Have you ever considered the impact of your travel choices on the ecosystems you explore? Habitat and wildlife destruction are part of our world today. Glaciers are disappearing. Coral reefs are dying. Vulnerable animals are on the brink of extinction. Forests are decimated by wildfires. As development, natural disasters, and climate change accelerate, our natural world continues to shrink. The demand for natural resources continues to threaten the planet’s wild places and wildlife. What if your travel plans could make things better?
When My Ideas about Travel Took a Radical Turn
The seed that bloomed into what is now Authentica Travel and Dive started on a trip to Mexico with my husband and father. Our trip started in the remote areas of the Yucatan Peninsula, exploring local communities, interacting with small shop-keepers and artisans, and sometimes being the only people who didn’t speak Spanish. The footprint we left in these areas was tiny. We were traveling as a small group, staying in local inns, buying from the local business owners, and interacting with the community on their terms.
We understood our place as visitors and respected the local culture and way of life. Local folks easily outnumbered the tourists in these towns and I knew I was seeing the “real” Mexico. More importantly, I knew that our tourist dollars were staying with the locals in the community. I loved the authenticity of my interactions and the knowledge that our money was staying in those local communities.
As we continued our way around the Yucatan to Playa del Carmen and Cozumel, the stark contrast was jarring. We’d left the remote areas of small towns with local charm and landed in the big resort and cruise ports where hordes of people were gathered. The masses of vacationers seemed so out of place and disruptive to me. I could plainly see that most of the area had been overdeveloped and underprotected to keep the tourist machine humming along. I know that a lot of people enjoy this type of vacation experience, but I have to be honest. It made me sick.
I thought to myself that there had to be a way to do better. There had to be a way to safely see incredible things and still preserve the natural resources of a place and be respectful of the local community. My passion for traveling sustainably was ignited and I started building Authentica as a response to what I saw in those resort towns in the Yucatan Peninsula.
That trip to Mexico forever changed me as a traveler. Now I feel it’s my moral obligation to make sure that all my travel plans protect and serve the communities I travel through. It is my duty to work with businesses that protect the ecosystems, the plants and the animals of the place I’m visiting. At first, I thought it would be challenging to find sustainable businesses to partner with, but I’ve been amazed at how successful businesses can be and still operate ethically and sustainably. I’ve also found that you don’t have to sacrifice comfort and fun to support the conservation of natural resources.
Choosing a Vacation Where Conservation is Valued and Upheld by the Community
Peru and specifically the Inca Trail, is a destination that I will return to again and again because of the commitment that both the government and the community have toward preserving sacred Inca treasures. Adventure travelers can satisfy their thirst for a challenge by hiking the Inca Trail. The trail passes many Inca ruins and sites as it leads trekkers to Machu Picchu. The trail, the sites and Machu Picchu itself, are historically significant, but more importantly, they are considered sacred by the indigenous Quechua people, who consider themselves guardians of the area.
Travelers who hiked the Inca Trail before 1994 were pretty much destroying it by camping in unestablished camp spots, indiscriminately littering, and overusing the trail system. The sheer number of people attempting the trek overwhelmed the local communities and the trail infrastructure. The destruction of the trail’s ecosystem was troubling, especially for the Quechua people who were seeing the apex of their cultural identity destroyed.
The Peruvian government took their first steps to protect these sacred places in 1994 by requiring travelers to hire licensed guides to lead them on the trail. Since then, regulations for guides have evolved and now include strict rules for the humane treatment of porters and guidelines for the conservation of natural resources. Daily permits are limited for trekkers in order to control the flow of tourists in the area. By limiting the number of travelers, Peru can protect the health of the trail and preserve the local culture. At the same time, the local communities get the economic benefit of tourist dollars without becoming an overrun and over-built tourist complex stripped of its cultural identity.
Jose embodies this reverence for the Inca ruins and the surrounding land. He is the guide I always hire when I bring a group to hike the Inca Trail, and as a Quechuan, he whole-heartedly supports the government’s efforts to preserve the historical and natural treasures of the area. Jose is my go-to guide because he also is passionate about fair treatment for porters. Experiencing the Inca Trail with him brings me a sense of such deep gratitude for the privilege of being allowed to hike the sacred trail. He teaches me the importance of conserving the area because its loss would be an unimaginable devastation to the Quechua people, to Peru, and to the world.
