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Across Europe, sustainable business travel is increasingly being treated as a business priority rather than a voluntary initiative.
Regulations such as the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) have raised expectations for more consistent, explainable sustainability reporting, and travel managers are already responding. In BTN Intelligence’s 2025 survey, 67.2% of Europe-based organizations had overall carbon-reduction targets, 44.6% had specific business travel emissions targets, and 73.8% said legislation such as CSRD was a reason for pursuing reductions.
For travel leaders, the challenge is clear: sustainability must move beyond reporting and become part of everyday travel management. That shift is already visible in program plans. GBTA’s 2025 Outlook Poll found that 50% of Europe-based buyers expected to implement a sustainable practice element in their program in 2025, while 34% expected to add sustainability-specific technology or services.
The key question is not whether to measure emissions, but how to turn travel data into decisions that improve cost control, compliance readiness, and commercial positioning.
For many organizations, sustainable travel becomes more effective when it is built into the managed travel program rather than handled as a separate reporting exercise.
In practice, this usually means combining:
This combination reflects how travel programs are evolving. BTN Intelligence’s 2025 survey found that 51% of travel managers are already tasked with gathering emissions data, 42% of organizations aim to make CO2 visible at the point of sale, 30% use policies encouraging air-to-rail modal shift where feasible, and 33% use internal communications to influence traveler behavior.
Travalyst research also highlights why point-of-booking guidance matters: 47% of travelers say sustainability is important when making travel choices, but 63% do not want to spend time researching it themselves.
When these elements work together, organizations move from fragmented initiatives to more structured and effective travel programs.
Many measures introduced to improve travel cost efficiency can also lower emissions.
Examples include:
Earlier booking helps control fares, tighter cabin-class rules reduce both spend and emissions, and rail-first policies on viable short-haul routes can do the same.
In rail-mature European markets, this makes rail-first a practical lever for both cost and carbon management. The European Environment Agency highlights that rail remains the transport mode with the lowest greenhouse gas emissions in Europe.
Sustainability is not a separate cost lever, but a byproduct of better travel policy design, helping reduce spend rather than increase it.
Under the GHG Protocol, business travel is Scope 3 Category 6. In the EU, CSRD reporting has begun, and sustainability statements are now subject to assurance. ESRS E1 also requires companies to disclose gross Scope 3 emissions and each significant Scope 3 category.
Manual spreadsheets and disconnected data sources often create risk. Without traceability, emissions reporting becomes difficult to defend during audits or procurement reviews.
That raises the bar for business travel emissions data. Companies increasingly need to show how emissions are calculated, which data and emission factors are used, and how assumptions or data gaps are handled. The GHG Protocol requires disclosure of data sources, emission factors and GWP values, as well as methodologies and assumptions for each Scope 3 category.
At scale, this is why consistent, traceable emissions calculations matter more than ad hoc manual handling.
Solutions such as SQUAKE provide the infrastructure that enables this, delivering structured emission calculations with transparent methodologies and integrating them directly into travel booking environments.
For organizations exploring how emission calculations can integrate into booking systems and mobility platforms, structured API-based approaches are available here.
Sustainability is increasingly influencing procurement decisions globally. Bain’s B2B research shows it is now among corporate buyers’ top purchasing criteria, with 36% of buyers saying they would leave suppliers that do not meet their sustainability expectations, and nearly 60% expecting to do so within three years.
This is reinforced by procurement data. In IntegrityNext’s 2025 survey, 82% of respondents said sustainability is a strategic procurement priority, and 92% assess sustainability performance at one or more stages of the supplier lifecycle.
This means credible travel emissions data can increasingly affect commercial outcomes. In practice, more sustainable business travel can support commercial positioning in three ways:
Revenue Protection
Maintaining eligibility in tenders and supplier reviews where sustainability criteria are part of the evaluation.
