Travelers' Philanthropy Handbook - Center for Responsible Travel
Travelers' Philanthropy Handbook - Center for Responsible Travel
Travelers' Philanthropy Handbook - Center for Responsible Travel
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VRESPONSIBLE TOURISM10. Exemplify, educate about, and promote responsible tourismVIThe success of any voluntourism trip requires promoting and engaging in responsible tourism. There are hundreds o<strong>for</strong>ganizations, blogs, articles, etc that address issues of responsible tourism. All travel service providers should becomefamiliar with these best practices and guidelines, perhaps even more essential <strong>for</strong> those offering volunteer or philanthropictravel options. If volunteer service providers want to offer trips that positively impact local areas, discretion andthought must be put into more than just the volunteer and facilitated community interactions. <strong>Responsible</strong> operatorswill consider the most responsible options <strong>for</strong> travel, accommodation, traveler education, and all other aspects of thetravel experience.As a starting place, it is recommended that tour operators complete the comprehensive checklist developed by WildAsia <strong>Responsible</strong> Tourism here: www.wildasia.net/main.cfm?page=articleID=340RESPONSIBLE DEVELOPMENT11. Exemplify, educate about, and promote development best practicesThe increasing role of development organizations around the world has produced extensive research and dialogueabout what “works” and which ef<strong>for</strong>ts have “positive” “sustainable” impacts. Tour organizers entering the voluntourismsector should be well aware of the complexities and discussions surrounding development issues and make sure toincorporate the lessons learned from those dialogs into their program designs. Some of the concepts, many alreadydetailed above, that relate closely to the impact of voluntourism include the importance of:INDICATORS VALUES EVIDENCE NEXT STEP- Empowering community leadership and using localpower structures when implementing programsYESNO- Cultural sensitivity- Program design based on research, community needsassessment and ongoing community participation- Project monitoring and evaluation systems.YESYESYESNONONOResearched and developed by the staff of PEPY Tours www.pepytours.com
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