Public Invited to Vote for Best Indigenous Tourism Website
by Annika S. Hipple for Ethicaltraveler.org

The nominees are in and voting is underway for the 2010 Indigenous Tourism and Biodiversity Website Award (ITBWA). Fifteen tourism operations representing 10 countries will compete for the award, which recognizes private tourism enterprises owned and operated in a sustainable manner by indigenous and local communities pursuing traditional lifestyles. Two awards will be given, one selected by a panel of experts in responsible, sustainable, and indigenous tourism, and the other chosen by the public through an online vote.

The ITBWA is a joint initiative between Planeta.com and the Secretariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity (SCBD), with financial support from the Heidehof Foundation. According to Planeta, the primary objectives of the ITBWA are “to motivate candidates to improve their online communication on biological and cultural diversity, to highlight their best practices in managing tourism and to raise operators and public’s awareness on biodiversity.”

Planeta founder Ron Mader explains, “It's clear to me that indigenous tourism operations get a lot of technical training in most areas except for online marketing. Websites and web presence are perceived as too complicated, too costly, too time-consuming or a mix of all of the above. But it doesn't have to be this way. What is needed is for indigenous tourism operators themselves to take charge of telling their own stories via the Web.”

The nominees represent a broad selection of tourism services, from hiking and mountain bike excursions to yak polo competitions, reindeer treks, eco-lodges, and cultural performances. They include operations in Mexico, Australia, Pakistan, Bolivia, Kyrgyzstan, Sweden, Micronesia, Canada, New Zealand, and Laos.

“The message is coming across that whenever you are making travel plans, you can look for an indigenous operation that fits into your schedule,” says Mader. Particularly exciting is the number of nominees who are making use of social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, and YouTube.

Mader hopes the award will inspire other indigenous tourism operators to create quality websites to enhance both sales and education. He adds, “It's not just about bums on seats. It's about cultivating a respect of cultural and natural heritage. Most travelers want to be do the right thing - be ethical - but they need guidelines and protocols in advance. Websites such as those of the nominees help steer the right visitors to the right places.”

Members of the public are engouraged to review the websites of the nominees and vote once between now and February 19. To cast your vote, visit: www.surveymonkey.com/s/T6LGNYJ. Further information about the awards is available at: planeta.wikispaces.com/itbw.

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Egypt's Growing Ecotourism Industry
by Stephanie Grace Loleng for Ethicaltraveler.org

Ecotourism is getting a face lift in Egypt’s Dakhla Oasis, where visitors who want to experience the natural beauty of the desert without wasting local resources can head to a new crop of eco-lodges that have sprung up in response to local concerns. According to news reports, local villagers worry that too many tourists might add stress to the fragile desert environment. However, knowing that they need the tourism industry to boost the economy, they have taken proactive steps, giving visitors a way to stay in Egypt’s ancient desert in a responsible way.

Dakhla is in a remote location, deep in the western desert north of Gilf Kebir near the Siwa Oasis close to Libya. Two eco-lodges have been built here using local materials and employing local residents. One is the Desert Lodge, built on the side of a cliff with views of the village of Al Qasr and the Sahara desert. Built using local mud, the lodge runs on solar and hydropower and employs villagers from Al Qasr. Bed linens are made from 100-percent Egyptian cotton, and water is filtered, cutting down on the use of water bottles. The kitchen serves vegetables from the lodge’s own garden.

Another eco-lodge in the region is the luxurious Al Tarfa Desert Sanctuary Lodge & Spa. It too was constructed using local materials and employs local residents in its operations. Condé Nast recently selected the Al Tarfa Lodge as one of the destinations in its “Best in Egypt” category. Al Tarfa was also recently featured in Identity Magazine’s special issue devoted to tourism in Egypt, in which Egyptian Tourism Minister Zoheir Garranah was quoted as saying, “We are looking forward to environmental tourism, which will provide comfort and luxury as well as protection for the environment."

Responsible tourism enterprises are also springing up elsewhere in Egypt. The Mount Sinai region, recently highlighted by actress and environmentalist Darryl Hannah in her dhlovelife project, gives travelers a chance to experience the ancient traditions of the Bedouin culture. A growing number of tours bring guests to the land of the Bedouin, where they learn essential desert skills such as how to find shade, firewood, and water in order to survive in the harsh heat and sun. Locals also share their skills in using fresh water in sensible and environmentally friendly ways.

