empower small to medium accommodation providers to embed practical, measurable sustainability practices into their operations, turning travel into a meaningful force for conservation, community support, and environmental awareness.

Funded by Kimkim, a US-based travel company that helps travelers plan authentic, personalized trips around the world, the programme is implemented by the globally renowned Wilderness Leadership School, with technical expertise from ETC Africa, a leader in tourism related carbon footprint management and market access via Johannesburg-based The Eco Travel Boutique.

“At a time when climate related conversations often centre on guilt and reduction, this programme offers a different perspective,” says Duncan Pritchard, Director of ETC Africa. “The greatest environmental challenge is not travel, it is disconnection. Travel connects, and reconnects, people to the natural world, and when guests have the opportunity to see wildlife, engage meaningfully with local communities, or simply stand in a forest, that’s when we see a shift. That emotional connection is one of the most underestimated drivers of conservation action today.”

“The loudest voices in the climate arena often make travellers feel guilty about what they are not doing, rather than feel empowered about what they can do. This is a risk to the tourism economy,  a vital driver of sustainable livelihoods and conservation spaces worldwide,” he adds. “People protect what they love and they only love what they’ve experienced.”

The science underscores the stakes. Intact African ecosystems store substantial carbon, typically around 30 to 50 tonnes per hectare in savannah and bushveld, and well over 150 tonnes per hectare in tropical forests, with even greater amounts held in soils. These landscapes are not scenic backdrops; they are functioning climate infrastructure..

"Our goal, with every traveler, is to help them connect to the community and culture of the destination," says Kaelyn Harris-Vincent, Brand Marketing at Kimkim and lead of the Kimkim Climate Initiative. "When tourism is done with intention and thoughtfulness, it really can be a force for good. The question isn't whether we should travel, but whether our travel makes the places we visit stronger and more resilient. Ecotourism allows travelers to see these places and have an impact at the same time. This programme ensures every stay contributes to something bigger than the trip itself."

Funded through Kimkim's Climate Initiative, the programme is offered at no cost to participating properties. The programme helps properties establish their baseline carbon footprint, benchmark against peers, and build capacity through workshops and project design. This becomes the launchpad for identifying and implementing projects that reduce emissions, protect natural carbon sinks and create lasting value for conservation and communities alike. By the end of the year, participating properties receive Verified Impact branding and guest-facing marketing assets, enabling them to communicate their carbon footprint journey clearly and confidently.

Carbon footprinting has become the global standard for measuring environmental impact,  not because carbon tells the whole story, but because it provides a consistent, quantifiable baseline against which any operation can assess its efficiency and track genuine progress. For tourism businesses, it transforms vague sustainability intentions into credible, comparable data.

“What matters is that a carbon footprint is used as a management and learning tool. This programme gives travellers something more valuable than an offset: the confidence that the places they choose are managing their impact and turning every visit into a real contribution to wild places and communities,” says Esther Ruempol from The Eco Travel Boutique. “Rather than asking travellers to offset guilt, this programme reframes the conversation as an invitation to be part of something bigger.”

Participants gain a comprehensive support package that makes sustainability achievable and meaningful, helping properties turn their carbon footprint into a force for good, tell their story with confidence, benchmark against best practice, display verified credentials, and join a growing movement redefining what responsible tourism looks like.

About the Programme

The Kimkim Climate Action Pilot Programme invites accommodation providers across South Africa to step into a new narrative, one where tourism actively contributes to conservation, community growth, and environmental resilience. The programme is offered at no cost to qualifying properties. 

For more information on participating in the programme visit: www.verifiedtourismimpact.org or email verifiedimpact@etc-africa.com

Wilderness Wisdom

Wilderness Wisdom

By Sharlene Versfeld

We looked over the muddy waters of the Umfolozi as the heat seared through my freckled skin.  I longed for the shade that the lunch-stop across the river promised. And the least of our worries were the crocodiles that could be lurking in the milky brown water.  Rather a massive “daka” boy, a lone male buffalo, known for being notoriously bad-tempered, lay in the water on the opposite back. His massive, muscular back arched, his head down and relaxed on the cool sand.  He was going nowhere.  It was midday and hot as hell.

Our guide Mandla Gumede approaches the river, cautiously but with enough visible movement and natural sound, in an effort to ensure our “daka boy” knows we are here. Conflicted. On one hand, he had 6 tired, hungry and hot trailists collapsed in sweaty heaps on their heavy backpacks, waiting for his instructions, and on the other – a very deep  “leave no trace” ethic buried beneath his skin. That “you-don’t-mess-with-anything-in-the-wilderness” kind of ethic. You come and go and you just don’t go messing with anything.  I understood that too, so I whispered, half in jest, half in desperation but oh so respectfully, “Please, please Mr Buffalo, just get up and go so we can cross.” And he did.  He just got up, turned to look at us for a while, and then trotted through the reeds and high up onto the grassy plain beyond.

“The secret to the success of the Wilderness Leadership School is “hlonipha”,” said Simon Blackburn, owner of Tree Tops Lodge at Spioenkop a few weeks earlier when I met him on a wildlife medical emergency seminar, “that’s why these guys have virtually no problems on trail in the big five reserves.”

