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Baby, it’s cold outside! And as December approaches, daylight becomes a rare thing indeed in many parts of Sweden. Around Stockholm, the sun will be dropping out of sight by mid-afternoon, while in the far north it barely peeks above the horizon before night falls again! But this is a beautiful and uplifting time of year – over much of the country the first of the winter snows will be lighting up the nights, and all over the land windows will shine welcomingly with the glow of 7-candle “Adventsljusstakar”.
The first Sunday of Advent is a long-awaited sign that Christmas is just around the corner. Each table is graced with a special Advent 4-candle holder, and each Sunday until Christmas a candle is lit until, as the big day approaches, all four are burning. Advent means “arrival” or “coming” – the coming of Christmas.
Advent candles have been a custom in Sweden since the 1890s. They were once placed in Christmas trees, but in the 1930s iron or wooden candlesticks began to be used instead. At the same time, the Moravian custom of hanging a star from windows also became popular in Sweden. Swedish TV, too, joins in the run-up to Christmas with a special 24-episode “Julkalendern” children’s show.
Since the Middle Ages, the Swedes have kept the cold at bay at this time of year with a glass of “glögg”, Swedish mulled wine served with almonds and raisins with “pepparkakor”, or ginger biscuits, on the side. Alcoholic and non-alcoholic versions are on offer, but whichever you choose, a warm glass cupped in the hands will certainly ward off the chills!
So while the endless days of summer may be a distant memory, the ground sparkles with fresh-fallen snow, windows glimmer with candlelight, and the Swedes are making the most of the dark and enjoying the unique and magical experience of a Swedish winter.
Best regards
The Nature Travels Team
Visit our website for a range of wildlife and outdoor holidays in Sweden over the winter season.
What is a carbon footprint?
Your carbon footprint is part of your ecological footprint – the overall impact your activities have on the environment. The larger your footprint, the greater the amount of greenhouse gases your activities produce, measured in units of carbon dioxide (CO2).
Your emissions may be caused directly, through burning fossil fuels for domestic energy or transport, or indirectly as a result of the whole lifecycle of products you use – emissions connected with their manufacture, use and eventual breakdown.
How can I reduce my carbon footprint from travelling?
The golden rule is: “Reduce what you can and offset the rest.” If you do fly, fly less frequently, fly shorter distances (a return flight to Australia generates 17 times more CO2 than a flight to Sweden!), stay longer at your destination, use public transport both to your departure airport and within the country, and purchase an offset to mitigate your carbon emissions. An offset for a return flight to Sweden costs just £3.50.
What do we at Nature Travels do to reduce our footprint?
Of course, it’s not only when travelling that we produce greenhouse gases, and there are many straightforward steps we can all take in everyday life to reduce our emissions – steps which make sense from an economic as well as environmental standpoint.
Here are some of the ways we try to reduce our footprint at the Nature Travels office. It is easy to take this kind of advice as glib and meaningless, but small changes can make a real difference. Not only that, but they can save you a fortune!
· Nothing is left on standby. Ever. If it’s not being used for any length of time, we turn it off.
· We turn off the lights whenever we leave a room and all computer equipment overnight. The only thing switched on in our office after closing is the answerphone.
· The office is fitted with low energy light bulbs.
· We try to minimize our use of paper as much as we can. All correspondence is via email where possible. We use both sides of all paper. All written notes are done on the back of scrap paper. We do not print things out unless absolutely necessary.
· All waste products (paper, printer cartridges) are recycled where facilities exist. Recycled printer cartridges and used stamps are used to raise funds for conservation charities.
· The nature of our business means that we travel to Sweden fairly frequently, but we try to minimize any negative effects by using public transport both to our departure airport and within Sweden, and purchase an offset for our flights.
The issue of climate change is not going to go away: we are all part of the problem, should we not also be part of the solution?
What do YOU do to reduce your carbon footprint? Do you have any good ideas on how to make your home or office a greener place? We’d love to hear from you.
Kind regards
The Nature Travels Team
Visit our website for more information on what we do to reduce our carbon footprint.
For advice on reducing your personal or corporate carbon footprint, see:
www.carbonfootprint.com
Also see the following articles from the BBC:
How green is your office? and Scheme to Cut Carbon Footprint.
At Nature Travels we offer all our clients the chance to make their flight to Sweden “climate neutral” through the payment of a small surcharge (currently £3.50 for a UK-Sweden return flight).
But what is “carbon offsetting”, what does “climate neutral” mean, and why is it worth £3.50 of my money?
