Near the end of a recent conversation, I asked Tippi a question I ask almost everyone: What's something you'd like to learn this year?

Tippi leads marketing for the Tourism Authority of Thailand's Los Angeles office, and she has spent nearly four decades with the tourism board. Her colleagues tease her for being "the headmaster" because she can't stop teaching. So I expected a polished answer.

Instead, she gave me an honest one.

She wants to learn how to bring sustainable practices into her daily life. Not in an extreme way, she said, because "we still have to be in the industry. We still have to meet people." She still flies a lot. She knows it isn't great. And she's not alone:

"Many people, they have a good heart to do something, but maybe, similar to me, struggling because of the job or because of the family… Maybe I can't do this, but I can do this."

Maybe I can't do this, but I can do this. That one line might be the most useful sustainability framework I've heard all year.

Most tourism professionals don't need another lecture about their carbon footprint. They need permission to start where they are, and a few practical moves they can make before the end of the day. So, inspired by Tippi, here are three.

First, a lesson from the Thai table

Earlier in our conversation, Tippi explained something I've been thinking about ever since. Thai cuisine is built on a philosophy of balance, often described through the five elements. Some dishes are hot, some cooling. Some heavy, some light. You don't order one dish and call it dinner. The meal is designed so that each element balances the others.

That's a pretty good way to think about sustainability in tourism.

You're not going to eliminate every flight, every hotel stay, or every printed brochure. Your job requires some of them. The goal isn't purity. It's balance: offsetting the heavier choices you can't avoid with lighter ones you can make, consistently, without burning out.

With that in mind:

1. Make the trips you can't skip count for more

Tippi named the tension many of us feel: travel is the job. Sales missions, trade shows, FAM trips, site visits, conferences. Nobody is telling a destination marketer to stop showing up.

But you can make each trip work harder.

Before you book, ask:

• Does this need to be in person? Some meetings build relationships that video never will. Others are a 30-minute check-in that could happen on Zoom. Save your travel for the first kind.
• Can I bundle it? One longer trip with five meetings usually beats three short trips with two meetings each.
• If I have a choice, which option is better? As Tippi put it, when she can choose, she chooses the more sustainable partner. When she can't, she asks what the best thing she can do during the trip is.

Once you're there, try:

• Walking, biking, or using public transit for at least one leg of each day.
• Packing a refillable water bottle and coffee cup.
• Skipping daily housekeeping if you're staying more than a night or two.
• Eating, shopping, and booking experiences with locally owned businesses, so more of your spending stays in the community you're visiting.

None of these will make headlines. Together, repeated across a year of work travel, they add up to a real difference in how you show up in other people's destinations.

Try it today: Open your calendar, find your next work trip, and pick one swap you'll make. Just one.

2. Swap the swag for something that grows

Our industry runs on appreciation. Thank-you gifts after a FAM trip. Speaker gifts. Conference giveaways. Holiday boxes for top partners. Branded tote bags that end up in a closet (or a landfill).

Gratitude matters. The form of that gratitude is worth rethinking.

When I told Tippi about our new We Grow Together program at Learn Tourism, she lit up. Instead of sending a gift card or a stack of logo merchandise, we plant trees to say thank you, celebrate milestones, and honor people who make our work better. The person we're thanking gets a note explaining why. (Tippi, a tree is coming your way.)

You don't need a formal program to try this. A few ideas:

• Thank-you gifts: Choose something consumable and local, a donation in the recipient's name, or a tree planted in their honor.
• Conference swag: Skip the trinkets. Offer a digital resource, a donation per booth visit, or nothing at all. (People rarely miss the stress ball.)
• FAM trip welcome bags: Fill them with items from local artisans and producers, which turns a gift into a story about your destination.
• Printed materials: Go digital wherever your audience will actually use it.

Try it today: Think of the next person you plan to thank. Decide how you'll thank them in a way that leaves something better behind.

3. Teach what you know: make the sustainable choice visible

Here's where Tippi's "headmaster" reputation comes in.

