Sir, I consider my carbon footprint to be relatively small: I walk to work, take most of my holidays in the UK and have never set foot outside Europe. I have, however, travelled the world thanks to Michael Palin (report, Jan 14) and other, mostly less amusing, travel writers.
I particularly enjoyed his travels in West Africa, but was convinced that I, as a non-Muslim woman, could never travel there safely. I would love to stand “on top of the world” but know, as an asthmatic, I could never do so.
Our world is an infinitely fascinating place, and the more we learn about it, the more determined we become to preserve it for future generations.
SHEILA MATTHEWS
Southport, Merseyside
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Sir, Can we assume that members of Transport 2000 eschew most of the produce available in supermarkets? The desire of so many individuals to eat tasteless, out-of-season fruit and vegetables results in an alarming number of air miles being clocked up on a typical dinner plate. This is of far more harm to our environment.
Michael Palin should resign from Transport 2000. But only because it is not worthy of his patronage.
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HELEN BARNES
Bourne, Lincs
Sir, Transport 2000 is not the only organisation to have inconsistencies between its objectives and some of its patrons or its fundraising activities.
I support an organisation working for the preservation of wildlife in tropical forests, one of whose patrons was a TV personality on wildlife programmes who denies the reality of manmade climate change, which is surely the biggest long-term threat to many species. A similar organisation has as a raffle prize a family holiday worth thousands of pounds, which must surely involve a huge number of air miles and corresponding greenhouse gas emissions.
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We should aim for consistency in our actions, but recognise we that will not always succeed.
MARTIN QUICK
Stroud, Glos