Voluntourism News

 

Paying the price for a gap year of adventure

Thousands of gap-year students head off on volunteer projects, paying as much as £4,000 to do so, but who really benefits?

Full story: http://www.guardian.co.uk/money/2010/jun/26/paying-price-gap-year-adventure

What is voluntourism?  Check out this interesting graphic

http://www.theexpeditioner.com/2010/06/23/voluntourism-whos-doing-what-where-and-how/

 

www.fodors.com/news/story_3887.html

Voluntourism: 5 Ideas for Giving Back While You Travel

OneTo apply, just visit worldtravelerinternship.com to fill out a short application and submit a link to your two-to-three-minute YouTube video response telling the panel of STA Travel Experts and World Traveler Internship partner judges, including a representative from mtvU, why you should be one of the two World Traveler Interns from the U.S.

All applications must be completed and submitted by March 2, 2010, with the World Traveler Interns being announced on April 13, 2010.

Itinerary

The World Traveler Internship program is known for putting together some of the most exotic and exciting itineraries ever seen and this year is no different.

The World Traveler Interns start their journey in Peru, volunteering at the STA-supported voluntourism project providing after-school tutoring and warm meals to orphaned children in Cuzco, near iconic Machu Picchu. Follow that with a trip through Brazil and Argentina, and a couple weeks in Australia, including a stop in Tasmania, and the Interns are off to a flying start.

The Interns start July in Japan hitting Tokyo and Kyoto before making their way to Thailand for some island hopping and Turkey, where they will visit Istanbul and the site of the Trojan War.

August offers a bit more freedom for the Interns. After a week in Egypt with the pyramids, the Interns will help plan their own itinerary with a Eurail Global Pass and two weeks to explore Western Europe before heading home to the U.S.

Application Process

To apply, potential World Traveler Interns must fill out a short application at worldtravelerinternship.com with a link to their two-to-three-minute YouTube video response detailing why they should be a World Traveler Intern.

Applications close on March 2, 2010, for deliberation by the panel of travel experts, who will then select and notify the top 50 applicants. Those top 50 applicants will then be required to submit a full application, including a formal resume, references and past experience. It is a job after all.

The top 50 are trimmed to the 20 best applicants who must complete a phone interview with one member of the panel of travel experts before they can advanced to the final round of judging. The 10 finalists will be required to submit a second video that will determine the two World Traveler Interns and the two runners-up, who will also receive trip prizes. The Interns and runners-up will be announced on April 13.

mtvU

For 2010, STA Travel is partnering with mtvU, the largest and most comprehensive multi-platform channel for college students, to spread the word about the World Traveler Internship.

The 2010 World Traveler Internship will be featured on mtvU broadcast and online programming and content from the World Traveler Intern’s journey will be featured on the mtvU network later in 2010.

UK World Traveller Internship

For the first time in the four-year World Traveler Internship program, not only will two young people from the U.S. be embarking on the journey of a lifetime this summer, two representatives from the United Kingdom will be taking the plunge as well.

Applications for the two UK World Traveller Internship spots will be accepted at http://www.worldtravellerintern.co.uk, with the application deadline of March 23 and the two UK Interns being announced on April 27.

About STA Travel

STA Travel is a global travel specialist with 30 years experience helping students, teachers and young professionals travel the world. We offer a unique range of products with exclusive discounts on airfare, accommodations, tours, rail passes and more. Globally we are present in 90 countries with 400 retail locations, sending over 6 million travelers away each year.

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STA Travel is a global travel specialist with 30 years experience helping students, teachers and young professionals travel the world. We offer a unique range of products with exclusive discounts on airfare, accommodations, tours, rail passes and more. Globally we are present in 90 countries with 400 retail locations, sending over 6 million travelers away each year. in four gap year students ditch 'hedonistic' tradition and invite parents along

