Italy: Traveling Sustainably?

Submitted by Caitlin Rulli on the 2019 spring semester program in Rome, Italy…

I’d like to preface this blog post with a disclaimer that I haven’t done deep research into the topic of sustainable tourism, this is just a collection of thoughts and ideas regarding traveling, waste, and environmentalism.

This weekend, I took a trip to the Amalfi Coast with John Cabot University. We went to Pompeii, the ancient Romanized city that was destroyed by Mt. Vesuvius in the first century AD. We settled in Sorrento, and took a boat tour to Capri. Our final day was spent in Caserta visiting the Royal Palace, where I overheard a conversation among some fellow students. One girl was talking about how she bought a pair of shoes from Forever 21 to wear exclusively to bars and clubs, so they could get dirty and gross, and the plan is to throw them away at the end of the semester. This comment got me thinking about something that I have been investigating more, zero waste and being more “green” in general.

Earlier this year, I discovered the forum r/zerowaste on Reddit. There, users share tips and techniques on how to move away from disposable culture, and work on a greater commitment to the environment by reducing, reusing, recycling, and decreasing consumption overall. I fell down the rabbit hole, and started a series of small steps toward improving my carbon footprint. I bought a cream makeup remover instead of wipes, I bought a reusable cup to bring to Dunkin Donuts, and I bought shampoo bars instead of a plastic bottle. These are small steps, do they truly add up? And, how can I bring my goals of sustainability to my love of travel?

Travel is simply inherently indulgent, and wasteful. Driving to a destination pollutes the air, taking a beautiful boat tour around a gorgeous island disrupts the ocean environment, and forget flying in an airplane. We buy little quart-sized Ziplock bags to put our tiny travel-sized liquids in, a cheap pair of flip-flops for the shower, and if our $5 sunglasses crack, no worries, we can just get another $5 pair at our destination.

When studying abroad, it can be even harder to reconcile environmentalism with a culture that may not embrace the ideology as firmly as you do. In Italy, it costs extra money to ask for a disposable plastic bag at the grocery store, but there are cigarette butts all over the ground. Public transportation is good, walking is better, but cars still dominate the city. I was horrified by the amount of plastic wrap and styrofoam that the vegetables in the grocery store come in, and it’s difficult to find the recycling bins near my apartment. If you’re trying to eat vegetarian or vegan, options may be slim or flat-out unavailable. As the weather changes, it’s tempting to order cute springtime clothes online from American Eagle, a brand I know I like and I know will fit me.

This girl’s comment about buying shoes to specifically destroy and throw away, though, has me thinking about how we can approach study abroad more mindfully. Study abroad is temporary, but the plastic we use in the process is not. It’s tempting to buy a cheap pair of shoes when you know there’s a high likelihood that they will get trashed, but what does that say about our attitudes toward stuff? Do we really see things like shoes and clothes and school supplies as so disposable? Sure, one could donate clothes at the end of the semester rather than throw them away, but what if we didn’t buy things we knew we were going to get rid of in the first place? What if we were more conscious about what we buy – its meaning to us, to the planet? What if we bought things we really enjoyed, rather than things that are convenient?

I don’t know if I have the solution. I don’t know how to reconcile my passion for travel with the absolute necessity to live more sustainably for the sake of our planet. But I do have a small list of suggestions and talking points.

  1. Buy local. Find an artisan in your city or neighborhood, or a thrift store, rather than going to H&M or Zara to buy something. Not only are you supporting local economies, but you are abstaining from the fast-fashion machine that exploits workers and contributes to fashion waste.
  2. Further, get fruits and vegetables from local markets (if available), or try to find a grocery store that sells fruits and vegetables without plastic wrap. Try to buy seasonal produce – it’s cheaper, too.
  3. Pack light. Extra weight in the vehicle means more fuel output. Consider packing a capsule wardrobe, where every item matches each other. It means you can pack less, still combine outfits, and have room left in your suitcase to bring back souvenirs.
  4. Walk or take public transportation rather than taxis. Or share taxis with friends if necessary (again, save money!).
  5. Eat less meat. As a nutrition major, I’m a big supporter of more plants in one’s diet, both for health and environmental reasons.
  6. Be conscious of whether you’re buying something to buy it or because you really want or need it. Don’t treat objects as disposable and temporary, treat them with respect and care.

Again, I have no scholarly sources to back up what I’m writing, necessarily. These are just steps that I know to be effective in reducing one’s consumption, and therefore waste production. I think it is possible to travel and feel less guilty about it, but conscious effort needs to be exercised. Perhaps this is something that can be talked about in pre-departure meetings for future students, or just something to get students thinking. In either case, I’d like to encourage people who read this to consider the effects that their choices at home and abroad have on the planet, and to look into a more sustainable way to enjoy life.

A view of Mt. Vesuvius from Sorrento, taken April 5, 2019.