Hlonipha, the isiZulu word for respect, pervades every being of the trail guides in Ian Players’ legacy programme, which sees highly experienced guides take trailists out into the wilderness areas of the Umfolozi/Hluhluwe Game Park. Simply put, you leave no trace, except your tracks.  And this means no emotional trace either – no trauma, no impact on the emotional well-being of the creatures in whose home we are privileged to be able walk.  So of course Mandla was cautious, and I was glad I had, in that moment, become “a buffalo whisperer”.

The Wilderness Leadership School takes groups of 6 trailists at a time into pristine reserve areas. The trailists must carry all their cooking, food, bedding, and personal requirements in and out of the reserve – and must leave no trace. No burnt firewood, no broken branches, no upturned rocks, no toilet paper, nothing.

Stepping into the Hluhluwe/Umfolozi reserve, packs laden, we were briefed under a tree. It’s serious business. You could die out there. “Just remind me again, I take cover if it’s a buffalo or rhino, and only then if you say so. And I don’t run if it’s a lion? I stand still, right. So the lion does not identify me as prey?”

“Isn’t it strange, that this is where humanity inhabited with ease not too long ago,” said our other guide Doric Holmes later, as Mandla was showing us the track of an extremely large lion, and our adrenalin juices were flowing (very) fast.  “We lived here in the wilderness, amongst all of this, the animals and creatures, and were not afraid. And now we return and are so out of touch and disconnected that we fear it.”

An ancient place and space. Here a royal hunting area, once teeming with game. Remnants of Shaka’s Zulu people, who lived at one with the land, lie scattered around. The pottery shards and broken grinding stones that pepper the edges of the ageless animal paths, echo a rich history of a people and a oneness with nature.

Walking and living on trail is the ultimate nature experience. Us trailists follow, in single file, our two guides, both armed in case of a dangerous interaction with an animal. Neither of our guides had ever needed to use their rifles. “We track, we listen and we observe the animals, so that we are no invading their comfort zones. Respect is important. Quiet is important. Being present is important.”

So present that one morning Mandla, who was lying chatting to us in his sleeping bag, as we drank our hot drinks, jumped up to show us that an elephant was crossing the river.  So tuned in he was he could hear the lone bull, a good 300 metres up the river bank, enter the water.

As we walk we notice the tracks. We stop to discuss what it is, the direction the animal was heading, how old we think the track is. We sit by watering holes and watch the giraffe, zebra and impala skittish and aware of our presence. The “daka” boys snort and stand and watch from afar on the banks of the rivers, alerting us to the fact they have noticed us. The wild dogs, gladly present themselves, all nine of them on the sand bank in from of our camp, on the first morning as we sip our tea and dunk our rusks. All the while watching us, ears twitching.  Mocking cliff chats settle in front of us wagging their tails on the cool rocks.  The baboons bark and some raucous Egyptian Geese, well were just raucous.  Then the frogs chorus, like competitive choirs at night, reminding us that they too own some pretty fine real estate here in the wilderness. 

Our path crosses with a lone young bull elephant one day, and the guides move swiftly into action. One moves left to find a safe exit through a gully lined with magnificent Sycamore Figs. The other moves us downwind behind some trees. We remove backpacks, and wait for our instructions. Our exit planned, we don our gear and move swiftly out of the oncoming path of the elephant. Quickly we ascend the hill, with enough distance now to look back and observe him on the opposite bank. All the while his trunk up and alert as he continues to monitor us.

We camp in three places over the four nights, each time setting up before dark: gathering firewood far away from camp so as not to deplete the camp areas of dead wood needed for its own ecosystems to survive. Collecting and purifying the water – enough to wash and drink. Then making a small fire to cook, and settling in for the night under the stars, where each trailist takes watch alone for a few hours to ensure no animals pass through the camp.

It’s the first night, and having done a trail before, my adrenalin does not pump as fast as that first time on watch. I know now that it’s the anticipation of the nightwatch that is more scary than the watch itself. It’s now an opportunity to contemplate the vastness of the great sky lit with a million stars, and the crackle of the small fire, the rumble of the lions in the distance or the hyenas “whooooop, whoooop” and the odd owl, and the silence.  And I am present now. Not home, not trawling Facebook, or answering a what’s app, or planning my day tomorrow. Absolutely now. For should I wander off I shall miss the stars, and the sounds or the visit by the hyena.

And therein lies the beauty of these trails. Of the connection we once had with the wilderness, with the trees, and the plants, and the bugs and snakes and the frogs and the animals.  For within it we did not fear. Now without it we do.

Symbolically I enter the wilderness with a heavy backpack, and exit with one a whole lot lighter. And one thing is for sure, it is always very very difficult to leave.

-ends

The Wilderness Leadership School offers 4 night, 5 day trails with highly experience guides in various areas including Umfolozi/Hluhluwe Game Reserve, iSimangaliso World Heritage Site, Drakensberg World Heritage Site, the Wild Coast, Pilanesberg National Park and Okavango Delta World Heritage site.. For more information contact 031-462 8642 or email info@wildernessleadershipschool.co.za

Sharlene Versfeld is a Durban-based communications consultant and publicist.