By Tamara Cohen Daily Mail
on 07th November 2009

Gap year travelling provides teenagers with the ultimate escape from parental surveillance.
Unless, of course, mummy and daddy are coming along.
One in four students taking time out before university are, it seems, turning their backs on hedonistic parties and adrenaline-filled activities in favour of taking their parents (and, hopefully, their chequebooks) along on their travels.
Adventure: But gap years increasingly include parents - and their chequebooks (picture posed by models)
In a poll of 3,000 students due to take a year out before university next year, 750 said they would prefer the comfort and stability of their parents coming on the trip with them - whether it was trekking the Inca trail, or lion-spotting in Africa.
Incredibly, the researchers also found 400 of the students wanted to bring their childhood teddy with them - some declaring it to be more critical than a mobile phone.
The survey, by the online reality series The Gap Year: Challenge New Zealand, found the most popular reason for taking a year out, cited by 25 per cent of the students, was 'exploring wildlife', closely followed by 'taking part in cultural activities', which was listed by another 23 per cent as their main reason.
More...Each school 'should have teacher for gypsies', says Government report
Student, 19, killed in 60ft cliff plunge taking shortcut to bonfire night beach party

 

Student John Hendry, 18, of Tunbridge Wells, Kent, is embarking on a year-long trip to Australia.
He said he wanted his parents to go with him for part of the journey.
'I'm a bit nervous about going away by myself. I've never lived away from home before so it will come as a bit of a shock.
'If my mum and dad came with me for the first six months or so, then I think I'd feeler safer and more confident about doing the last six months by myself.'
He added: 'I know it sounds a bit pathetic, but I think my mum and dad would like it too - they are both retired so could do with a gap year just like me.'
Around 250,000 students took gap years in 2008, but the number is expected to fall this year due to the recession which has hit 18-25 year-olds hardest.
A spokesman for the company Gap Year For Grown Ups said: 'An increasing number of parents not content with weekly email updates are jetting off and joining their children on their travels.
'The newfound popularity of mature travel is not solely based on parents' desire to check up on the kids; it also gives them the opportunity to get in on the excitement and new experiences offered by gap year travel.'

About 100-thousand people each year take vacations focused on volunteer work, and that number is growing.

 

What's behind the trend -- and might such vacations be for you?

Travel guru Peter Greenberg observed on "The Early Show" Monday that volunteer vacations are one of the fastest growing segments of the travel industry.

Despite a tough economy, or maybe because of it, more and more Americans are taking a "volunteer vacation." Some do it to give back to others, and some do as a result of a sort of indirect guilt trip, feeling it's not right to spend big bucks on big vacations, so they get their reward through giving back.

YOU SAY THERE IS A VOLUNTEER VACATION OUT THERE TO MEET EVERYONE'S NEEDS. HOW DO WE DEFINE A VOLUNTEER VACATION?

You can dedicate a whole trip to volunteering or you can actually bookend the trip, meaning you can have a regular vacation and then do a few days volunteering at the end of the trip. Working or volunteer vacations are a great way to get a deal on a trip and also make a difference-without having to serve two years in the Peace Corps. Whether it's helping to save Leatherback sea turtles in Costa Rica, delivering crucial medical supplies to an orphanage in El Salvador, helping to build a hospital in southern Thailand, or helping in the continuing efforts to rebuild the ninth ward in New Orleans nearly four years after hurricane Katrina,each trip allows us to make a real difference while exploring the world, getting immersed in a different culture and even learning a new language

WHY DO YOU THINK THESE TYPES OF VACATIONS ARE SEEING AN UPSWING?

It is one of the fastest growing segments in the travel industry, and despite a tough economy, or perhaps because of it, more and more Americans are opting to travel a little differently this year...they are taking a volunteer vacation. Part of the reasoning, of course, is to give back, to help others. And another driving force behind the growth of volunteer vacations is that they have in essence become a sort of indirect guilt trip -- many travelers these days don't feel right about spending ten solid days at a spa so they bookend their pampering with another kind of feel-good activity -- giving back. Also, many of them are tax-deductible.

ARE THEY USUALLY CHEAPER THAN A REGULAR VACATION?

Depending on the organization they can be, but sometime they aren't......it depends what type of trip you take...you can have some like the Airline Ambassador program which allows you to get most of the same perks that the airline employees get on airfares/hotels and then you have some that are much more high end-like the Earthwatch institute that can end up being quite costly.

WHERE DO YOU SUGGEST PEOPLE GO TO FIND OUT ABOUT THE ORGANIZATIONS THAT SPONSOR THESE TYPES OF VACATIONS?

The first thing to do is Google "volunteer vacations." Narrow the many that come up based on your own personal interests.

LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT SOME OF THE MORE POPULAR CATEGORIES. WE USUALLY THINK OF GIVING BACK IN SOME UNDERDEVELOPED COUNTRIES WHEN WE THINK OF VOLUNTEER VACATIONS. WHAT IS ONE THAT YOU LIKE?

Airline Ambassadors was started by a grassroots organization of airline employees who wanted to give back.

They do up to 10 trips a month and you get the discounts that the airline employees get as well.This non-profit organization is affiliated with the United Nations and recognized by the US Congress. AAI provides humanitarian aid to children and families in need, as well as relief and development to under-privileged communities worldwide. They escort children in need, hand-deliver humanitarian aid to orphanages, clinics, and remote communities, assist at special events and involve youth in humanitarian efforts around the world. They provide assistance on a global level.

 

La Jolla, CA, June 23, 2009 — The number of Americans interested in volunteer vacations continues to climb, according to a new University of California San Diego Extension survey, but there are dramatic differences between the generations.

 

Two-thirds of high school students and about half of the college students surveyed say they have participated in discussions in the past year related to traveling to other regions to provide volunteer service, whereas less than half of the adult population, and only one-quarter of retirees, say they have done so.

Overall, the survey found that over two-thirds (69 percent) of Americans have participated in donating money or time to a global cause, up from the 48 percent in a spring 2008 poll conducted by UC San Diego Extension.

“More and more people in all stages of life are thinking of becoming global ‘voluntourists,’” says Bob Benson, director of the Center for Global Volunteer Service at UC San Diego Extension. “People are looking to volunteer their time in meaningful ways that make contributions to people in regions other than their own, and younger people are especially eager to make voluntourism part of their lifestyle.”

The 2009 poll was conducted by Caravan Opinion Research Corporation during March 2009 by telephone interviews with a nationally representative sample of 1,000 adults, and supplemented by an in-depth online survey of more than 300 adults conducted in May 2009 by UC San Diego Extension. The margin of error was plus or minus three percentage points.

The top five types of volunteer assignments the survey respondents want are:

1. Education or artistic and cultural development: 23 percent

2. Provide spiritual or emotional assistance: 19 percent

3. Improve health and nutrition: 18 percent

4. Construct roads, homes and technology infrastructure: 14 percent

5. Environmental clean-up or agriculture assistance: 12 percent

Despite the interest in frequent service to the global community, surprisingly, fewer than 7 percent of respondents, regardless of age, expressed an interest in making global service a type of career. The top three motivations for a desire to volunteer were:

1.(tie) Pursue a cause or purpose you believe in: 30 percent

1.(tie) Contribute something meaningful to the community: 30 percent

3. Feel needed and helpful: 23 percent

Survey respondents plan to prepare for future voluntourism in a variety of ways:

1. Talk to others who have done so: 86 percent

2. (tie) Take a class or read a book: 77 percent

2. (tie) Visit Web sites to see what is available: 77 percent

4. Learn some of the language of the place you want to go: 76 percent

5. Start saving money and look for financial sponsors: 70 percent

Approximately two out of three Americans (63 percent) would prefer their volunteer vacation outside of the United States, with Africa topping the list of desired places to help. The top four desired global travel destinations for volunteering are:

1. Africa: 14 percent

2. (tie) Australia: 11 percent

2. (tie) Europe: 11 percent

4. South America: 8 percent

Benson, who spent two years in the Peace Corps in South America in the 1990s, helped start the Center for Global Volunteer Service because UC San Diego Extension saw a need for more grassroot approaches that match U.S. citizens of all ages with volunteer opportunities. The Center offers voluntourism experiences and online learning about global service.

UC San Diego Extension has created first-of-its-kind, self-paced online courses to help potential volunteers determine if foreign volunteering is right for them and prepare them to have a productive, safe experience. Information is available at http://www.extension.ucsd.edu/cgvs site for teachers www.schooltripadvisor.com  has reviews on school trips.

One of the United States' oldest voluntourism programs, Global Volunteers, is marking its 25th anniversary this year and coincidentally expects to send its 25,000th volunteer out this year.

But the celebration is tempered by cutbacks due to the economic downturn. The organization has reduced the number of countries where it sends volunteers from 20 to 18, with programs cut in Portugal and Northern Ireland. Programs are continuing in China, the Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Ghana, Greece, Hungary, India, Italy, Jamaica, Mexico, Peru, Poland, Romania, South Africa, Tanzania, the U.S. and Vietnam.

