What is Responsible Travel?

Responsible travel is about minimizing your impact and maximizing your connection with people and the environment. It's about making a positive contribution and having the most rewarding and inspiring travel experiences.

Responsible Travel incorporates the issues of:

ENVIRONMENT: Travel that minimizes negative environmental impacts and, where possible, makes positive contributions to the conservation of biodiversity, wilderness, natural, and human heritage.

SOCIAL/CULTURAL: Travel that respects cultures and traditions and fosters and generates interaction and understanding between traveler and hosts.

ECONOMY: Travel creates financial benefit for the host community and operates on the principles of fair trade.
Responsible travel is one of the most direct and personal ways you can make a difference to some of the biggest issues affecting our world: poverty and education. Be a part of the solution, not a part of the problem - and have the time of your life doing it.

CHECKLIST:

Before You Leave Home:

o Do Research - the more you know about a place and its people before you arrive, the quicker you can assimilate. Use Traveltrac forums to learn more about the area you are visiting or share the information you have learned for others to benefit from.

o Learn a few phrases of the local language and make sure you know what's appropriate and what's not.

o Leave a clean trail or wake – don’t make your garbage someone else’s problem.

Is Your Travel Green?

o Tour operators, hotels, lodges, and marinas that are genuine in their approach to responsible tourism will generally have a written policy covering their environmental impact, employment, and cultural diversity policy. If they don't, ask them why - by their response, you'll be able to make a judgment call.

Ask Specifics:

o How do they deal with the environmental issues facing them?

o Do they employ local guides, leaders, and staff and provide training opportunities?

o Do they limit the size of their groups to minimize environmental and social impact?

o Do they have a 'green' purchasing policy?

o Do they work with the local community?

o What information do they offer their clients on Responsible Travel?

Culture Shock or Culture Connection

One of the best things about traveling is making connections with people from different cultures, in an authentic and mutually enjoyable way.

o Go with the flow. Other cultures have very different concepts of time, personal space and socially acceptable behavior. You'll find it a lot less stressful - and a lot more enlightening - if you relax and adjust. You might even reassess your own values.

o Dress appropriately. Looking at the locals is a good way to gauge what to wear. Particularly in conservative cultures - it's only respectful.

o Be conservative with resources such as water, food, and energy - you may be making a negative impact on their environment.

o Buy locally means your money goes directly to the community.

Minimize Your Impact on Fragile Places

These tips apply no matter where you are:

o Discard your rubbish properly. The scourge of the 21st century is shaping up to be discarded plastic water bottles...

o If bathing or swimming, consider the sensibilities of local people - both regarding what you wear and the fact that you're using 'their' water. Bathe downstream from water collection points or villages and avoid using soaps (particularly ones containing phosphates) in fresh or ocean waters.

Wildlife Watching

o Be aware of suggested or legal approach distances and other recommendations for observing wildlife. A basic rule of thumb is if the animal is altering its behavior due to your presence, then you're too close. The best wildlife watching is when you get to see the animals' natural, often quirky, behavior. Invest in a long camera lens and binoculars.

o Don't be tempted to buy souvenirs made from wild animal products, including skins, ivory or bone. Not only is it illegal to import or export them in most cases, you're likely to be supporting poaching practices that have had devastating impacts on animal populations. Similar principles apply to wooden products: check you're not purchasing a chunk of old-growth rainforest.