Results tagged “Sustainable” from Intelligent Travel Blog

Elizabeth Seward fulfills a childhood desire to visit Costa Rica.

I was in elementary school the first time I heard Costa Rica referenced as a destination people actually traveled to. A boy in my class answered his "what did you do this summer?" question with tales of this mystical place, which sounded a lot like Narnia to me. He was wearing a shirt covered in a colorful image of a parrot and the words "Costa Rica" scribbled underneath the bird in cursive. He made my summer's trip to Ocean City, Maryland sound like garbage and while I resented him for this, I still went home that evening parading the idea of Costa Rica vacation to my family. around the dinner table. When my mother told me how many birthday checks I'd have to save up before I could afford to fly the family to Costa Rica, I realized I would be 39--in which case I'd just fly myself. Fortunately, the prospect of vacationing in Costa Rica in my adult years didn't hinge on (only) birthday checks. 

I set out this past summer to embark on a trip to the land filled with monkeys and brightly colored poisonous frogs.  Flights to Costa Rica, as it turns out, are much less expensive than I'd once imagined.

While most guidebook authors head to a destination for several months and pen some notes, writer Eliot Stein immersed himself in Sardinian culture by living there for nearly three years. His recently published guidebook to Sardinia is not only one of the most authoritative guides to the island, but it also promotes responsible travel from a true insiders' perspective. The following are his recommendations of ways tourists can help preserve Sardinia's unique culture.

The world is a blur this month for the swift competitors racing in the Tour de France, and most of them have been pedaling faster than ever since with the introduction of ever-lighter carbon bikes each year. But for biking enthusiasts who crave such top-notch speed and durability, a whole new eco- and budget-friendly option will be soon available through an innovative partnership between non-profit Zambikes and elite bike builder Craig Calfee: the bamboo bike.

The story of the bamboo bike began right in the States -- Santa Cruz, to be exact -- where Calfee designed a bamboo bike for a publicity project. His audiences loved the artsy-crafty look, and requests and rave reviews soon started rolling in. Thus began a small, brand new production line.

Then Calfee remembered a trip he took in Africa, when he noticed a lot of bamboo, a shortage of bikes, and even fewer jobs. Wouldn't it be great, he thought, if developing countries could use one of the few natural resources they do have to create state-of-the-art bikes that everyone could enjoy and use? This became the inspiration for his Bamboosero project, which first took form in Ghana, where Calfee introduced the bike design to the local people and helped them set up the supply chain.

Molly Feltner is traveling through Africa, and got the chance to experience a model sustainable hotel in Rwanda.

In my travels to various destinations in the developing world, I've often been disappointed by how some upscale resorts and hotels go out of their way to separate their businesses and guests from the local population. So I was pleasantly surprised when I discovered Sabyinyo Silverback Lodge, located in a farming community right outside Volcanoes National Park in Rwanda.

Set on the slopes of the volcano Sabyinyo, this luxury lodge caters to well-heeled tourists coming to track the park's mountain gorillas and it supports some of the neediest members of the surrounding community. It's managed by Governors' Camp, which operates several high-end lodges and safari camps in East Africa, but is owned by SACOLA, an association of about 18,000 local Rwandans that is sponsored by the International Gorilla Conservation Programme, African Wildlife Foundation, and USAID.

When guests stay at the lodge, $50 per person per night goes to SACOLA. Since the lodge opened in 2007, SACOLA has earned enough to build more than 1,200 houses for survivors of the Rwandan genocide and other needy families, and fund sustainable agriculture projects as well. Sabyinyo also employs locals--90 percent of the staff members are Rwandan--and most of the food and all of the flowers used on the property are grown by community members.

Hitting the road this summer? Just because you're out of your comfort zone doesn't mean that your eco-friendly habits have to go on vacation too. Responsibletravel.com recently surveyed their readers about which travel faux pas they noticed most often in tourists. It's bad enough looking the part, do your best not to act it by avoiding these ill-minded actions.

1. "Littering - especially plastic bags."
2. "Purchasing illegal souvenirs or food produce."
3. "Wasting water in destinations which face shortages e.g. Spain."
4. "Leaving lights on."
5. "Leaving air conditioning on in hotel rooms when you're not in them."
6. "Purchasing mineral water in plastic water bottles when the hotel provides drinkable water for re-fills."
7. "Standing on coral reefs. It takes approx. one hundred years for one inch of coral to grow. By killing it you affect the whole eco system."
8. "Disturbing wild animals by getting as close as possible for a better picture."
9. "Throwing cigarette butts on the ground."
10. "Failing to take advantage of recycling facilities where offered."

Of course, there's hope for all of us, and lots of great ways to stay green while you're traveling. For more tips and ideas, check out Traveler's Ultimate Guide to Sustainable Travel. And National Geographic's Green Guide just launched their huge online package on having an eco-savvy summer, offering tips on what not to bring to the beach, a "How Green is Your Road Trip" quiz, and yes, even a buying guide to eco-friendly beer.