With the development of such tours specifically geared toward learning about local traditions, as well as the emergence eco-lodges using local materials and employing local villagers, Egypt is well on its way to becoming a prominent eco-tourism destination.
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Sustainability in the Cruise Industry
by Annika S. Hipple for Ethicaltraveler.org

Is there such a thing as a sustainable cruise? After all, cruise ships emit three times as much carbon dioxide as airplanes, according to an article in the Telegraph. The fact that many passengers fly to their cruising destination only compounds the carbon footprint.

Then there’s the issue of pollution. According to the environmental group Oceana, the average cruise ship produces the following immense amount of pollution every day:

-- 25,000 gallons of sewage from toilets;
-- 143,000 gallons of sewage from sinks, galleys and showers;
-- 7 tons of garbage and solid waste;
-- 15 gallons of toxic chemicals; and
-- 7,000 gallons of oily bilge water.

That said, not all cruises are equal. This past fall the environmental group, Friends of the Earth (FoE) released an environmental report card in which it ranked 10 major cruise lines in the areas of sewage treatment, air pollution reduction, water quality compliance, and accessibility of environmental information. The top scorer, Holland America Line, earned an overall grade of B. Norwegian Cruise Lines and Princess Cruises were not far behind with final grades of B-. At the bottom of the heap were Royal Caribbean International and Disney Cruises, both with overall grades of F.

Still, there are signs that the cruise industry is changing for the better. In an article for G Living, Jennifer Buonatony wrote, "Over the past five years, the major cruise lines have spent an average of $2 million dollars per ship to upgrade vessels with better systems for dealing with waste management and emissions. And while the industry has grown 7.6% annually over the last decade, cruise ships have cut waste almost in half, which is an amazing figure."

Among other environmental initiatives, Norwegian Cruise Line recycles thousands of gallons of used cooking grease by donating it to organic farmers in Hawaii and Miami. Carnival Cruise Lines has switched to eco-friendly detergents for dry cleaning and has developed a new, energy-efficient and nonpolluting engine for its newer ships.

Princess Cruises and Holland America have reduced air pollution from idling ships by modifying the engines on several of their ships so that they can be plugged into onshore hydroelectric power while in port. Holland America has also installed low-flow toilets and showerheads in staterooms and switches to soy-based inks for all printed materials on board. Rather than throwing away unneeded furniture, linens, travel-sized toiletries, and other items, Holland America donates them to charities around the world.

Its failing grade from FoE notwithstanding, Royal Caribbean has adopted a variety of initiatives to reduce energy use and pollution, including adjusting its itinerary and cruising speeds to save fuel. Its new mammoth Oasis of the Seas (5,400 passengers) has made some major green improvements. In an article for Mother Nature Network, Shea Gunther reported, “The Oasis of the Seas is far from green, but it does make some strides in the greener direction. The ship's huge liquefied natural gas fueled engines come equipped with pollution scrubbers that completely eliminate all SOx emissions, cut NOx emissions by 80 percent and CO2 by more than 20 percent. Manufacturer Wärtsilä claims Oasis of the Seas will use 25 percent less power than smaller but similar cruise ships. The ship will also process its own waste on board, reusing the wastewater and dumping nothing into the ocean. It's the first cruise ship to have a large tropical park filled with thousands of plants and natural features.”

Smaller cruise lines, such as Lindblad Expeditions and Adventure Smith Explorations, have also adopted measures to be more sustainable, including offsetting their carbon footprint, purchasing seafood from environmentally friendly sources, and adopting new sustainable technologies suitable for smaller vessels. Norway’s Hurtigruten cruise line recently signed a cooperative agreement with National Geographic’s Center for Sustainable Destinations to protect the destinations along its route.

One thing is clear: the cruise industry isn’t about to disappear. Even with the poor state of the economy, an estimated 15.2 million passenger nights were booked on cruises in North America alone in the second quarter of 2009, an increase of 1.5 percent over the previous year, according to a report by the U.S. Department of Transportation, Maritime Administration. The Port of Seattle, Washington, a major departure point for cruises to Alaska, reported a record number of cruise ships and passengers in 2009.

“We know when it comes to vacations, cruising is the best deal financially for many people,” Marcie Keever, director of FoE’s Clean Vessels Campaign, told the New York Times. “We just think travelers should try to choose one that is trying hard to do better environmentally.” The bad news is, the cruise industry still has a long way to go to achieve sustainability. The good news is, it’s beginning to change.

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