On our Green Travel Blog, we mostly introduce you to our sustainable hotels. But today we are talking about a whole island. The North Sea island of Juist is not only a popular travel destination but also a great example of sustainable tourism.

Climate Neutral 2030

Have you ever heard of KUNTIKUM? The shortcut stands for climate trends and sustainable tourism development in coastal and low mountain regions. The project was carried out as a study by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research from 2007 to 2009 and the island of Juist participated as one of five pilot regions. The goal of the project was to make the island climate neutral by 2030. A joint declaration by the Netherlands, Denmark, and Germany ensures that the Wadden Sea will become climate neutral as a World Heritage Site by the same year. The so-called Sylt Declaration supports the preservation of the nature reserve.

Climate change on Juist

Now you may wonder to what extent this is necessary. The islands of the North Sea are already massively confronted with the effects of climate change and the water level is rising. On Juist you can see this in the dunes in the west of the island, which are being destroyed by strong storm tides, which have become more and more frequent in recent years. According to researchers, the climate should not rise more than 2 degrees so that further consequences of climate change can be prevented. The primary goal is to avoid greenhouse gases. This is particularly easy on Juist because the island is car-free. Here everything is transported with the help of horses and carriages. This means a real slowdown for you on vacation.

Sustainable vacation

So what other sustainable activities are there on Juist? You can also take a walk along the coast or take a swim in the sea. And the best thing is, you do some good for your own health. On Juist you can also do health-promoting thalassotherapy. Thalasso stands for treatment with seawater and sea air, algae, mud, sand, and sun – in other words, everything that nature has to offer on the North Sea.

Climatic therapy

A special form of thalasso is climatic therapy, where you are guided from walking on the beach to swimming in the sea within a week. Accompanied by thalassotherapy therapists, you gradually let go of some warming clothes and climb into the cold but revitalizing waves at the end of the week. The effects of the therapy are convincing because the blood circulation is stimulated, the skin is tightened and nourished and you strengthen your immune system.