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   Make a clean getaway
Climate fund launches campaign to encourage people to compensate for holiday travel this summer Whether you are jetting off to the sunshine, catching a bus or ferry, taking the train or driving to your holiday destination, there is an unavoidable carbon impact of your travel this summer. So, an innovative climate fund for the Northwest, called Foundation, has launched a new campaign to raise awareness of how you can compensate for your travel plans and make a donation that will fund a range of creative carbon reduction projects across the region. The Clean Getaway Campaign - which aims to raise £25k by the end of September - includes information on how to calculate your summer holiday carbon contribution and make a quick and simple donation. As flying is one of the biggest sources of carbon emissions the campaign has led on air travel, so for example if you are going on a return flight to Paris the donation guideline is £2.50 per person, for a flight to Italy £5 per person, or for a more adventurous trip to South America, £15 per person. See notes to editors for full list. If you are driving, taking a train, bus or ferry to a UK or European destination the suggested minimum is £2 per person. All donations can be made at www.climatefund.org.uk. Foundation’s Chief Officer Mark Turner commented: “Flying is part of life at the moment and we are not calling for that not to happen – although we would like people to think responsibly about how often they fly. We have huge UK carbon reduction targets to hit by 2050. “Our Fund is designed to give people a chance to compensate for their holiday travel now and invest in the sustainable future of their neighbourhood.” Matt Kershaw from Hulme saw the campaign and made a retrospective donation of £15 this week. “I flew to a friend’s wedding in South Africa in February and felt I should do my bit. It’s good to know the money is staying in the region.” Since 2009 Foundation has invested over £400,000 in North West projects to help fund carbon reduction projects from home insulation, solar panels, and wind turbines to cycle-to-work schemes. That puts them on target to save 10,850 tonnes of Co2 which is the equivalent of heating nearly 3,000 homes for a year, driving around the world 1,380 times, or powering Blackpool illuminations for 47 years!
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