Green travel

Ode's annual special report explores new trends for socially responsible tourists who still just want to have fun - and shows them how to check in to an exotic eco-lodge, kick back and join the "slow travel" movement or get their hands dirty at a cozy agritourism destination.

Ode Editors | March 2008 issue

Trips that keep on giving

New trends in ecotourism help protect the environ-ment and support local communities.

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Ecotourism comes in many guises—green travel, sustainable travel, responsible travel, pro-poor tourism. At its essence, though, it’s about giving more than taking. Martha Honey, a longtime leader in the field, cites several trends working in ecotourism’s favour. “People are finally looking at how global warming impacts travel,” says Honey, co-director of the Center on Ecotourism and Sustainable Development, a joint program of Stanford University in California and the Institute for Policy Studies in Washington, D.C. “The increased use of carbon offsets isn’t the answer to everything, but it’s raised a whole discussion that is very important.”

Beyond purchasing carbon offsets, tourism companies and travellers are giving their time and money to the communities and destinations they visit. “We’re seeing a growing trend among tourists and companies to donate funds and personal assistance to communities and countries where tourism takes place,” Honey says. “Travellers’ philanthropy is an important new source of assistance.”

Perhaps most telling is the nascent greening of the entire travel industry, from hotel chains to golf courses to ski resorts. “All of this is extremely important,” Honey notes. “We want sustainable businesses in mainstream tourism. What I’m seeing is really hopeful, and I put that down to the successes around ecotourism.” Here are some ecotourism initiatives that offer reasons to be hopeful:

Philanthropic travel

Australians Geoff Manchester and Darrell Wade have been doing philanthropic travel since they started Melbourne-based Intrepid Travel in 1989. From the beginning, they contributed money to communities they took groups of tourists to visit. In Tanzania, for instance, they support work for orphans and street children at the Amani Children’s Home at the base of Mt. Kilimanjaro. As the company grew, so did the support from its customers. Intrepid now assists community-based projects in more than 16 countries, covering such issues as wildlife, poverty, education, women and children, the environment and health.

In 2002, it established the Intrepid Travel Foundation, through which it matches travellers’ donations dollar for dollar. In the last fiscal year (2006-2007), the foundation disbursed $187,000 to 35 projects worldwide. For travellers wanting to combine adventure and giving, there are Intrepid Challenges, physically demanding trips that double as fundraisers for a charity selected by Intrepid.

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