No-one who follows the news could fail to be aware of the increasing priority given to climate issues in the UK and globally – many feel it is the single greatest environmental challenge facing us. Each time you turn on the heating, drive the car, or take a flight, CO2 is released into the atmosphere, contributing to climate change. After years of debate, there is now overwhelming evidence to suggest that human activities are having a dramatic and potentially catastrophic effect on the climate.
Offsetting the CO2 emissions produced by your holiday means paying someone (in our case, our partners Climate Care) to remove an amount of CO2 from the atmosphere equivalent to that generated by your trip. In this way, the emissions you have caused can be “neutralised” or “balanced”, making your trip effectively “climate neutral”. The cost of a sandwich seems a small price to pay, doesn’t it?
Is it really that easy?
No, not really. Climate Care, like a growing number of similar organisations, offsets your emissions by funding projects around the world. These may be in the areas of:
· Renewable energy – research into alternatives to polluting fossil fuels such as coal and oil.
· Energy efficiency – working to reduce the amount of fuel needed for certain activities (e.g. cooking in developing countries).
· Reforestation – trees absorb and fix CO2 and so are a vital tool in the fight against climate change. Deforestation is a major contributor to climate change for two reasons: the burning of forests releases greenhouse gases in itself, and removing the trees means they are no longer available as carbon fixers.
But does my flight really make a difference?
Yes. A return flight London to Stockholm generates 0.33 tonnes of CO2 per passenger. By comparison, driving 10,000 miles per year in a petrol engine car at 35mpg generates around 3 tonnes of CO2.
BUT, your choice of destination is extremely important – if you chose to spend your holiday in Australia, a return flight London to Sydney would generate an astonishing 5.6 tonnes of CO2 per passenger – 17 times more!!!
So, if I offset, can I fly as much as I like without feeling guilty?
Well, no. Offsetting is one way to make your holiday more environmentally friendly, and does make a very positive contribution, but reducing your personal “carbon footprint” should also be a high priority – not just on holiday, but in all everyday activities. Watch out for the next post, when we’ll be discussing how we can all reduce our carbon footprint.
What do you think about carbon offsetting? Do you offset other things apart from flights (e.g. the emissions from your car)? We would love to hear your thoughts on this subject.
Kind regards
The Nature Travels Team
For more information on carbon offsetting, see www.climatecare.org
For information on how to offset your flight to Sweden when you travel with Nature Travels, see www.naturetravels.co.uk/ecotourism.htm
Vindelfjällen Nature Reserve…not only the largest nature reserve in Sweden, but one of the largest protected areas in the whole of Europe – more than half a million hectares!
Vindelfjällen lies in southern Lapland and contains vast areas of snow-capped peaks, mountain heathland, glaciers, pine and spruce forests. Wolverines (one of the Sweden’s rarest mammals), brown bears, lynx and the critically endangered Arctic fox are resident in Vindelfjällen, and the area is also home to a number of bird species, including the majestic golden eagle, gyrfalcon and great grey owl. In fact, Vindelfjällen is a hugely important refuge for a number of threatened Scandinavian species.
The Arctic fox is beginning a slow recovery thanks to intensive conservation efforts, and more than a hundred lairs are known in Vindelfjällen – many of these have been in use by Arctic foxes for hundreds of years and consequently have dozens of entrances. Arctic foxes are particulaly vulnerable because of their erratic breeding behaviour – they will only breed at times when prey, such as lemmings and other rodents, are abundant. Lemming populations explode and crash periodically and this affects fox breeding dramatically.
We offer two summer horse riding tours in Vindelfjällen suitable for all levels of experience taking you deep into the wilderness:
Vindelfjällen is a stunning, inspiring area and largely unknown to many travellers – and ideal for discovering on horseback!
Best regards
The Nature Travels Team
Calling all salty sea dogs! Does your heart yearn for life on the ocean wave? Do you long to feel the breeze through your hair? We have added an unusual and unforgettable summer experience – a journey back in time where you join the crew of a fully-restored Schooner on a voyage along the Baltic coast!
This experience is a modern-day voyage of discovery. Experience everything from setting sail, towing the sail and manoeuvering the ship to helping in the galley.
However, life on board is not all hard work. A large part of the time on board is spent relaxing, taking in the sea view and enjoying your time together with your fellow crew members.
The Schooner was built in Sjötorp, in Skaraborgs Län in 1915 from oak and pine. She is one of the many sailing merchant vessels that used to sail the Baltic. She was used for cargo until the mid 1960s, when she was bought by Egil and Kerstin Bergström and used as the family home until 1977.
Share an experience beyond the usual – navigating the Baltic in a Schooner under full sail! For more information about this experience please see: Sail on a Schooner: Navigating the Baltic
Best regards
The Nature Travels Team