Some might say that we have no business traveling to a place like that. Leave the people and the land alone. But regulated tourism actually helps the Inca Trail. Without the tourism industry, the local communities would slowly shrink and disappear as residents move to other areas for better economic opportunities. The combination of strict government regulations and ethical tour guides like Jose ensures that tourism works for the benefit of the local community and is not in service to wealthy outsiders who could easily develop and exploit the resources of the area.
Choosing a Vacation Where Your Money Directly Impacts Conservation
My diving trips are where I’ve encountered some of the most profound realizations of how tourism positively impacts conservation efforts. The Turneffe Atoll is a pristine area of the Mesoamerican Reef System off the coast of Belize. With its crystal blue waters and abundant sea life, it’s a prime location for diving, snorkeling and fishing. It’s also the type of place that would be ripe for tourism exploitation and ultimately, destruction of the very habitat that draws travelers. As a Marine Protected Area, any tourism businesses that operate there must adhere to sustainable practices as dictated by the Belize government.
Not only is it a place I want to visit because of the amazing scuba diving experience, but also because Authentica partners with a resort that walks the talk of ecotourism. They educate travelers about the unique ecosystem and infuse sustainability practices in every aspect of their business, from generating their energy through solar power, to harvesting rainwater for use at their resort, to packing only reusable items in our lunches aboard the boat.
For them keeping the Turneffe Atoll intact is good for business, but the owners’ love of the place is the driving force behind their conservation efforts. Preserving the natural beauty and health of the atoll is the bedrock of their company’s mission. They donate 1% of the revenue to the Turneffe Atoll Trust, a nonprofit that is a leader in creating legislation and other efforts to preserve the Turneffe Atoll’s ecosystem. When we book a dive trip with them, we are directly funding the conservation efforts of the Trust.
Choosing a Vacation Where You Actively Participate in Conservation
I’m in awe of how I can be unexpectedly moved when I am in the middle of an adventure vacation. On a recent dive trip to the Galapagos my passion for sustainable travel found a new depth of purpose in our group's contribution to conservation work.
Because the Galapagos are teeming with wildlife, there are a multitude of active research programs happening in that area at any given time. Our guides told us about a research program that needed our help. The researchers were monitoring sea turtles in the area and they encouraged those of us with cameras and GoPros to find as many sea turtles as possible. We were given specific directions about capturing parts of their heads in our photos so that the researchers could identify and catalog them. We took the task seriously, but were also thrilled that we got to be part of an important research project.
Without the help of recreational divers, research programs like the one we contributed to, would collect far less data. Recreational divers can be a corps of volunteers that help with marine research. How cool is that?
As gratifying as it was to be a part of the sea turtle research project, what really drove home the importance of our tourism in the Galapagos was understanding our role as protectors of those waters. We stayed on a live-aboard boat that we chartered for several nights in the waters around Darwin Island. The abundant sea life in the area makes for amazing scuba diving, but it also attracts illegal fishing of all kinds and the most disturbing is shark finning. That’s the horrific practice of catching sharks, cutting off their fins and throwing them back in the water to drown to death.
Our guides have a reverential relationship to the Galapagos and are driven to protect those waters. The more they can keep their boats booked and out to sea with recreational divers, the more effectively they can patrol the waters for illegal fishing. If discovered, illegal fishing boats are reported to the Coast Guard. Even better, when charters are out on the water with recreational divers, they act as deterrents to any boats with the intent to fish illegally. When we are in the waters enjoying ourselves under the waves, we are also keeping watch,
That role felt like such an important mission. It was more than just playing underwater and my heart was heavy when the time came to move on to the next island. It felt a little bit like I was abandoning my post at Darwin Island. But it made me more committed than ever to return to the Galapagos and fill another charter so we could take up our next watch.
Making Your Vacation Matter
Call it ecotourism or sustainable tourism, it is the antidote to vacations that cause harm to the environment and communities. Supporting sustainable businesses directly impacts conservation work in the areas you visit. Because more and more travelers care about sustainability, it’s important to vet the companies you hire for your vacation to ensure they are not simply green-washing their businesses to make an easy buck. The way you spend your travel dollar can either help in the preservation of natural resources or in the destruction of it.
Trips curated by Authentica Travel and Dive will offer experiences with businesses who protect natural resources and honor the local culture. As the owner I painstakingly vet all the companies I partner with to make sure their practices align with Authentica’s mission to tread lightly wherever we go and make every effort to improve the environment and community.
Commenti