Revenue Enablement
Strengthening RFP responses with credible emissions data and reduction plans, supporting stronger supplier positioning as sustainability becomes a more important buying criterion.
Revenue Optimization
Aligning sustainability goals with more efficient travel policies and clearer value propositions for customers and procurement teams.
Sustainability becomes commercially meaningful when organizations can show measurable progress supported by reliable data. This is best understood as a growing commercial advantage, not a guaranteed revenue effect.
Despite growing attention to sustainable travel, many organizations still struggle to scale their initiatives. A GHG Protocol survey found that 83% of companies struggle to access relevant emissions data, while travel programs often rely on fragmented sources such as agency, payment, expense, and supplier data.
Common challenges include:
These challenges are reinforced by fragmentation in the managed travel ecosystem. Only 42% of respondents in BTN Intelligence’s 2025 sustainability survey said they were aiming to make CO2 emissions visible at the point of sale.
Without more connected infrastructure, sustainability efforts remain fragmented and difficult to manage at scale. To scale effectively, emissions calculations, booking tools, and reporting systems must work together.
High-quality carbon data enables better decision-making. When emissions data is traceable and transparent, companies can:
Without traceable data, sustainability reporting risks becoming inconsistent or difficult to defend.
Reliable data therefore becomes the foundation for both operational decisions and external credibility.
Even with strong reduction strategies, some emissions remain unavoidable.
Climate contribution mechanisms allow organizations to address residual emissions while supporting verified climate projects. When implemented transparently, climate contribution complements reduction strategies.
More information about structured climate contribution approaches is available here.
For companies across Europe, the most practical priorities improve both reporting quality and program execution. In practice, that means consistent measurement of business travel emissions, transparent methodologies, integration into booking and reporting systems, and travel policies aligned with reduction goals.
This reflects both regulation and current program plans. The first companies subject to the CSRD applied the rules to the 2024 financial year, for reports published in 2025, while GBTA found that 36% of buyers expected to implement a sustainable practice element in 2025, 34% expected significant travel policy changes, and 28% expected to implement sustainability-specific technology or services.
This typically means focusing on:
BTN’s 2025 survey points in the same direction. 42% of respondents aimed to make CO2 emissions visible at the point of sale, 30% encouraged air-to-rail shift where feasible, and 21% had already changed travel policy or approval thresholds to support sustainability goals.
When sustainability is embedded directly into travel systems and governance structures, it becomes easier to manage, measure, and improve over time.
Enabling structured sustainable travel programs
For enterprises using corporate travel platforms such as Cytric, integrating reliable emission calculations and structured climate contribution mechanisms directly into booking ecosystems is essential for scalability.
SQUAKE provides an end-to-end solution that enables:
- Emission calculations for travel and mobility
- Transparent and traceable methodologies
- Seamless integration into partner environments
- Access to a curated climate projects portfolio
- Enterprise-ready and scalable implementation
When booking systems and emission infrastructure are aligned, business travel becomes more efficient, both economically and operationally.
1. How does sustainable business travel support revenue?
Sustainability is becoming an important factor in supplier selection. Bain’s B2B research shows that a significant share of buyers would reconsider suppliers that do not meet sustainability expectations. Reliable emissions data and clear reduction plans can therefore strengthen positioning in tenders and RFP processes and support commercial outcomes.
2. What is Scope 3.6 in business travel?
Under the GHG Protocol, the correct term is Scope 3 Category 6: Business travel. It covers emissions from employee business travel in third-party transport such as aircraft, rail, buses, and passenger cars. Hotel stays may also be included depending on reporting boundaries.
3. Why is traceable carbon data important?
Traceable emissions calculations improve transparency, consistency, and audit readiness. Companies are expected to disclose methodologies, assumptions, data sources, and emission factors, and sustainability reporting is increasingly subject to assurance. Clear, well-documented calculations support both internal decision-making and external reporting.
For further information or to discuss how more sustainable travel can create measurable business value, you can contact the SQUAKE team here.
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