Global Volunteers trips range from US$1,000 for a week domestically to $3,000 for two or three weeks overseas, plus airfare. Co-founder Michele Gran acknowledges that the organization's prices may be higher than some other voluntourism groups. But she explained that these fees not only cover participants' food, lodging and other local costs, but also support the host project. For example, fees for volunteers taking part in a program caring for disabled and abandoned children in Romania go to a clinic for failure-to-thrive babies and also pays for staff and upkeep on the building where the children live, learn and play. The money funds everything from new windows to an industrial-sized washer and dryer.

For more information, visit http://www.globalvolunteers.org.

Thinking of taking your kids traveling to see the world? You can never underestimate how the power of travel and volunteerism can make and shape kids' lifelong impressions of the world and their roles in it. Here are 10 compelling reasons to take them on voluntourism or a volunteer vacation (adapted from the family volunteering website, Doing Good Together).

Ten Reasons to Start Family Voluntourism:

1. Enables busy parents to spend valuable vacation time with their kids while giving back to the community.

2. Enables parents to pass on key values to their children, such as global citizenship and responsibility, compassion and kindness.

3. Brings family members closer, creating opportunities for meaningful conversations about important personal and social issues.

4. Increases their knowledge and understanding as they learn about another culture or learn about ecology and biodiversity lessons in responsibility and team work through projects such as rainforest conservation.

5. Produces gratitude - grateful for what we have, especially if working with orphans, impoverished communities or the sick. There's nothing like volunteering to put our own problems into perspective.

6. Helps kids appreciate their own talents, gain self-confidence and feel good about making a contribution.

7. Helps break down stereotypes at a young age, and teaches greater tolerance and understanding. Kids often meet people from diverse cultural backgrounds, lifestyles, ages and income levels.

8. Helps kids discover their place in the world and grow them into responsible, caring changemakers.

9. Breeds a generation of future volunteers. According to studies, adults who volunteered as kids were twice as likely to be involved in community service as adults who didn't.

10. It's fun. There can be great joy in serving others, especially when you're doing it with the ones you love.

Voluntourism' Wins Soft Power Education 1st Place in Educating Africa Award

Soft Power Education (SPE), a British registered UK Charity and Ugandan NGO set up to improve the quality of life through education in Uganda - has been awarded first place in the 2008 'Pan-African Entrepreneurship in Education Awards' out of 250 charities in 29 countries.

Gibraltar (PRWEB) December 8, 2008 -- Soft Power Education (SPE), a British registered UK Charity and Ugandan NGO set up to improve the quality of life through education in Uganda - has been awarded first place in the 2008 'Pan-African Entrepreneurship in Education Awards' out of 250 charities in 29 countries.

The awards were run by Teach a Man to Fish (www.teachamantofish.org.uk) and in conjunction with Educating Africa (www.educatingafrica.com) with a first place prize of $10,000.

SPE has harnessed the ever increasing 'Voluntourism' market by offering a 'One Day Volunteering' programme allowing tourists the opportunity to work at grass roots level. The volunteers assist with the School Rejuvenation Project by painting and helping to build much needed classrooms.

"We average about 1000 day volunteers every year mainly from overland tour adventures with an additional 250 volunteers returning to spend up to three months with us" enthused Hannah Small, Founder of SPE.

"We were very impressed with the unique concept of voluntourism and its impact on children and families in Uganda" remarked Nik Kafka Founder of Teach A Man To Fish.

The $10,000 prize money from the award will assist SPE to provide power at the Amagezi Education Centre for a new community library and to power additional computers to teach children and adults.

To continue with its mission of making a difference in the lives of Ugandan children and their families, Soft Power Education is actively seeking donations and volunteers and for more information visit www.softpowereducation.com.

Contact Details:
Sharon Webb
email: sharon @ softpowereducation.com

Hands Up Holidays ,

the award winning responsible travel operator who believes that travel can make a positive difference, has noted that the economic downturn is inspiring some to seek meaning and enrichment through volunteer travel.

One of Hands Up Holidays' key client segments is Young Professionals (aged 25-38), and it is this segment that has been arguably most affected to date in the current economic turmoil, and yet Managing Director Christopher Hill, himself a former investment banker, has recorded a noticeable spike in bookings from Young Professionals.

