My two great passions of travel and sustainability have long felt irreconcilable. I first began engaging with climate activism as a teenager in 2019, during the wave of school strikes that swept the globe. Back then, I held on to the fact that I had never travelled anywhere like a medal of honour and swore I would never set foot on a plane. I viewed friends who jetted off to far-flung countries as nothing short of ignorant, privileged consumers flying us all straight into environmental ruin while I stood by, helpless, bamboo toothbrush in hand.
With time, the fire of my teenage-self subsided slightly. Adulthood meant the advent of savings from part-time jobs and the freedom to escape my hometown. A different flame kindled inside me, one that yearned to explore new horizons, learn languages, and get lost in unfamiliar cultures. Each new addition to the ‘Dream Travel Destinations’ list in my Notes app felt like a nail in the coffin of my former eco-warrior self. And so began the dilemma I still carry: how can I claim to care about sustainability and travel the world at the same time?
I haven’t exactly become a full-time jet-setter, but I have tested the waters (or maybe I should say the skies – sorry, teenage me), and I’m slowly discovering that rather than abandoning one passion for the other, it might be possible to balance the two.
This summer, I’m travelling to Aarhus, Denmark, for a summer school program. I chose Denmark because it’s a chance to explore what sustainable travel can look like. Denmark ranked third in the UN’s 2025 Sustainable Development Goals report (https://dashboards.sdgindex.org/rankings), and I’m hoping to learn from a country where climate action a lived value. From their cycling infrastructure to their deposit-return scheme for bottles and cans, Denmark is the perfect place to reflect on how daily life can be designed around sustainability.
To reduce the environmental impact of my travel, I chose a direct flight (which has fewer emissions than one with a stopover) and used Google Flights’ carbon estimates to book the lowest-emission option. I’ll be taking a train from the airport, cycling wherever possible, and staying in accommodation with a kitchen to avoid single-use takeaway packaging. In the grand scheme of things, these feel like small actions, but they’re choices made with the intention of reducing my impact.
Above all, I see this trip as a learning experience. In the past, I believed travel was the enemy of sustainability. But now, I’m discovering that travel can also be a teacher. I hope to return home with not only memories and souvenirs, but habits, ideas, and hopes for a greener future that shape my lifestyle. By sharing insights with peers, supporting local sustainability efforts, and advocating for greener choices in my university, I’m determined to turn what I learn in Aarhus into lasting change. I may never be a perfect environmentalist, but with each journey I take, I seek to become a better one.
