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WILDLIFE DESTINATIONS, TOURS, RESOURCES & CONSERVATION IN ASIA
Responsible & Sustainable Travel
We believe in the power of tourism for the good of the planet and its wildlife. Planned and well managed wildlife tourism is the best chance for our wilderness to survive. We also believe in personal responsibility, and doing the best we can. This section will help you find solutions and ideas so you are a responsible traveller on your next wildlife adventure.
Being a responsible traveler
People want to leave difficult decisions and issues behind when they go on holiday, and there appear to be no easy “rules” for Wildlife travel. No-one seems to agree about much - except perhaps some easy top level definitions. Should you carbon offset, or not? How close should you get wildlife? Captive animals are ok/not ok? Sustainability is probably not the first thing you think of when you want to book a holiday, so there is a reliance on tour companies (75% of Trip Advisor respondents believe it is up to the Tour Operator) to do the right thing. But really, its up to you.
We want you to think responsibly…or there might not be any animals left for your grandchildren to see...so we have tried and will continue to try to offer solutions and ideas to help us and industry with best practices and considered options to be real "Responsible Travelers".
4 guiding points of this site
1. Without wildlife tourism there will be no animals in the future, and that the fate of the world’s wildlife hangs on “sustainable tourism. This has been proved time and time again, that unless there is an economic value ascribed to nature, wildlife and animals, then they are more at risk.
2. This (growth in) tourism needs to be planned to ensure that it is both responsible and sustainable, and that a value is placed on the wilderness and animals that live there.
3. We firmly believe that “we” as the consumer/traveller have a definite responsibility to be "responsible" wildlife travellers and watchers, and adopt a sustainable approach to the wilderness and animal tourism that we undertake. As John Scanlon Sec Gen of CITES says, “We alone will determine the fate of the world’s wildlife, and in doing so our own destiny.” This means that the planet should not be treated as a commodity; when you travel you should be giving back as much – if not more – than what you take away. This makes it sustainable.
4. Our fear is that more people are travelling, and generally people are more divorced from nature than ever before, and that these people want to ride elephants, cuddle tigers and generally do not care about longer term issues. They may also want to live in "nature inspired" environments, that are artificially beautiful, whilst in reality the development has destroyed the local eco system.
So our focus on two issues of i)protection and planning, and ii)education.
We hope to do our small bit, as we share inspiring stories, wonderful images, and practical information to help people connect with nature, and learn more about being responsible travellers, so we have wildlife for generations to come.
Explore our site
This site was born to to promote responsible, sustainable wildlife tourism, and to help wildlife watchers and travellers take practical steps to make more informed decisions and be more responsible (lessen their impact) with their travel.
Please have a look at the contents organised below, to get you started. We will be adding updates weekly, so please subscribe to our newsletter and/or check back.
Coming soon....futures updates to help you plan
1. Plan your trip: Decide on operators/DMCs, accommodation
2. While you are there: tips, offsets and considerations
3. Be aware, be responsible, care deeply and share
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