The reasons cited by clients are a desire to have meaningful experiences in their life, and they have been attracted to the Hands Up Holidays concept of a ‘taste of volunteering' to allow them to dip their toes in the waters of volunteer travel, and find out if it is for them. "Some clients have decided to ride out the storm by travelling for an extended period of time, rather than scramble for scarce jobs with poor bonuses" says Hill.

Popular voluntourism destinations by young professionals are:
South Africa, India and Nepal, and extended multi-country tailormade volunteering trips in South America and South-East Asia.

TIME TO END COTTON WOOL CULTURE AND GET YOUNG PEOPLE OUT OF THE CLASSROOM

02 October 2008
- First ever national Learning Outside the Classroom National Conference and national awards held today -

- Ministers launch new Quality Badge scheme and more support for teachers -

More children and young people will be able to go on educational school trips thanks to new measures slashing red tape and giving teachers more support, Children's Secretary Ed Balls and Children's Minister Kevin Brennan said today.

The Out and About package, launched this morning and backed with £4.5 million of funding, is designed to give schools much clearer information to organise effective learning outside the classroom activities for all pupils.

It includes a new Quality Badge scheme which will cut paperwork for teachers by helping schools and local authorities to identify organisations that provide high quality experiences and manage safety effectively.

Mr Balls said learning outside the classroom - whether within school grounds, locally and on visits further afield or even abroad - should be part and parcel of every child's school career.

But he said it was wrong to deny children valuable learning opportunities or wrap them in cotton wool because of risk assessment paperwork or fears over compensation culture.

And he stressed it was time to allay teachers' fears about litigation over incidents on school trips once and for all.

The Quality Badge scheme is part of a series of measures being launched at the first-ever Learning Outside the Classroom National Conference, at the Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich. Kevin Brennan is the keynote speaker.

The full Out & About package includes:

• A new Quality Badge to identify organisations that provide high quality experiences and manage safety effectively - from field study centres and outdoor activity centres to museums and historic houses. The first badges will be awarded next year; and
• Online guidance, advice and training to help school staff plan learning outside the classroom effectively.

Also being announced:

• The Council for Learning Outside the Classroom to deliver the Manifesto Action Plan over the longer term; supported with funding from the Government. The interim board is announced today with the full Council up and running by autumn 2009;
• £2.5million initiative to promote residential schemes for young people funded and run by the Paul Hamlyn Foundation charity; and
• First ever national Learning Outside the Classroom Awards rewarding outstanding provision in schools, colleges and early years providers. Castlechurch Primary School in Stafford is the first national winner, alongside eight other regional winners.

In addition, new guidance for school employers on dealing with incidents on school trips will be published shortly.

Today's announcements follow the Learning Outside the Classroom Manifesto launched in November 2006 - the first time a Government committed to increasing the learning outside the classroom to all three-to-19-year-olds.

Over 1,000 organisations, including teacher and headteacher associations, have now signed up to the Manifesto.

Ed Balls said:

"I am delighted that all the teacher and headteacher associations, alongside over 1,000 other organisations and educational providers, now back the Learning Outside the Classroom Manifesto. Their hard work developing the Manifesto pledges over the last two years will pay off for generations for pupils in the future.

"It is wrong to wrap children in cotton wool as they grow up. Trips and getting out of the classroom should be part and parcel of school life and always form people's most vivid childhood memories.

"Learning outside the classroom is not some optional extra. It should excite young people, deepen their understanding of classroom subjects and is vital for young people to become independent, confident and motivated.

"The vast majority of England's eight million children go safely on school trips or learn outside the classroom at some stage. But we know that more can be done to make sure it is an integral part of every child's education.

"Today's package makes a clear case for the benefits of learning outside the classroom. It is a massive step forward to making it easier for teachers to take pupils out of the classroom - giving them the confidence and tools to organise outside the classroom environment; cutting paperwork and red tape on visits; and breaking down the fear of litigation.

"It is time that the fear of compensation culture is consigned to history once and for all. The fact is that individual teachers do not get sued because their employer holds public insurance liability and prosecutions for gross negligence are extremely rare - against the tens of thousands of trips that happen day in, day out.

