Abu Dhabi: The national airline of the UAE, Etihad Airways will adopt a mangrove tree for every Economy Space ticket booked by a passenger, ensuring every “space” seat sold is eventually carbon neutral.
The move comes after the launch of the Etihad Forest, the airline’s initiative for biodiversity, wildlife and environmental protection through a network of mangrove and other forests being established in Abu Dhabi and worldwide.
Launched in February 2022, the Etihad Mangrove Forest project aims to plant 182,000 mangroves by the 1st quarter of 2023 in Abu Dhabi, before the next phase of the program to plant new forests in international destinations.
Mangroves remove up to 4 times more carbon dioxide from the air than other tropical forests, helping to fight the effects of climate change such as coral bleaching and coastline degradation, and supporting biodiversity and wildlife as an essential habitat for fish, birds and other wildlife.
As part of the initiative, Etihad will plant 1 mangrove tree in locations in Abu Dhabi for every economy space seat purchased on any Etihad Airways flight. Each mangrove planted alone will absorb up to 250 kg of CO2 in its lifetime, the same amount produced by an 8-hour flight.
“In addition to our sustainability ambitions, we made a commitment to helping our guests and partners travel more sustainably and empower them to make conscious choices. With the latest evolution of our sustainability program, we’re simplifying the process, so anyone can travel sustainably.”
Ms. Mariam Al Qubaisi, Head of Sustainability, Etihad Aviation Group, highlighted on the occasion.
Every guest who books an Economy Space Seat will receive confirmation of their gifted mangrove in the Etihad Forest within 10 days of flying.
From the email link, guests can track, virtually visit, and see photos and other details of their tree, confirming the carbon offset for their recent travel.
INTERACT WITH YOUR OWN PLANT
Guests have the option to register their claimed tree so they can easily revisit their tree at a later day.
Through the platform’s app, Etihad guests can “chat” with their chatbot-enabled tree, while also being able to track every tree with satellite maps and access data, including CO2 consumption metrics, which can be tracked.
ETIHAD’s ECONOMY SPACE
Economy Space from the airline offers generous legroom and more space to relax. The space is only available on Etihad-operated flights, and guests can reserve a seat in Economy Space while booking their ticket or at any time until check in.
Etihad Guest Platinum members can reserve a seat in Economy Space for free or save 50% as an Etihad Guest Gold member.
OTHER PASSENGERS
Guests in other cabins can also take part in the Etihad Forest initiative using Etihad Guest Miles in the Reward Shop, while a range of additional options are offered to meet corporate partner requirements and provide bundled-offset options through the Corporate Conscious Choices program.
In line with the Abu Dhabi Mangrove Program by the Environment Agency Abu Dhabi, the Etihad Mangrove Forest is the culmination of multiple joint programs between Etihad, Environment Agency Abu Dhabi, Jubail Island, The Storey Group and other partners to support mangrove conservation projects in the nation and develop new carbon sinks and natural resources to remove carbon from the atmosphere following our principle “Abu Dhabi for the World.”