Travel seems as though it would be inherently good for all of those involved, but often times that’s not the case. There is also the question of whether, when it is good, if it is good enough.
It’s no secret that building strong communities requires vision, commitment, resources, and time, yet many operators struggle to come up with ways to meaningfully contribute to the places they visit, in part because they don’t spend enough time on the ground themselves, and in part because they overestimate the importance of “resources”—particularly financial ones—to the equation.
Money is essential to community-building, but in the absence of a long-term plan and dedicated stakeholders, it is an extremely limited tool. It’s also the natural product of our patronage as travelers & operators, and teaching enterprising individuals & households how to attract & maintain this type of patronage is arguably more empowering, more valuable, and more sustainable than even the most generous donation. In some ways, then, financial contributions are not the most, but the least we can do as travelers & operators.
Over the years, we’ve found that the most meaningful & satisfying contributions we make are the ones that require our vision, commitment, resources, and time. We regularly identify, fund, and produce R&D expeditions to under-explored areas with natural and cultural value—uniting unlikely teams of scientists, environmentalists, land owners, students, small business owners, and government officials in the process—and share the relevant findings with community stakeholders. We interview & meet regularly with locals from all walks of life—from subsistence farmers to tenured academics—to better understand & piece together the Story of a Place, helping to instill a shared cultural patrimony across those walks of life. We raise awareness within communities about the innate natural & cultural resources they possess as they relate to tourism, and advise them on practical steps to protect those resources and create value for themselves & the places where they live.
We also train & hire local personnel; stay in local accommodations (many of which are households who have previously never received guests); maintain trails; sponsor personal projects that celebrate the places where we work; pay higher-than-market wages to all involved with our trips; and donate a percentage of our proceeds towards local organizations that contribute meaningful work in the places we go. But that’s the least we can do.
