Posts Tagged ‘community’

Best Green Travel Guide Of 2010?

February 26th, 2010

TheGuardianGreenTravelGuide251180 Best Green Travel Guide Of 2010?

Fancy green travel inspiration for travel planning (and dreaming)?

Then you might like The Guardian Green Travel List 2010, a “list of 75 companies worldwide that have shown evidence of commitment to community, place and the environment.”  The guide is published in association with greentraveller.co.uk and supported by Forum for the Future.

Some 200+ travel and tourism companies answered an online questionnaire about their actions “to reduce carbon impact and promote water conservation, biodiversity conservation and waste management.”  A panel of travel and tourism experts studied the results and chose the final green list.

Image courtesy of The Guardian Green Travel List 2010 & ZEALANDIA

Into Australia’s Ecotourism

December 4th, 2009
AustraliaRemarkableRocks135202 2 Into Australias Ecotourism

Image courtesy of South Australia Tourism Commission

Fancy voluntouring in South Australia?  No worries, there are lots of available voluntourism projects from contributing to field research on endangered species to taking part in flora surveys on camel back.

Here are several organizations offering voluntourism experiences:

Earthwatch Australia is an organization that involves the public in scientific field research. Volunteers collect data under scientists’ direction and work as expedition members, sharing the costs of the research among them.  On a two-day expedition on Kangaroo Island, they learn about Australia’s most unusual animals and help conserve their ecosystem. Staying at the solar powered Pelican Lagoon Research and Wildlife Centre, they participate with researchers in searching for, radio-tracking, observing and recording the daily activities of the island’s echidnas and goannas.

» Read more: Into Australia’s Ecotourism

Greening Up Your Cruise Vacation

November 2nd, 2009

EcoventuraGirl with hat bird

Are you planning a cruise vacation and looking for greener options?  Cruise company Ecoventura is a greener cruising leader recognized for its commitment to sustainable tourism in the Galapagos.

In September, the company was named the winner of a Condé Nast Traveler 15th Annual World Savers Award in the category of Cruise Lines. Recently, Travel + Leisure’s Global Vision Awards named Ecoventura the winner of the 2009 award for Green Cruising, featured online and in the magazine’s November issue.  The annual Global Vision Awards “recognize the latest and best efforts at cultural preservation, environmental conservation, and community building through tourism.”

Ecoventura is a family-owned company based in Guayaquil, Ecuador, with sales offices in Quito and Miami.  This Galapagos cruise company transports 4,000+ passengers annually aboard a fleet of three expedition vessels, 20-passenger motor yachts with 10 double cabins, and a 16-passenger dedicated divelive-aboard. Ecoventura says all its vessels have been retrofitted to meet high environmental standards.

Says Santiago Dunn, Ecoventura president:

“It’s gratifying that today’s opinion makers are seeking out companies like ours that understand it takes an unwavering commitment to sustainable change and purpose instead of blind profit..Ironically, booming tourism in the Galapagos has added to the challenges and problems faced by those looking to restore and protect the island’s native species and ecological balance.”

For more information, check out Ecoventura online.

Image courtesy of Ecoventura