Got your own tip? Share it below.

[via Traveling the Green Way]

Photo: Vasjan Gulka, National Geographic magazine's My Shot

As May draws to a close, there are only a few lingering days left of Bike Month, and some good news on the bike front. It turns out that in the first quarter of 2009, Americans bought more bikes than cars, about 2.6 million vs. 2.5 million, according to Dennis Markatos, founder of Sustainable Energy Transition, in a blog on the Huffington Post.

Markatos says that even though the economic downturn has also impacted bike sales (they're down 30 percent from last year) they're still doing better than car sales (which are currently down 35 percent). What does that mean for Americans? More exercise, less CO2 emissions, and more money in your pocket since you're not paying for gas. So if you haven't taken advantage of bike month to tune up your ride, why not try to do so before the month's end?

Events are still happening this weekend in Sacramento, New York City, Colorado, Austin, and Greenville, among other cities. Visit  the calendar available at the League of American Bicyclists to find events in your area.

To get you inspired, we gathered the bicycle photos from our Intelligent Travel Flickr group. Get riding!
 

Boston Marathon 2009 at the halfway point coming up to the intersection of Route 16 and 128, by Paul Keleher

I'm going to go out on a limb and say it: Today is the best day of the year to be in Boston. Patriots' Day, aka Marathon Monday, is an official state holiday, a day when citizens crowd along the streets to watch some of the most elite runners in the world sprint by (and some of the no-so-elite as well - I ran the race myself back in 2001). This year was the 113th running of the race, and it was won by Ethiopia's Deriba Merga, and Kenya's Salina Kosegi. But it's by no means over for the thousands of people still running as I type.

One thing that may keep them going this year is the knowledge that among the many, many footprints that will cross the finish line - many of them will be accounted for, carbon-wise, by the race organizers, who have purchased offsets for the many buses used to transport runners to the starting line. They've also swapped out the motorcycles used to follow the elite runners with new electric scooters, and have installed a "green team" to ensure that all discarded cups, bottles, and blankets make their way into the barrels posted along the route. It's the first step, so-to-speak, that the race has taken to become more sustainable.

It's rainy and bleak here in D.C. today, so my "I Want to Go to There" (IWTGTT) locale of the day is the sustainable mountainside co-op, Vamos, in Crete. Featured in this weekend's Guardian Travel section, the little town located in the White Mountains has a collection of 19th century sandstone guesthouses available for rent, with on-site cooking classes, nearby beaches, and hiking trails through the snow-capped mountains. Here, author Jane Foster explains its history:

It started in 1995, when five local couples clubbed together and began renovating three old stone family cottages for use as guesthouses. Worried by the village's gradual depopulation and economic stagnation, they planned to revive the rural community through sustainable tourism, offering visitors the opportunity to explore the Cretan interior while providing locals with a new livelihood.

The Guardian has a roundup of other smaller cottages that will let you escape the bustle of the seaside resorts of Crete. All I know is, I want to go to there.

Photo: Vamos

Camping may seem like one of the greenest possible ways to travel. You're close to nature, bringing only what you need, and leaving only footprints behind. But as it turns out, the managers of campsites across the country are attempting to make the camping experience even greener, and are rolling out new methods of cutting the energy costs of running their sites. It's all part of the National Association of RV Parks and Campgrounds (ARVC) green parks initiative, called "Plan-it Green."

"A lot of parks were already doing things that helped the environment and I think a lot more of them are embracing the concept," says Linda Profaizer, president and CEO of ARVC, which represents the more than 8,000 private campgrounds, RV parks and resorts across the United States. Sites have been installing geothermal heating and cooling systems, low-flow shower heads, and efficient lightbulbs and hand-dryers, switching from chlorine-based pool cleaning systems to salt water treatments and even encouraging their staffs to use bikes instead of cars to travel the grounds.

As part of the initiative, ARVC has launched a competition which awards parks with the most outstanding forward-thinking practices. Last year's Green Award winner was the Grand Haven Resort in Kimbolton, Ohio. What put them over the edge? Among their eco-efforts was the installation of a geothermal heating and cooling system for its customer service and fitness centers. The result? The site's heating and cooling costs drop from over $12,000 per year to just over $1,200. That's a big chunk of change. And that kind of change is a good thing.

Photo: ARVC

IT contributing writer Andrew Evans sends along a carbon footprint-free blog post after spending this afternoon at the Centre for Alternative Technology in northern Wales.

If you've spent time on planet Earth recently, you may have heard the term "green-collar jobs." President Obama says they will play a key role in rebuilding our economy, Time published an article analyzing the term's meaning, and author/activist Van Jones wrote a New York Times best-seller on the subject.

So...How exactly does one tap into this new, sustainable business trend?

To find out, you may want to take a little field trip - kind of like when Luke Skywalker went to Yoda's swamp to learn to use the Force, except you get to go to Berkeley, eat at green restaurants, talk to successful business owners, and watch as an out-of-commission railroad car is smashed to pieces and recycled.