When she meets travel advisors, media, and fellow tourism board representatives, she sees every conversation as a chance to help people understand her destination correctly. She described education as something that happens "all the time," in friendly, everyday ways.

Her office applies that same thinking to sustainability. The Tourism Authority of Thailand works closely with Tourism Cares to make sure Thailand's green tourism efforts reach travelers here. They've also built a green travel website that showcases sustainable destinations and activities. As Tippi explained, that way people who want to travel well "would have a choice."

That's the key insight for DMOs and tourism businesses: many visitors want to make better choices. They just can't choose what they can't find.

You can help by making the sustainable option easy to see and easy to pick:

• Curate it. Create a page, guide, or itinerary that highlights locally owned businesses, conservation-minded experiences, and low-impact ways to get around.
• Brief your partners. Make sure travel advisors, tour operators, and media know your destination's sustainability story, so they can pass it on accurately.
• Prepare your frontline. Visitor center staff, hotel front desks, and ambassadors should be able to answer, with confidence, "How can I visit here responsibly?"
• Share the "why" behind culture. Tippi told me that once you understand the reasoning behind a local custom (why hot tea is served with certain meals, for example), you're far more likely to respect it. Responsible tourism isn't only environmental. It's cultural, too.

Try it today: Write a three-sentence answer to "How can I visit our destination responsibly?" Share it with your team and ask them to make it better.

Bring it to your next team meeting

Sustainability sticks when it becomes a shared conversation instead of a personal guilt trip. Try these prompts at your next staff meeting:

1. What's one trip on our calendar that could be virtual, combined, or extended instead?
2. What do we currently give away that people don't really need?
3. If a visitor asked our frontline team how to travel here responsibly, what would they say today? What do we wish they'd say?
4. Finish this sentence, Tippi-style: "I can't do ___, but I can do ___."

Frequently asked questions

What can tourism professionals do to be more sustainable?

Start with the choices you control. Make necessary work travel count by bundling meetings and making lower-impact choices on the ground, replace disposable gifts and swag with something local or lasting, and help visitors and partners find sustainable options in your destination.

How can destination marketing organizations promote sustainable tourism?

DMOs can curate sustainable experiences in one easy-to-find place, brief travel advisors and media on their destination's sustainability efforts, partner with organizations focused on responsible travel, and train frontline staff to confidently answer questions about visiting responsibly.

Do tourism professionals have to stop traveling to be sustainable?

No. Travel is part of the job for most tourism professionals. The goal is balance: travel with purpose, reduce the trips that don't need to happen, and make lighter choices during the trips that do.

Why does training matter for sustainable tourism?

Visitors often take their cues from the people they meet: visitor center staff, hotel employees, guides, and advisors. When those people understand and can explain a destination's sustainability efforts, responsible choices become easier for everyone.

At Learn Tourism, we believe every destination is in the business of learning, and that small, consistent actions are how places get better. Want to help your team, partners, or frontline staff share your destination's stewardship story with confidence? Let's talk.

About the Author and Tourism Speaker: Stephen Ekstrom

Stephen Ekstrom is the embodiment of a passionate lifelong learner and a seasoned professional in the tourism industry, serving as the CEO and founder of Learn Tourism | learntourism.org. With over 25 years of experience, he has cultivated a deep understanding of tourism development and education, driven by his commitment to advancing the industry and fostering sustainable economies. Stephen's insatiable curiosity and love of knowledge have made him a proud nerd, constantly seeking to expand his expertise and share his insights with others. Alongside his faithful furry companions, Rudy and Marjorie, he embraces the digital nomad lifestyle, traversing the globe and immersing himself in diverse cultures. A dedicated advocate for continuous improvement, Stephen is a professional member of the Association for Talent Development and a member of Skal International. Stephen holds prestigious certifications in Inclusive and Ethical Leadership from USF, AI Governance and Ethics from Brown University, Sustainable Business Strategy and Transforming Customer Experiences from Harvard Business School, and Sustainable Tourism Destination Management from Cornell.