Look, let’s be honest-there’s no such thing as a “green” vacation. You’ll leave a carbon footprint, no matter what. 【小题1】 Here are a few questions to ask:

Is it a B Corp?

B Corps are businesses that meet a strict set of standards by the nonprofit B Lab. They include requirements for governance, workers, customers, community and the environment. 【小题2】 You’ll see some fairly well-known brands, like Intrepid Travel. But you won’t find the names of any major airlines, car rental companies or hotel chains-at least, not yet.

Does the company have any other environmental certifications?

Third-party certifications from Green Key, LEED and WELL can be signs that a travel company means business about the environment. Transportation companies may also offer verified certifications from organizations like Terrapass or the Gold Standard Foundation. 【小题3】 However, it’s a good start.

【小题4】

If the company claims to be green, don’t just take its word for it. Listen to what it says. If you see nothing but models on its Instagram channel or ads for online discounts on its site, perhaps it’s a shade of fake green. “A company’s social media strategy is generally a reflection of its current ethos and goals,” explained Julia Carter, founder of Craft Travel.

How deep is its commitment to the environment?

【小题5】 For example, the Travel Corporation publishes an annual impact report that maps its progress against 11 sustainability goals developed by the United Nations. Many cruise lines also publish detailed reports that allow you to check their commitment to the environment against several objective standards.

To many people, honey bees symbolize wealth, sustainability and environmentalism. But as a honey bee researcher, I have to tell you that only the first item on that list is defensible. Although they are important for agriculture, honey bees, which are usually imported from outside the local area, also disturb natural ecosystems by competing with native bees.

For several years the media has told us that bee populations are under threat. In response to this media campaign to “save the bees”, raising honey bees has become a popular hobby. But as a species, honey bees are least in need of saving. Much media attention is given to honey bees at the expense of native bees, and this has led many citizens - myself once included-to mistakenly believe they are doing a good thing for the environment by raising honey bees. Unfortunately, they are probably doing more harm than good.

“Beekeeping is for people; it’s not a conservation practice,” says Shelly Smith, an environmental science professor. “People mistakenly think keeping honey bees also helps the native bees, which are at risk of extinction. That’s wrong.”

Smith and her research team recently surveyed one thousand local people in Canada and found that they had a surprisingly poor understanding of bee types and their roles in promoting flower growth. Most people’s attention is on saving honey bees when, from a conservationist’s point of view, native bees are the ones in more need of support.

“To make matters worse, beekeeping companies and various non-science-based projects have financially benefited from the decline of native bee populations,” Smith explains. “These companies pretend they are interested in saving bees but their actions are actually damaging the native bee populations.”

The introduction of honey bees increases competition with native bee populations for food, putting even more pressure on the wild species that are already in decline. Honey bees are extremely efficient food gatherers and take over almost all local flower resources, thus leading to damaging competition — that is, where one species uses up a resource, not leaving enough to go around.

Have you ever wished to live a more zero-waste life? 【小题1】

Try not to use the disposables ( 一次性物品）at your table.

From paper plates to paper napkins (餐巾），it’s easy to throw away the disposables. Choose real plates when serving your meals. Not only will it give a richer dining experience, but it will cut the cost of buying those things just to throw them away. 【小题2】 They can be even bought for pennies on the dollar at stores.

Paper or plastic? Neither!

Plastic and paper shopping bags are recyclable(可回收的）.【小题3】The bags blow about city streets, countrysides and beaches as ugly litter and wildlife killers. So, use reusable cloth bags instead—they're easy for you to remember to bring with you when you go shopping.

【小题4】

Sometimes just by thinking outside the box you can make things that have outlived (比…活 得长）their useful life into a new thing with lots of useful possibilities. Turn that empty coffee can into a storage for small toys like Legos or Barbie clothes. Use glass jars to store your leftovers(剩饭菜）in the fridge. Leftovers that can be seen are much less likely to be forgotten!

【小题5】 But I think you'll find that once you take those first simple steps, the next steps are easier and even more fun—it’s addictive.