Oh, and instead of a little green creature (what is Yoda exactly?), your guide will be an informed, enthusiastic human with East Bay Green Tours.

Intrigued? Read more after the break.
 

Looking for a once-in-a-lifetime adventure in the mountainous Golden Triangle region of northern Thailand, where Thailand, Myanmar, and Laos converge? Love elephants? Want to help rescued Asian elephants and protect Thailand's wild herds?

If your head's bobbing and you're intrigued, check out the work of the Golden Triangle Asian Elephant Foundation. The foundation rescues abused, abandoned, and overworked elephants, many of whom once toiled in the logging industry, and has created camps for them in two impressive resorts in the Chiang Rai region of northern Thailand.

The elephants earn their keep at the Anantara Resort's Elephant Conservation Camp and at the Four Seasons Tented Camp by interacting with guests and carrying them on treks in Thai hill country, through dense patches of bamboo and across riverine flood plains. Each resort also employs the elephants' mahouts (drivers). They teach guests some of the 70 verbal commands the mahouts use to communicate with these gregarious beasts.

To learn more about this exciting program we caught up with John Roberts, Director of Elephants at the Anantara Golden Triangle Resort's Elephant Conservation Camp.

How long has the foundation been in existence?  

The foundation was created in 2006, after we rescued our first street baby; the intention to help came first and then we built the charitable apparatus to help us do more. The camp has been in existence since 2003, when we started with four government-owned elephants from the Thai Elephant Conservation Centre around whom we built the, then unique, guest mahout training program. This program has been copied and is now an accepted sustainable, elephant-friendly way for elephants to make a living from tourists.

Since its inception, how many elephants have been helped by the foundation?

We currently have 18 elephants under the care of the foundation, two born here and 14 at the hotel camps. These are all still ex-street elephants but they don't come under the foundation as they, with our help, earn a sustainable living for themselves.We've also sent money, vets, and vet equipment to other worthwhile projects--particularly the Thai Conservation Centre--to enable them to give free help to elephants throughout Thailand. We're most proud about our elephant ambulance, mobile centrifuge, and Dr. Pap, who's now a vet for the Royal White Elephants who received his training under our patronage.

The LEED-certified Terra Hotel in Jackson Hole is one of the featured properties on Travelocity's "Travel Green" site.

We were psyched to hear the news last week that Travelocity is now offering its users a search engine that will help steer them into greener pastures - literally. Their new "Travel Green" site has a selection of over 200 sustainably-minded hotels and suppliers. Travel Mole reports:

Many are 100-percent carbon neutral, serve locally-grown, organic foods in their restaurants, and some have partnerships with local conservation groups and encourage guests to make individual donations, which will be matched by the hotel.

Travelocity has developed a four-tier system based around the Global Sustainable Tourism Criteria Partnership rating system, which helps determine if a business is truly making an effort at being ecologically and culturally responsible. The properties and destinations featured in the green directory are likely to be training their staff and management about conservation, supporting the local community, working for cultural as well as environmental preservation and actively reducing their carbon footprints. Each business may not be doing all of these things, but if they are taking action in most of these areas, they rated highly enough to earn a spot in Travelocity's directory.

Travelocity has partnered with Energy Star, the Rainforest Alliance, the United Nations Foundation and the United Nations World Tourism Organization to identify and rate the suppliers, and are using the UN sanctioned guidelines for the Global Sustainable Tourism Criteria -- which were established with the help of National Geographic's Center for Sustainable Destinations, the creation of which we reported on earlier this year -- as their model.

We're glad to see a mainstream travel search engine devote the time and energy to developing the site.

Photo: The Terra Hotel in Jackson Hole, via Travelocity.

I'm just back from a week visiting the beautiful - but densely populated - island of Bermuda. Fortunately, the government has taken steps to preserve what they have. Here are some examples:

• To cut down on traffic and air pollution, each family is permitted one car only, which may not exceed 196 inches in length. The speed limit is 22 mph and gas costs roughly $7.00 a gallon.

• There are no car rentals on the island. Visitors can rent scooters, take taxis or public buses. We had a blast taking a scooter out for a spin. Note: they're hard to control at low speeds and many streets are very narrow.
  

• The bus routes go all over the island, are easy to figure out, and the buses are clean and have big windows. The best part: each bus driver has his or her own personal boombox on board, so each bus has its own vibe. Plus, the school children use the local bus routes to get to classes, so it's a great way to interact with the community.
  

• Trash cans on the street have a built-in container for glass and can recycling.

• Grocery stores offer paper, not plastic bags, but most people bring their own reusable shopping bags.

• Houses have cisterns beneath them for storing rainwater. The roofs have grooves to channel the water.

People think of Bermuda as a beautiful resort community, but it's nice to see that they have policies in place that are working to help keep it that way.

Photo by James Terrell, of my daughter's front walk in Bermuda on a rainy morning.