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August 30, 2010
Ecotourism hits the big 20
August 12, 2010
Giving a little bit back on your next vacation
Voluntourism — combining your holiday with volunteer work — is on the
rise. Giving your time overseas can make a real difference both to your
own life and the people you donate your work to, especially if you’ve
got specialist skills. Read More
August 10, 2010
Do celebs like Jolie inspire voluntourism?
It's hard to think about humanitarian travel without picturing Angelina
Jolie and other high-profile volunteers. But how much do celebrities
contribute to the growing appetite for volunteering away from home and
is it all positive? Read More
August 1, 2010
World Heritage Alliance closes
The World Heritage Alliance founded in 2005 by the UN Foundation and
Expedia, is no more. The organisation had some 64 members earlier this
year from hotels to tourist boards and was working to support
sustainable tourism to, and around, world heritage sites. Read More
July 25, 2010
Revolutionary eco airplane of the future unveiled by airbus
Use of nanotechnology, biotechnology, information technology
and cognitive science may bring flocks of strange green flying machines... Read More
July 23, 2010
Travelers urged to lighten their holiday load
A new study released today shows a quarter of us spend between two and
three days packing our bags for our holiday, but once there only 16% of
us actually use and wear everything we’ve packed. Read More
July 5, 2010
Tourism Names: the $Multimegatrillion Sustainable Jackpot
Sustainable tourism, ecotourism, responsible tourism, ethical tourism,
green tourism: all runners in the mammoth stakes global domination
race: backgrounds: backers: benefits: drawbacks: who will win... Read More
July 3, 2010
Rainforest Alliance New Seal Recognizes Sustainable Tourism Achievement
The Rainforest Alliance has released its new verification mark to
recognise businesses and projects that have achieved significant and
measurable sustainability milestones. Read More
June 25, 2010
Getting Away with Good Intentions
It's not all work and no play for those who prefer the purpose-driven vacation to lying aimlessly on a beach.
Voluntourism, or the practice of combining vacation play with
humanitarian work, can mean teaching in Ghana or studying plant life in
Peru. Just don't forget the sunscreen. Read More
June 18, 2010
Rolling up the sleeves at ESTC: Voluntourism takes the stage at this year’s event
The International Ecotourism Society (TIES) and the destination hosts
Travel Oregon and Travel Portland have partnered with the ESTC
Voluntourism Partner Planeterra, a world leader in volunteer travel, to
bring volunteering to the forefront this year in recognition of the
increasing importance of voluntourism as a niche of sustainable tourism. Read More
June 3, 2010
Carbon Market News: Air Canada Ups Carbon Offsetting
Air Canada and Zerofootprint have announced the expansion of the
bilingual Voluntary Carbon Offset program, providing customers that
want to minimize the environmental impact of their air travel with two
new certified carbon offsets projects. Read More
June 1, 2010
Tourism for Tomorrow Award Winners Announced
This years winners of the 2010 Tourism for Tomorrow Awards were
announced at the Global Travel & Tourism Summit in China last week. Hosted by the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), the
awards saw the 12 finalists invited onto the stage at the Centre for
the Performing Arts in Beijing before being whittled down to just four
winners. Read More
May 11, 2010
New Study Shows Travelers More Socially Conscious
A new study
coming out of Europe revealed a shift in consumer consciousness that is
changing travel! People want their travel to be meaningful, feel good
and have some impact in the world — not just for escapism or
indulgences. So it’s no surprise that travel philanthropy and
voluntourism are booming. Read More
May 11, 2010
Sex Tourism & World Cup: South Africa Throws Down Gauntlet
Fair Trade in Tourism South Africa (FTTSA), has launched of a new
project to institutionalize the Tourism Child-Protection Code of
Conduct ("the Code") in South Africa whilst Mariëtte du Toit-Helmbold
threw down the gauntlet to human traffickers. Read More
May 10, 2010
Tourism stakeholders told to go beyond green in order to develop a world class sustainable product
BRIDGETOWN, Barbados – Tourism industry specialists and policy makers
have been told that going green is no longer enough if the Caribbean
wants to develop a world-class sustainable tourism product. Read More
May 1, 2010
Going Local: An Introduction to Community-Based Tourism
As more and more travelers look for ways to see the planet without
leaving a negative footprint, alternatives to mass tourism are growing
in popularity. Referred to as ethical travel, responsible travel or
sustainable travel, these new trends range from ecotourism and rural
tourism to voluntourism and community-based tourism. Read More
April 27, 2010
7 Reasons Why Voluntourism is the Best Way to Travel
I first caught the travel bug volunteering in Honduras and ever since
then I’ve felt the need to get out on the road and experience as many
places as I can. But for all the travelling that I’ve done since, I
still look back to Honduras as my fondest travel memory...Read More
April 19, 2010
University of Vermont Ecotourism Course Attracts Leading Thinkers in Field
Register Now for Megan Epler Wood’s
new short-course, Global Sustainable Ecotourism Development, at the
University of Vermont, July 12-16, 2010. This course is being launched
in honor of the 20th anniversary of The International Ecotourism
Society (TIES). Read More
April 16, 2010
Mind the Gap: Visitor Beware - An inner-city school teacher explores the difference between voluntourism and poorism
At the height of the pre-recession boom a few years ago, a new type of tourism arose, one designed for wealthy folks, with the intent of making travel more exciting. Called voluntourism (volunteering while traveling) and poorism (touring poverty-stricken areas)—they were quickly heralded as boom industries, with the latter, of course, being branded as more than a little morally ambiguous. Read More
April 14, 2010
Do some good: Voluntourism brings new opportunities to travelers
In recent times, we have seen war, famine and natural disasters claim
entire regions of our planet. To some avid globetrotters, this is not
only a call to action to protect what is precious, but also an
opportunity to experience life without borders. Read More
April 12, 2010
Granddaughter of famed explorer Jacques Cousteau to provide water conservation insight:
Environmentalist Celine Cousteau teams with Gap Adventures
Cousteau will support Gap Adventures' annual Earth Month commitment to
building happiness and community the world over through
awareness-boosting and fundraising initiatives, which this year is
dedicated to highlighting the importance of fresh water resources. Read More
April 11, 2010
Carbon Market by Far the Biggest Challenge the Travel & Tourism Industry has Ever Faced
Cop15 may have been widely reported as a failure and the global news
media seem to be full of challenges to the science of global warming
and climate change. However the legislative mechanisms have been set in
place and the clock is running - it is only a matter of time before rigorous legislation and increasing energy prices take their massive toll... Read More
April 8, 2010
Traveling Greener as We Celebrate the 40th Anniversary of Earth Day
Little things really make a difference.
