Climate Neutral Travel

Or how to relieve the guilt your jetting across the ocean or driving across the country generates.

I don't think it's a coincidence that I've been active with a small group of moms in my area who want to do what they can about global warming, just as I'm about to contribute several tons of CO2 to the problem myself.

We're all worried about how our children are going to fare as adults in a world that will have changed in ways we struggle to imagine.

NativeEnergy offers a program called Climate Neutral Travel. You can use their energy calculator to determine how you can offset your trip through the purchase of Green Tags.

I've calculated that my trip to Prague will contribute about a ton of CO2. A one-ton block of "Earth Cooler Credits" costs about $12.

The money that I give to NativeEnergy then goes into the development of a wind farm in South Dakota and a methane project in Pennsylvania.

I know this doesn't solve the problem, and that it's really just a panacea, but at least it brings something good out of the waste, and does indirectly keep some CO2 out of the air.

NativeEnergy also offers programs for offsetting the gas you burn each year in your car--Cool Drivers--and the electricity your home or business uses--Cool Home and Cool Business.

I've signed up for the Cool Driver program, in addition to offsetting the fuel we'll burn on our cross country trip. We'll get a bumper sticker that advertises the program and we'll talk it up at all the campgrounds we visit this summer.