"The bottom line is that teachers and parents should be confident in organising visits outside the classroom and no child should ever be denied educational opportunities because of it."

People must live morally, ethically, to save environment, says pope

 

By Catholic News Service

CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy (CNS) -- The only way to put an end to environmental degradation is for people to live more simply and ethically, said Pope Benedict XVI.

All of creation represents "an enormous gift from God to humanity" so people have a responsibility to "protect this treasure" and dedicate themselves "against an indiscriminate use" of the earth's resources, he said.

The pope made his comments during a Sept. 27 audience with members of the Italian Tourist Youth Center and the Belgium-based International Bureau of Social Tourism.

The audience also marked World Tourism Day which is sponsored by the U.N. World Tourism Organization. It was dedicated this year to the theme "Responding to the Challenge of Climate Change."

"Environmental degradation can only be stopped by spreading an appropriate culture of behavior that includes more sober lifestyles," the pope said.

"Without adequate ethical and moral limits, human behavior can, in fact, become a threat and challenge," he said.

A responsible use of the world's resources should also be part of "a healthy and sustainable economy" of the tourism industry, he said, noting that hurting the environment and local cultures also inflicts damage on the tourism industry.

"Learning to respect the environment also teaches respect for others and for ourselves," he said.

 

About WTM WRTD

 

What is responsible tourism?

In 2002, 280 representatives from all sectors of tourism from 20 countries attended the Cape Town Conference on Responsible Tourism in Destinations, preceding the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg.

A declaration on responsible tourism was agreed.

 

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Cape Town Declaration
The 2002 Cape Town declaration agreed that responsible tourism:

minimises negative economic, environmental and social impacts

generates greater economic benefits for local people and enhances the well being of host communities; improves working conditions and access to the industry

involves local people in decisions that affect their lives and life chances

makes positive contributions to the conservation of natural and cultural heritage embracing diversity

provides more enjoyable experiences for tourists through more meaningful connections with local people, and a greater understanding of local cultural, social and environmental issues

provides access for physically challenged people

is culturally sensitive, encourages respect between tourists and hosts, and builds local pride and confidence

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WTM World Responsible Tourism Day objectives

WTM has four realistic objectives for this day of action.

WTM WRTD, with support from the UNWTO wants the industry to work together to:

help drive change by educating more responsible behaviour with the travel and tourism industry and travelling public

explore the issues of how countries and destinations are made more sustainable including case studies of best practices

educate the marketplace and debate key environmental related issues to push the agenda and be a catalyst for change

harness the influence of World Travel Market as an international business forum to encourage the industry to drive the responsible tourism agenda forward.

 

ITTFA Supports UNWTO in Relaunch of Protect Children Campaign
14 September, 2008
The World Tourism Organization, UNWTO, is strengthening its efforts to encourage the implementation of the Global Code of Ethics for Tourism and within this framework is relaunching its "Protect Children Campaign." International Tourism Trade Fairs Association, ITTFA, has recently confirmed its support of the campaign and will be encouraging members to promote the cause and help raise awareness around the globe.

 

 

The campaign is a renewed endeavour to raise awareness across the globe, emphasising that it is unacceptable for the tourism trade and travelling public to tolerate child exploitation in all its forms.

Through this campaign, the World Tourism Organization, UNWTO, hopes to help eradicate child labour and sexual exploitation in the global travel industry. According to an estimate by the International Labour Organization, 246 million children are engaged in child labour, while millions are especially vulnerable to exploitation and abuse.

There is little doubt that there is a strong link between the tourism industry and child exploitation in some areas, especially in countries where economic growth has created an enormous demand for child labour. UNWTO is also concerned about the spiralling growth of sexual exploitation of minors which is often associated to travel and tourism.

UNWTO is currently designing a new logo, documents and video that will be launched at World Travel Market in London in early November. The full campaign will take effect on Universal Children's Day - November 20, 2008. ITTFA meanwhile will ensure that the campaign logo and related documents will be distributed via their member show stands as well as in their own quarterly newsletter and relevant marketing materials.

"ITTFA and its members fully support this worthy project, " states Tom Nutley, ITTFA Chairman, " and we encourage other tourism industry bodies, companies and related suppliers to join us in working towards a successful implementation of these basic principles. As responsible industry leaders, it is the duty of us all to educate new and growing markets and help show the way forward in all aspects of the industry."