That's why on vacation,
just like at home, we should all do our part to protect the
environment. It's as simple as turning off the lights and AC when you
leave a hotel room or using fewer paper napkins. Read More
March 29, 2010
Ecotourism Celebrates 20 Years
Leader of the pack organisation launched two years before seminal
1992 Rio Earth Summit - The International Ecotourism Society is now
celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. In 1991 TIES opened offices in Alexandria, Virginia and North
Bennington, Vermont. The new board established the TIES mission and the
definition of ecotourism that is still mostly widely used around the
world. Read MoreMarch 26, 2010
Gap Shows the Love
A recent star-studded event organized by Gap Adventures and the Love In
Action organization was held to benefit the non-profit Planeterra. The
events raised $22,000 dollars to support Haiti relief efforts and
supply microsurgeries for a vision restoration project in Tibet. Read More
March 16, 2009
Love is in the Air this St. Patrick's Day
Not in the mood to wade through an unruly sea of green this St.
Patrick's Day? Then make your way to Revival Nightclub where love is in
the air -- and for a good cause [- a fundraiser for Planeterra!] Read More
March 15, 2010
New Sustainable Tourism Award Announced
Vision on Sustainable Tourism in partnership with the DestiNet
Sustainable Tourism Information and Communications Portal, launched a
new Sustainable Tourism Award at this year’s ITB Berlin. Read More
March 3, 2010
CSR in Tourism: Sustainability: Overarching Theme at ITB Berlin
New ideas and a fresh impetus for more corporate social responsibility
in tourism – ITB CSR Day with controversial topics and a presentation
of an exclusive study in association with the GfK on the subject of
“Top CSR companies from the customers’ viewpoint” Read More
February 16, 2010
Get moving to help PeruIn the wake of last month’s massive flooding in Peru that has
forced entire communities from their homes and livelihoods, nonprofit
geotourism group Planeterra is helping to motivate concerned citizens
to lend a helping hand to those affected. Read More
February 11, 2010
Vacations with a Heart: Voluntourism Opportunities around the World
What better time to show your love for the world than Valentine's Day?
Volunteer vacations provide a way to lend a helping hand, whether it's
across the globe or close to home... Read More
February 3, 2010
What a Way to Go: 12 Hot Family Travel Trends
Whether you hit the road, sail the seas or stay close to home—planning
a family getaway is easier than you think. We got the lowdown from
experts in the business on the hot, new trends in family travel. Read More
February 3, 2010
The World’s Coolest Travel Interns Announce Love In Action 2010!
It began with a simple challenge. Bruce called us into his office one
evening just before Christmas and gave us our biggest assignment. He
challenged us to figure out a way to raise $25,000 for Planeterra to
fund a microsurgical eye camp in Tibet enabling vision restoration to
more than 200 blind Tibetans. Read More
February 2, 2010
The Best of National Geographic's Geotourism Summit 2010
Looking for good news from the world of travel? Look no further than
the second annual National Geographic Geotourism Summit 2010 today in
Washington, D.C., where stellar examples of wisely managed tourism and
innovative destination stewardship will come together from all around
the world. Read More
January 22, 2010
In the Aftermath, Helping Haiti from next door
After the earthquake, the beach takes a backseat and kinship flourishes for travellers in the Dominican Republic. As travellers near Haiti organize ad-hoc fundraisers and make donations
through relief agencies, travel companies with stakes in the area are
offering assistance. Read More
January 13, 2010
URGENT Appeal to Support Earthquake Survivors in Haiti
In response to the powerful 7.0 magnitude earthquake that struck off the coast of Haiti on Jan. 12, Planeterra and Gap Adventures are sending out an urgent appeal asking for your donation to help support the survivors of this disaster. With
an estimated 3 million people affected and wide-spread damage
throughout Port au Prince, your donation will go directly to the
Canadian Red Cross whose local volunteers who are assisting with
evacuation and providing much needed shelter, clean water and medical
support. Read more or Donate Now
January 2, 2010
[Unsustainable] Tourism Development Undermining Millions in Tsunami Aid says Tourism Concern
Five years since the Boxing Day tsunami devastated the coastlines of
India and Sri Lanka, killing thousands and destroying countless homes
and livelihoods, many communities are still struggling to rebuild their
lives. This is despite massive aid flows to the region, including over
£400 million raised through donations in the UK alone, says Tourism
Concern. Read More
January 2, 2010
COP 15 Over, Now the Bad News for Tourism 2010+
Whether it was a failure or a success is totally irrelevant. What
has actually been agreed and will be put into practice is the really
important information, which we’ll need to make decisions for the
future. To do that, we’re going to have to try to understand two,
worrying, points of view that any measures will have to engage with in
future legislation Read MoreDecember 2009 News
November 2009 News
October 2009 News
September 2009 News
August 2009 News
July 2009 News
June 2009 News
