Science & technology | Vexing visits

Carbon emissions from tourism are rising disproportionately fast

The industry is failing to make itself greener

TVs on seat backs in a plane.
Photograph: Magnum
|3 min read

Tourists have been getting a lot of flak recently. Venice has started charging €5 ($5.30) for day-trippers and limits the size of tour groups. Rome is considering a €2 fee to see the Trevi fountain. New Zealand has upped fees for visitors.

Explore more

This article appeared in the Science & technology section of the print edition under the headline “Vexing visits”

From the December 14th 2024 edition

Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents

Explore the edition
El Sauce Observatory , Chile under the night sky.

An interstellar object is cruising through the solar system

Its appearance puts a new branch of astronomy to the test

Illustration of a person in a lab coat examining into the needle of an oversized syringe.

RFK junior wants to ban an ingredient in vaccines. Is he right?

Studies show that thimerosal does more good than harm


A plant using photosynthesis to create new proteins.

AI is helping to design proteins from scratch

They could treat diseases, test drugs and boost crop yields


A new project aims to synthesise a human chromosome

The tools developed along the way could revolutionise medicine

How sea slugs give themselves superpowers

Their slimy shenanigans might have applications for humans, too

Is being bilingual good for your brain?

Perhaps. Learning languages offers other, more concrete benefits