I am no scientist, nor am I an environmental specialist, but I am a traveller by choice and by profession and I am well aware of the impact my travels are having on the planet.

At the beginning of March this year, the UK and Europe in general enjoyed temperatures well in the 20s (70 degrees Fahrenheit), the fields were full of baby lambs, the daffodils were in full bloom, and the inevitable hose pipe ban was put into place, but here we are just weeks later with snow, zero degrees and cold weather fronts.

The only explanation for these extremely unusual weather conditions can be global warming, and while many choose to ignore the significant amounts of evidence that support these claims, I for one am taking it very seriously.

Anyone following my blogs will have realised by now that I am a bit of a tree hugger!  I love the planet, I love animals great and small, and while I am in no way an extremist, I would like to think I am doing “my bit” to try to limit the negative impact I leave on the planet for future generation, and I am doing this by being a responsible traveller, and by supporting certain charities.

Being a responsible traveller is neither difficult nor expensive; it just requires a little research and a little bit of planning.  Offsetting flight, train and cruise journeys is a great place to start, and while many airlines may offer to do this for you at an extortionate rate, you can do it yourself through one of the many ‘profit for purpose’ organisations such as ClimateCare for a tiny percentage of the cost of your ticket.

Supporting local businesses in the countries we visit is also vital if they are going to benefit from tourism.  So many of us are drawn to big name chains we feel “comfortable” with, but as a result, the local communities do not prosper as they should, and the big chains keep getting bigger!

Charities, especially those for children and animals, always need support, and while many of us are not in a position to give huge donations, a simple one-off payment of £5, 5 Euros or 5 US Dollars can make a huge difference to someone or something.

Baby-steps I know, but if we all start taking them, we may soon start leaping in the right direction.

“Though we travel the world over to find the beautiful, we must carry it with us or we find it not” Emerson