Responsible Travel Report
The Sustainable Tourism e-Newsletter

A Message from STI's President

Earth Day 2006 is Saturday, April 22. We encourage all of our readers to do something positive for the planet, whether it's something simple like planting a tree or donating to your favorite environmental charity or something more substantial like vowing to address the issue of sustainability within your workplace or offsetting your annual greenhouse gas emmissions.

Speaking of simple actions, we encourage you to join STI in the Stop Global Warming virtual march. By joining, we commit that, as our numbers grow, we will use our collective voices to demand that governments, corporations, and politicians take the steps necessary to address global climate change.

Mark Twain once said that "everybody talks about the weather but nobody does anything about it." Global warming isn't a future problem - it's affecting the planet at an alarming rate. Fortunately, it's a problem that, together, we can do something about. For more information, please read this month's Climate Corner or visit the Earth Day Network's website.

We hope you enjoy this month's Responsible Travel Report, and have a wonderful Earth Day!

Eco regards,

Brian T. Mullis
President

brianm@sustainabletravel.com
800-276-7764

Climate Corner:
Proactively Addressing Global Climate Change

Bright Ideas - Saving Energy Improves Guest Comfort and Bottom Line

By Marge O'Connor

The Polar Bears of Churchill:
Northern Manitoba, Canada is the
'Polar Bear Capital of the World'

Story and Photos by Emily Grey

"Get inside immediately," yelled an armed guide. "A polar bear was seen moments ago at the rocket range."

Imagine the flurry of 30 Elderhostel participants heading for shelter. Hiking short distances single file (weather permitting) while accompanied by a protective escort was the norm at the Churchill Northern Studies Centre. That evening, a juvenile bear peered inside the barred windows at the director.

This was no ordinary class or place. Students, tourists, and volunteers from Russia, Norway, and Germany gathered to help with the Centre's programs and to learn about the top predator of the sub-arctic and arctic regions.

A former military base, the Centre is still used as a rocket range and for education and scientific studies of the Arctic (Greek word for "bear").

In October several years ago, I flew to Manitoba's isolated southwest section of the Hudson Bay. Churchill, which is dubbed "Polar Bear Capital of the World" and affords the best viewing opportunities to humans.

Over 90 lodgers crammed into Spartan accommodations. Even with heaters, some of us slept in our clothes, wool hats, and mittens. I figured this was part of the adventure.

For various reasons, the instructor resigned from teaching the next Elderhostel group. Like a Seinfeld episode, I accepted the role and enjoyed the quick challenge of preparing four lectures in less than two days. My biology and wildlife management background helped bail me out.

From the safety of an enclosed tundra vehicle, a cross between a bus and a tank, we gazed at mothers and their cubs on the ice. Some of the curious creatures sauntered up to our ATV, sniffed at the tires, and glared at us. We also saw arctic foxes, hares, and snowy owls. Helicopters and dog sleds afforded different perspectives on this stark land.

One evening we witnessed the mystical northern lights, which appear from September to February. For nearly an hour, the clear sky lit up magically with swirling emerald dust. We listened in awe to the swooshing whisper while a guard watched for bears.

Preserving the Social Norms and Cultures of Local and Indigenous Communities

Socio-cultural sustainability is achieved when businesses make a concerted effort to work with local people to maintain and protect the social structures, economies and cultures of the local communities where they operate.

Measuring Your Impact

Measuring your socio-cultural impacts on local and indigenous communities can be difficult. The best way to find out what impacts you are having on the local communities where your business operates is to create opportunities for them to provide you with feedback.

Meet with representatives from local communities at least once annually to determine how your business is affecting them socially and culturally and to ensure that their rights and aspirations are recognized and incorporated into your operational decisions. These types of forums can also be used to deliver and discuss any important news, such as the expansion of your business, new programs, etc.

Also consider offering bi-annual focus group discussions and creating feedback questionnaires for representatives from local communities. Additionally, you may wish to hire a professional to conduct a socio-cultural impact assessment.

Quantifiable variables used to measure socio-cultural impacts include the following:

• Employee training is measured by comparing your employees total annual working hours with the total number of hours of training they receive.
  
• The amount of negative feedback from local or indigenous people regarding misleading or inaccurate portrayal of products and or services.
  
