GBCI Europe Circle, Athens: The benefits of slow travel

EnviroSustain has been one of the sponsors of GBCI Europe Circle for the past three years. The LEED industry event is a chance for property owners, investors, architects, entrepreneurs, engineers, consultants and more to come together to learn

about new developments and updates to the LEED rating system and discuss the topics most important to those building green in Europe.

Last year, we travelled to Barcelona, and this April the three-day event was held in Athens, Greece.

As it is part of our ESG policy not to fly within Europe, some of the ES team made their way from Germany to Athens the ‘slow travel’ way – by land and sea. While some chose to travel portions of the journey overnight on sleeper trains, others travelled by day and staying in beautiful cities at night, meeting up along the way.

Image credit: Panagiotis Kounoupas | GBCI Europe

Slow travel through Europe: taking the scenic route

Our Project Director, Matías shared his itinerary and thoughts with us.

  • Berlin > Munich – by train (~570 km)
  • Munich > Bologna – by train (~520 km)
  • Bologna > Bari – by train (~650 km)
  • Bari > Patras – by overnight ferry (~570 km)
  • Patras > Athens – by bus and train (~210 km)

That’s huge distance to cover, what is the main benefit of slow travel?

Well, the obvious benefit for us as a sustainability consultancy is the reduced environmental impact of travelling by train rather than flying. Think about this event, with approximately 250 participants, the impact we could make if everyone embraced slow travel even for a portion of their journey.

It’s a long way to travel without flying, how was the journey?

The journey was long obviously, but pleasant. Crossing the Alps and almost the whole of Italy we saw a lot of different nature and scenery and some members of the team had beautiful overnight stops along the way in places like Bolzano and Rome to take in some of the culture.

I had to adjust my plans en route due to train strikes, but this was easy and flexible. And let’s be honest, how often is your flight delayed anyway? Travelling with colleagues was also great fun. With time to explore some cities and hang out socially together – it’s a great team bonding experience!

How much better for the environment is slow travel?

We calculated around a 48% reduction in emissions per person, that’s a significant amount. The emissions related with travelling the route by air would be a minimum of 350 kg of CO2 whereas our journeys by train and boat would at maximum be 160 kg of CO2 per person. Now multiply those kinds of savings by 250 attendees and imagine the impact it could have.

What is your key take-away from making the journey this way?

If the possibility is there to take the long route by train instead of the plane, I’d take it. I personally will choose to do so also in my private life, I think the benefits far outweigh the negative aspects.

GBCI Europe Circle 2025: see you in Prague!

During the event, it was announced that the city for the event in 2025 will be Prague. We will of course be making the journey the ‘slow travel’ way. If you’re interested in joining us, we’d be delighted to see you along the way. If you missed out on being there or would like access to the presentations shared or the online sessions, you can find these on the website: https://gbcieuropecircle.com

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