In today's busy and competitive environment, trade associations offer members a secure and comfortable environment in which they can gain knowledge and exchange ideas. Instead of going it alone, the power and voice of a group gets faster results and carries more weight. It is within this domain that ITTFA feel they can add weight to this worthy campaign.

Johan F Lundberg, current President of ITTFA is particularly concerned that the tourism industry take a more active role in social issues. "I would like to see the industry in general take on more responsibility for the environment and sit down to discuss the various global issues that affect us all, such as exploitation of children. Events are slowly becoming more socially aware and some, such as our ITTFA member show, WTM, now run their own charities and support various social projects. I do feel that we should be taking the lead rather than just a part in such issues which are common to the global community. Travel is a part of most people's lives these days and as an industry we hold a unique position as travel trade shows to reach millions of people on a regular basis."

UNWTO and ITTFA hope that this renewed campaign will put the issue of child exploitation in tourism firmly back on the international human rights agenda. The project is being led by Alla Peressolova, Fairs and Communications Assistance at UNWTO (aperessolova@unwto.org) together with the International Task Force for the Protection of Children in Tourism.

For more information on ITTFA, view www.ittfa.org

 

 

Football for fun' kicks off in Africa

 

11 September 2008 09:39

 

A novel scheme to celebrate the 2010 Fifa World Cup in South Africa and help fight disease and poverty has been unveiled by an adventure holiday company.

Acacia Adventure Holiday's 'Football for Fun' campaign is offering its holidaymakers the chance to pay for and distribute a much prized £10 football during their African tour in a small expression of 'voluntourism'.

And £2 from each sale will go to fight Malaria, Aids and provide clean drinking water for locals.

Kate Plummer, sales and marketing coordinator of Acacia Adventure Holidays, hopes that the gesture will result in customers engaging with locals in a friendly game of football.

"The game of two halves can be enjoyed in dusty fields, townships or even in the bush, and with no particular stops marked out for the match this means that all our overland travellers can participate in the campaign," she said. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"There comes a point — generally when you’re on your third margarita, sunburned over 60 percent of your body and the kids are screaming in the infinity pool — when you start to wonder if there is more to the whole vacation concept than lying on a beach getting toasted. A way of showing thanks for your own good fortunes, perhaps. You want a chance to contribute more to a local economy than buying overpriced trinkets that neither you nor your friends back home really need."

 

Holiday with the works

By Brad Crouch August 05, 2008 12:00am

 

 

It is one of the fastest growing niches in travel – voluntourism.

Trips where travellers use part of their time to do community and environmental work are booming.

As well as the feel-good aspect of such trips, participants have a much closer connection to the areas they visit. In places from Nepal to the Coorong, a variety of companies now offer a diverse range of trips where people can do volunteer work.

Travellers can sign on for holidays that restore habitats for endangered species, build schools for poor communities, teach English and much more. Some trips revolve entirely around such work, others have a volunteer component as part of a sightseeing tour, and some use payments to fund projects.

One woman who has seen some incredible parts of the world, and built a close bond with local villagers thanks to voluntourism is South Australian Kyra Glasby.

 

After working in Ethiopia with aid agencies when she left school on a world trip, she returned home to Mt Barker and completed a nursing degree. She has repeatedly returned to the Afar region of Ethiopia to continue the work of the Barefoot Initiative, founded by Kyra, her husband Sunil and brother Aidan.

This raises funds in Australia for simple, sustainable projects to improve the lives of people in Afar.

As these photos show, working as a volunteer can take you to unusual places and give a deep insight into foreign cultures. Such places may be well and truly off the tourist map - Ethiopia rarely figures on "hot" destinations lists - but for many people that is part of the appeal.

Go online for more on the Barefoot Initiative - here are a few more volunteer holidays:

 

 

 

From www.news.com.au

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Las Vegas, June 7- Escape Adventures, a Las Vegas based multi-sport touring company, recently received the highest rating ever granted by Sustainable Travel International, making them the greenest touring company on earth. With hundreds of tour companies claiming to be environmentally responsible, this will undeniably raise the bar for outfitters who claim to be running their tours in an eco-friendly fashion.