• Total number of compliments received from local and or indigenous people last year in the form of positive feedback.
  
• The amount of time spent by the business in meeting with community leaders to ensure their needs are met and that they have a stake in tourism operations and development.
  

Managing Your Impact

To help preserve the social norms and cultures of local and indigenous communities, consider the following:

• Meet with local representatives where your company operates to determine socio-cultural and economic impacts, and to ensure that their rights and aspirations are recognized and incorporated into your operational decisions.
  
• Be aware of local customs that may offend your clients as well as sacred or local customs that are banned from outsiders' view.
  
• Educate your employees and clients about these customs and social norms. Prejudices will be reduced and mutual understanding will develop when there is a cultural exchange between host communities and travelers.
  
• Develop accurate educational materials for your clients in conjunction with local and indigenous people. Ensure that these materials address the natural, cultural, and social values of any given destination, and advising them of appropriate behavior and taboos before visiting culturally sensitive regions.
  
• Integrate appropriate and authentic cultural elements from the local regions where you operate into your product offerings.
  
• Provide clients with a means of accessing additional information about the region(s) they will be visiting e.g., books, websites, etc.
  
• Train your staff and require them to be well informed in the natural, cultural, and social aspects of any destination where they work.
  
• Encourage clients to keep all protected and culturally significant areas clean and unspoiled.
  
• Mandate that clients not to patronize local brothels or prostitutes.
  
• Prevent any commercialization of rare, endangered, or protected flora and / or fauna.
  
• Invest in cultural arts and crafts and encourage your clients to do the same.
  
• Raise local awareness of the financial value of natural and cultural sites. Encourage civic involvement and pride in local and national heritage.
  
• Provide opportunities for clients to engage in one on one reciprocal interaction with local and indigenous people.
  
• Allow the use of your facilities for important community events.
  

In summary, be sensitive, be supportive, involve locals, and educate your staff, clients and service providers.

Useful Links

• Tourism Concern works with communities in destination countries to reduce social and environmental problems connected to tourism to find ways of improving tourism so that local benefits are increased.
  
• Indigenous Tourism Rights International is dedicated to collaborating with Indigenous communities and networks to help protect native territories, rights and cultures.
  
• Blue Earth Alliance is dedicated to supporting photographic projects that educate the public about threatened cultures, endangered environments, and other social concerns.
  
• The Foundation for Endangered Languages aims to raise awareness of endangered languages, support the use and documentation of endangered languages in all contexts, and monitor linguistic policies and practices.
  

For more useful ideas, purchase a copy of our Guide to Sustainable Tourism or view it on-line.

New STI Membership Benefits

Register for Option 2 before April 28th and you can upgrade to include the online shopping portal at no charge.

Responsible Travel:
Tourism for Tomorrow Awards 2006

Green Tips:
Contributed by Pinehurst Inn at Pike's Creek

Saving Water: Simple Steps

Many environmental experts predict that water shortages worldwide will become as big of a problem as any. While it's important for all of us to educate ourselves on this issue on a global level, it can be daunting. So consider these simple steps that will save thousands of gallons of water: Turn off the faucet while brushing your teeth. Not a big deal, eh? It's estimated you'll save two gallons of water in each brushing.

In an average household, faucets result in 15.7% of daily indoor water consumption or about 10.9 gallons. Turning off the faucet while brushing can cut the total in half. If 10,000 of us turned off our faucets every day for one year while brushing our teeth, over 1.8 million gallons of water would be saved - that's enough to grow wheat for nearly 16,000 loaves of bread. It really is the simple things in life that make a difference.

Also, consider eating less meat. Every pound of western raised beef requires 2000 gallons of water, so if 5,000 people ate one pound less of beef, it would save 10 million gallons of water. Pretty significant, eh?

For more information on the Pinehurst Inn at Pike's Creek, please visit the company's website.

Submit a Green Tip

Do you have any green tips? If so, submit them to us, and we'll include you name or the name of your business in one of our upcoming e-Newsletters.

Conferences and Continuing Education

High Moon Cartoons

If you would like to purchase any one of High Moon's six cartoon books, you may order them directly from the Japan Environmental Exchange via email or JEE's website.

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