Saving the world? Now that’s a good excuse for an exotic vacation. Ecotourism has glided from fringe to mainstream, giving active travelers more choices.
Benefiting the environment and local peoples, ecotours bypass tourist traps to explore natural wonders and lesser-known cultures.
The Ocean Conservancy’s new SEE Turtles program includes destinations such as Costa Rica’s Caribbean green turtle refuge and Mexico’s Baja California, where you’ll help track black sea turtles.
“Conservation tourism goes beyond ecotourism by explicitly making protection of an endangered animal and its habitat the goal,” says Ocean Conservancy senior scientist Dr. Wallace J. Nichols. The SEE Turtles program is “good for local people, good for sea turtles and good for the visitors who have a once-in-a-lifetime experience.”
Can’t get away? Take a free ecotour close to home. Most parks have naturalist and volunteer events that invigorate both mind and body — perks you don’t get at a restaurant, theater or mall. Learning to see woodlands and seashores as habitats, not just recreation areas, ranks among the most transcendent experiences of my life.
Or go eco solo. A gentleman I encountered in Maryland’s Sligo Creek Park takes “leave no trace” to a higher level. Picking up trash as he hikes, he basks in the cool air oxygenated by trees whose leaves rustle in the breeze. The trash isn’t his, “but the park is,” so he combines escape and exercise in one no-cost package.
When Woodie Guthrie sang “This Land Is Our Land,” he meant to preserve, not pillage. Lyrics to live by.
Make any vacation eco-friendly:
» Be a good steward. Clear litter from beaches and parks — hungry turtles, birds and other animals confuse plastic for food and choke. Rather than top off an overflowing outdoor can, carry your trash to one with room. Ask “where are the recycling bins?” when traveling. Take “leave no trace” to the next level: Bring a bag and, instead of sea shells or artifacts, pick up trash as you stroll. Bonus calories burned!
» When boating, slow down, especially where animals swim and near sensitive habitats like coral reefs.
» Don’t feed wild animals. Human food can make them sick, and human contact can make them lose their natural caution so necessary for survival.
» In turtle nesting sites, keep quiet, wear dark clothes, turn off camera flashes and don’t light fires.
» If you eat seafoods, choose only those humanely caught and sustainable. Sea turtles and other animals die from entanglement in mass-catch fishing gear, by-catch, loss of nesting and feeding sites, poaching, and pollution.
Robin Tierney is a freelancer who writes about health and environment issues. She can be reached at [email protected].
