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Sustainable Student Programs: 10 Steps Every Teacher Can Use

Experiential school programs can transform student learning. They can open minds to new cultures, reconnect young people with nature, build resilience, and inspire leadership. For teachers, an international school program is also a chance to model responsible travel and how to protect the environments and communities you visit so future cohorts can enjoy them too.

There are many environmental challenges in the world today. It can feel overwhelming, yet small choices interwoven with experiential learning can add up to a powerful positive impact. Below are ten practical steps for teachers planning international school travel programs. Each one helps you minimise your footprint, strengthen curriculum outcomes, and give students real world skills in global citizenship.

1. Choose Carbon Free Transport

Self propelled modes of travel are good for students and good for the environment. Walking, cycling, and kayaking help students slow down, notice place based details, and reflect on their learning with minimal impact. These activities also align with health and physical education outcomes and support team building.

On our Costa Rica Traverse trip we bike, hike and raft our way through this amazing country

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2. Avoid Single Use Plastic Bottles

Single use plastic bottles create waste in destinations without robust recycling. Travel with reusable bottles, fill at potable water stations, or use purification systems. Turn this into a student led sustainability challenge to collect data, calculate avoided waste, and present findings back at school.

Design Your Program

3. Leave No Trace

Teach students the seven principles of Leave No Trace and embed them into your Tour briefing and daily reflections.

  1. Plan ahead and prepare
  2. Travel and camp on durable surfaces
  3. Dispose of waste properly
  4. Leave what you find
  5. Minimise campfire impacts
  6. Respect wildlife
  7. Be considerate of your hosts and other visitors

When in doubt, take only photos and leave only footprints.

Giant Groundsels and Lobelia Giants in Uganda's Rwenzori Mountains | <i>Juniors Bildarchiv GmbH</i>

Our Responsible Travel Approach

4. Be an Ambassador for Peace

Set expectations for cultural respect before departure. Encourage students to learn key greetings, understand local customs, and reflect on how their actions represent their school community. Add a daily gratitude circle to notice acts of kindness from hosts and classmates.

Explore Cultural Immersion Programs

5. Keep Wilderness Trails Litter Free

Make your impact positive with a simple trail clean activity. Give students gloves and a waste tally sheet, then debrief on what they found and how behaviour change at home can reduce litter. This turns a short walk into service learning and data collection.

Traveller collecting litter along wilderness trails, part of our 10 Pieces litter collection program | Mark Tipple

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6. Choose Sustainable Accommodation

Select stays that protect local environments and support communities. In Nepal our private eco comfort camps reduce pressure on forests and give students a low impact base for learning, reflection, and leadership activities.

Wake up to Ama Dablam, Lhotse and Nuptse at our Kyangjuma Eco-Comfort Camp | Andrew Bain

Learn more about Nepal Programs

7. Consider the Welfare of Animals

Wildlife encounters must follow the Five Freedoms. Freedom from hunger or thirst. Freedom from discomfort. Freedom from pain, injury or disease. Freedom to express normal behaviours. Freedom from fear and distress. Choose activities that observe animals responsibly and support conservation.

A lioness and her cub cuddling up close during a game viewing safari

Wildlife and Conservation Programs | Animal Welfare Policy

8. Do Your Research

Brief students on local environmental issues and connect them to curriculum outcomes. Set inquiry questions, gather field notes, and create post trip presentations that link science, geography, and civics. An informed group makes better on the ground choices.

Access remote areas by kayak | Toby Story

Science and Environment Programs

9. Prioritise Efficient Flights

Where possible choose the most direct routing to reduce emissions. Build a lesson around trip planning to compare flight paths, calculate travel times, and discuss the trade offs between cost and impact. Consider pairing long haul destinations with longer itineraries to maximise learning value.

Flights to and from Lukla are included. We even cover an extra 5kg excess baggage, so you can check-in 15kg. |  Ayla Rowe

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10. Choose Your Tour Carefully

Look for clear responsible travel commitments, transparent safety systems, and proven educational outcomes. Ask how programs respect local culture, reduce environmental impact, and support long term community goals. Choose partners who collaborate with teachers to meet curriculum needs and duty of care requirements.

A family from Huilloc, the recipients of a new healthier cook stove | LT

Responsible Travel with World Expeditions Schools

World Expeditions Schools is committed to sustainable student travel. Our approach was built over decades of field experience and continuous improvement. We design Tours that minimise impact, build intercultural understanding, and deliver strong learning outcomes in partnership with teachers and school executive teams. From pre departure briefings to on program risk management and post trip reflection, your students learn how to travel thoughtfully and give back to the places they visit.

Read about our Responsible Travel approach | See Service Learning in action | Design Your Program

Destinations to Pair with Responsible Travel Learning

Connect these ideas to real itineraries that align with your curriculum and student goals.

  • Costa Rica for biodiversity studies, rainforest conservation, and active learning through hiking and rafting.
  • Peru for cultural immersion, Andean ecosystems, and service learning with local communities.
  • Nepal for mountain environments, leadership development, and eco comfort camp stays.
  • Uganda for high altitude ecosystems and conservation themes.
  • Marine and Coastal programs for ocean literacy and reef studies.

If you would like tailored advice for your school, our team can help align a destination and program type with your curriculum and budget.

Ask an Expert

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