The Ensemble Group has launched a purpose-driven partnership with ‘Cool Effect’ at their annual international conference in Seattle.
With the theme of Travel With Purpose, Ensemble Travel Group’s 2019 International Conference at the Hyatt Regency in Seattle delivered an impassioned message about the need for sustainable and responsible tourism across everything they do.
During the 900 strong attended conference, the group announced a new partnership with Cool Effect, a company dedicated to reducing the impact of carbon emissions. Through the use of Cool Effect’s Travel Offset Tool, Ensemble travel advisors will be able to help their clients in offsetting their carbon footprint from air travel.
The cool tool enables users to calculate the number of carbon emissions from a single flight and then offset it by a monetary donation to a Cool Effect sustainability project based on the size of the carbon footprint.
Clients can individually choose which project they would like to support based on their own personal values with projects devoted to planting mangroves, regenerating orangutan habitats and community tree-planting, ocean ecology, renewable energy and more.
Speaking about the new initiative, CEO David Harris said: “We’re all aware that climate and sustainability are fast becoming the biggest issues across the globe. With people making more than 7 billion trips annually, sustainability is increasingly impacting our industry.”
David Harris, CEO Ensemble Group
“More and more travellers are doing business with agencies that factor things like environmental and social sustainability into their travel planning equation. Put another way, increasingly people are travelling with purpose.”
Ensemble CEO David Harris
The 2019 Ensemble conference sustainable theme continued with tote bags made from plant fibres and conference shirts made from recycled plastic bottles. Delegates also received personal reusable water bottles and reusable chalkboard signs were used throughout the space to reduce the use of paper.
Ensemble Travel also mandated that all members join the American Society of Travel Advisors earlier this year and recently announced it would give members financial help in receiving certification from The Travel Institute.
“We’re the first consortium to do this and we’re setting a new standard for the industry. This will allow our network of thousands of advisors to make offsetting travel a seamless and easy process for travellers.”
Ensemble CEO David Harris
The Ensemble Group has 44 agency partners in Australia and New Zealand including Phil Hoffman Travel, The Travel Authority, Zeppelin Travel and select Travel Managers.
The Ensemble Travel Group reported at the conference that they had the best year in their history in 2018 and that in 2019 Preferred Supplier sales from Ensemble members will pass the US$1.4 billion mark, representing 8% year-over-year growth.
Find out more: www.ensembletravel.com