In October 2022, DERTOUR Group joined forces with Futouris e.V. and more than 20 companies and associations in the travel industry to found the new KlimaLink e.V. association at the Klimahaus in Bremerhaven, Germany. This strong alliance for climate protection will make the climate footprint of travel more transparent.
All tourism services should be mapped with correct emission figures according to a uniform calculation standard. For this purpose, emission data must be centrally available for all companies in the travel industry. This is the main goal of the KlimaLink association. The aim of the association is to develop of CO2e-calculation standards and the digital provision of emission data. This includes mobility components (flight, car, train, etc.) as well as accommodation services. All emission values based on the standard to be developed will be made available to the entire German-speaking tourism industry as a digital interface from 2024 on. The network of users of the emission data provided will be continuously expanded to ensure the broadest possible implementation in the industry.
The KlimaLink association emerged from Futouris’ industry project “Climate-conscious travel”, in which an initial version of calculating travel emissions was developed. In addition to DERTOUR Group and Futouris, the most important travel associations in the DACH region are involved as founding members of KlimaLink, including the German Travel Association (DRV), the Austrian Travel Association (ÖRV) and Swiss Travel Association (SRV), the Verband Internet Reisevertrieb (VIR) as well as the travel companies AERTicket, AER Kooperation, Amadeus, CHAMÄLEON, FTI Group, Gebeco, Hotelplan Group, Lufthansa City Center, midoco, OLIMAR Reisen, QTA, Studiosus, TourCert and TFC Airlebnis. Also, the climate protection organizations atmosfair and myclimate are founding members of KlimaLink and support the initiative with their expertise.
By making the climate footprint of travel transparent, DERTOUR Group is able, to measure its emissions in a standardized way and set itself ambitious climate targets. Additionally, it offers travelers the opportunity to learn about the climate impact of their travel and to choose a more climate-friendly option.
The picture shows the founding members of KlimaLink at the founding meeting in the Klimahaus Bremerhaven. Copyright: Futouris e.V.