By Rose Grech

My friend Greg and I arrived on Easter Sunday at organic farm and vineyard, Montezuma Canyon Ranch, just south of Monticello, Utah. This was our first wwoofing experience, where we stayed for two weeks (“WWOOF” stands for World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms). During our two-month long trip, the longest stay we had was five nights in Denver, where it was nice to stay in one spot for a few days. I’d never stayed on a farm before, and was unsure what work we would be doing.

The newest subsidiary of the WHL Group, Green Path Transfers (GPT) offers eco-friendly airport and intercity transfers and helps leisure and business travelers seeking cost-effective ways to reduce their carbon footprints. Through GPT’s straightforward online booking system, travelers and businesses can now hit the road confident that, for rates equal to those of other global providers, their transfers are in good hands and that they’ve made a beneficial earth-conscious choice.

The new manual, “Stepping Towards Sustainability: A Manual for Sustainable Tourism Suppliers and Supporters,” presents 20 common principles to realize sustainable tourism, developed through an extensive consultation process with over 200 representatives of Thai tourism supplier groups. The manual serves as a handy guide for suppliers developing and striving to improve their sustainability practices. These principles have been developed based on a consensus reached by participating local tourism supplier groups who compared the main pillars of the Global Sustainable Tourism Criteria

By Cynthia Ord

The Happy Planet Index (HPI) ranks countries based on life expectancy, life satisfaction, and per capita ecological footprint. The reasoning is to identify places that offer long, happy lives that don’t cost the earth. The second ranking from the HPI was released in 2009, with troubling results. No place on earth is able to provide long, happy lives for its people while staying within environmental limits of “one-planet living”.

Much Better Adventures wants to build a word-of-mouth open-to-all travel guide for the adventure community, designed to unearth the independent, individual local gems you otherwise never hear about, to support local businesses and to reward ethical practices. How? By enabling travelers to share their suggestions and tips on their favorite local travel companies, unique adventure activities and authentic community encounters.

With a large – and ever increasing – amount of free information easily accessible on the internet, is it easy for today’s responsible traveler to search for credible information on ecotourism and responsible travel? Or does more information mean more confusion for conscious consumers? Here are a few suggestions on what to look out for when doing your pre-vacation responsible travel homework – Does the company tell you, in an uncomplicated way, what ecotourism is and what it means to their tours, products, destinations and impacts on local people and communities?

Farming is hard dirty work. Plan on coming in contact with manure, biting insects, impatient farmers, and foul weather. Make sure you establish a clear work week in advance: #hours/day, days/week, or you may be taken advantage of. With that said, each farm offers invaluable rewards. Without doubt you’ll get the chance to befriend countless farm animals and many wonderful people, not to mention forging a closer relationship with the source of your food. – Brian J. Bender, author of “Farming Around the Country – An Organic Odyssey”

In South Africa, an estimated 30,000 children under the age of 18 are said to be victims of the Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC). Even more shocking is that many of these victims are children between the ages of 10 and 14 years old. Fair Trade in Tourism South Africa (FTTSA), South Africa’s leading responsible tourism NGO, is now challenging citizens to become involved and assume their role as protectors of our children, forming part of their initiative where key players in the travel and sector are stepping up and taking a stance against Child Sex Tourism (CST).

1. Be Flexible: Are you prepared to accept cultures and practices that are different from your own? 2. Give Feedback: Let responsible companies know that you like what they are doing. 3. Go Green By Biking: Biking is a healthy, enjoyable and eco-friendly way to get around and to experience the places you’re visiting. 4. Travel Slowly: Instead of hurriedly moving from one place to another, try slowing down during your next trip by kayaking, walking, biking and getting around by public transportation like the locals do.

Launched in September 2010, the one-of-a-kind “chai-table book” Authentic Ecolodges is the result of many years of dedicated research by the world-renowned ecolodge guru and sustainable architecture and design expert, Hitesh Mehta. Having traveled through 46 countries in six continents, he hopes that Authentic Ecolodges will create environmental and social awareness around the world, and inspire everyone to enjoy the world and save it for our children at the same time!