 

These companies claim to be sustainable, not leaving carbon pollution in their tracks, when essentially they are only paying to pollute by purchasing energy credits and not truly offsetting their carbon footprints. The people need a better way to decipher real green from "light green" companies who use "green" as nothing more than a marketing ploy. If you drive a Hummer to shop at Whole Foods, you may fall into this category.

 

Jared and Heather Fisher of Escape Adventures have worked many years to acquire this outstanding honor. Their mission is simple: Support human power and the natural environment. Give back to the earth for the boundless free services it awards us.

 

The Fishers differentiate themselves from other outfitters in many ways.

 

· Grow their own organic garden & they feed its fare to guests on tour

· Collect used kitchen vegetable grease from local restaurants to fuel tour vans

· Recycle 90% of waste; tires, bottles, paper, plastic, glass- on tour & at shops

· Have public recycling bins

· Have installed solar panels at their home & shops

· Awarded, "Certificate of Environmental Stewardship," by Rocky Mountain Power, for purchasing 30,000 kilowatt hours of renewable wind energy

· Offer all employees $5/day to ride to work rather than drive

· Use only recycled products and buy merchandise with little or now packaging

 

Third party auditing by organizations like Sustainable Travel International, which has over 1200 companies adhering to their uber-strict guidelines worldwide, will hold the key to knowing whether a touring company, or any company for that matter, is truly green. For more information on Sustainable Travel International, please visit http://www.sustainabletravelinternational.org.

 

For more information about Escape Adventures and Las Vegas Cyclery please visit www.escapeadventures.com or call toll free 800.596.2953

 

 

 

 

World Environment Day 2008

World Environment Day, commemorated each year on 5 June, is one of the principal vehicles through which the United Nations stimulates worldwide awareness of the environment and enhances political attention and action.

The World Environment Day slogan for 2008 is Kick the Habit! Towards a Low Carbon Economy. Recognising that climate change is becoming the defining issue of our era, UNEP is asking countries, companies and communities to focus on greenhouse gas emissions and how to reduce them. The World Environment Day will highlight resources and initiatives that promote low carbon economies and life-styles, such as improved energy efficiency, alternative energy sources, forest conservation and eco-friendly consumption.

The main international celebrations of World Environment Day 2008 will be held in New Zealand. UNEP is honoured that the city of Wellington will be hosting this United Nations day (read the press release).

The day's agenda is to give a human face to environmental issues; empower people to become active agents of sustainable and equitable development; promote an understanding that communities are pivotal to changing attitudes towards environmental issues; and advocate partnership, which will ensure all nations and peoples enjoy a safer and more prosperous future.

When did it all begin?

World Environment Day was established by the United Nations General Assembly in 1972 to mark the opening of the Stockholm Conference on the Human Environment. Another resolution, adopted by the General Assembly the same day, led to the creation of UNEP.

How can you celebrate World Environment Day?

The World Environment Day Alphabet - 80 Ways to Celebrate
World Environment Day can be celebrated in many ways, including street rallies, bicycles parades, green concerts, essay and poster competitions in schools, tree planting, recycling efforts, clean-up campaigns and much more. In many countries, this annual event is used to enhance political attention and action.

Heads of State, Prime Ministers and Ministers of Environment deliver statements and commit themselves to care for the Earth. Serious pledges are made which lead to the establishment of permanent governmental structures dealing with environmental management and economic planning. This observance also provides an opportunity to sign or ratify international environmental conventions.

On this World Environment Day, let us examine the state of our environment. Let us consider carefully the actions which each of us must take, and then address ourselves to our common task of preserving all life on earth in a mood of sober resolution and quiet confidence.

 

 

 

World Turtle Day May  23rd

 Our logo is a Turtle and we have been lucky enough to support Turtle conservation in several parts of the world over the years, the most memorable being on Bird Island when we helped tiny hatchlings out of their nest and protected them on their way to the see from the crabs and gulls that normally feast on them.

 

  Click here for holidays where you can help out these wonderful creatures.

 Throughout the world, the number of turtle species that have become critically endangered has doubled in the last five years due to their popularity in the food and traditional medicine trade. In the United States, turtles comprise approximately 95% of reptile exports each year. Thirty-five million turtles were exported from the United States between 2000-2002.

 

The majority, more than seven million per year, were freshwater turtles destined for Southeast Asia to supply the growing food markets. Because many wild turtle populations in Asia have been decimated by