Environment

A NEW YEAR OF TRAVEL AWAITS

/ Gavin Tollman / Leave a comment

It’s hard to imagine that we are already in the final days of December, another year having come and gone. When I reflect on the year that was, it is unambiguous that we are living in a dynamic, acceleratingly everchanging world. Within the dynamism, we are being forced to grasp new rules we could never have anticipated nor imagined a year ago.

So, what awaits us in 2024? To look forward, I like to begin by looking back.

After the moribund, endless, three-year span of the Covid pandemic, 2023 will be remembered as the first full year of recovery. In it we enjoyed growing confidence and excitement as ‘surge’ became the most frequently used term to describe the year’s travel world.

There are so many reasons to be looking up, and forward. But let’s not jump ahead of ourselves just yet.  All around us we see change. And it is not only the great news within our great industry. Nor is it all positive. However, our industry remains fueled by hope, hard work, and most importantly, the need for human connection.

Looking back, the world faced a collision of diverse challenges. Economically, despite the world being reconnected as travel and trade return to a strong position, rising costs of essentials of living – food, fuel, and other fundamentals – have put pressure on disposable incomes and freedoms to spend.

Environmentally, we have seen extreme weather events, distinct evidence of the climate crisis, devastating communities forced to face the worst heatwaves, fires and floods they have ever seen in their lifetimes.

Politically we have seen hurt and hardship like not seen in decades. Two wars are raging on at this precise moment while other geo-political tensions continue to brew from East to West. With elections taking place in many countries in the new year – an estimated 4.4+ billion people going to the polls – we can only expect the noise to get louder, the rhetoric harder to digest, and the risks of separation greater.

Despite these very real, very raw challenges that we as the wider global community have faced, our industry continues to provide people with reasons to be hopeful, holding on to dreams, and onto one another. We see it all around us, and we can have confidence that we will continue to see it in the year ahead.

Still, while we can deservedly feel a sense of relief that recovery is well under way, there is no doubt that as leaders of the future of travel, it is essential that we evolve. We must continue to make clear, conscious decisions that fully honour the responsibility we all have in doing the right things, the right way, for the right reasons, right now. 

What does this mean?

As an industry, we must recognise that as travel demand returned at rates that had us feeling proud of the resilience of our industry, we cannot deny the fact that the travel orbit caught the ecosystem of our industry flat footed in our ability to adequately service the revival. The short-sightedness of many in the industry – many critical links in keeping travellers across the world moving safely, swiftly and smoothly, along with all of their luggage – resulted in severe disappointment of both travellers and the industry alike. The learnings must be taken forward, for as confident as we may be in bookings returning across the globe, if the airlines are not flying, or airports not operating airbridges, or the trains not connecting, no one is moving. Add weather disruptions into the mix and the damage to movement and motivations is intensified.

As a business and as individuals, we need to evolve our recognition of how travellers wishes, wants, and also worries, have changed in this new world of travel. Ultimately, we must never forget this simple truth: we are them. We as travellers are relooking why, how, when, where and with whom we travel. How we respond to our customers and partners, how we care for our guests, must never lose the human touch, the reasons we travel.

So, rather than trends, these are the specific forces of market evolution that I feel we need to be conscious of. These are the things we are preparing for, all the while being equally ready to adapt to the unexpected deviations:

1. Exceptional Demand, Everywhere: The desire to travel and experience new destinations will grow stronger than ever for one simple reason: the appreciation of travel will continue to inspire people to reconnect. Having been starved of travel during recent years, the hunger to broaden their horizons, gain new perspectives, explore new cultures, create lasting memories, and foster a sense of personal growth and fulfillment will need to be fed. We already see it. The UNWTO recently reported that from January to September this year, international tourism recovered 87% of pre-pandemic levels, with 975 million tourists travelling internationally in the first nine months of 2023, a huge +38% over the same months of 2022. And recovery was everywhere. Europe recovered 94% of pre-pandemic visitors, Africa 92%, the Americas 88% and Asia and the Pacific 62% (recognising that Asia only fully reopened in late Q1/2023). With the whole world now travelling, momentum is set to continue, travellers working around challenges that the world may be facing.

Traditional Patterns Are a Thing of the Past: Where we go will change. The evidence is clear in a move in travel patterns, with traditional warm-season holiday seekers looking to cooler climates and different travel periods. This change represents not only a call to action for us to recognise, but a huge opportunity for us to leverage. Which is why we are acting by adjusting inventory based on shifting demands and leveraging our 100+ years of travel expertise to craft trips that go both to, and beyond, the iconic and uncover the soul of destinations, stretching travel periods to meet new travel times of the year attracting traveller interest. Whatever the time of year, wherever we may be, we continue to make meaningful local connections – staying true to our core purpose to MAKE TRAVEL MATTER™ .

2. Beyond The Hustle and Bustle: Travellers are increasingly seeking out unique and lesser-known destinations, moving away from overcrowded tourist hotspots to enjoy travels off the beaten path. Guests are looking for authentic and immersive travel experiences that enable them to get up close and personal with local communities and cultures, landscapes, and lifestyles. This speaks right to the heart of our business and brands.

3. AI Accelerating Travel Tech Intelligence: AI is not happening, it has happened. And we must embrace its power as a source for good, while at the same time, taming its usage to ensure it remains just that. It’s ability to understand individual preferences and behaviors is truly remarkable, elevating our ability to make a meaningful connections and real impact with, and for, travellers. While we are still in the early stages of the generative AI journey, I believe that this technology will be transformative, likening its impact on creativity to the internet’s revolution. Our fears will only be addressed by making friends with this new force of intel, recognising and activating its power to help us grow our brands, our business, and importantly, our relationships with our guests, our partners, and amongst ourselves.

4. Global Caring: We all know, and feel, how the climate crisis is having an impact on the places to which we most want to travel. As mentioned earlier, extreme weather events and their increased frequency and intensity is disrupting travel plans. We are seeing awareness of environmental issues continue to grow amongst our guests, with growing prioritisation of destinations that minimise the negative impact of global warming. TTC has always taken our responsibility to Mother Nature seriously, recognising over a decade ago the role that climate change & environmental factors are playing in the world. Our response: creation of the nonprofit foundation TreadRight back in 2008. Our How We Tread Right 5-year strategy with its 365-day year-round travel focus and a defined a road map for Net Zero by 2050 has been moving our guests beyond the the icons and deeper into the places we go, throughout the year, for years. At the heart of our efforts is ensuring travel is as good for the visited as the visitor. In doing so, all of our trips now include at least one MAKE TRAVEL MATTER™ experience that advances one or more of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Vision, transparency, delivery – our ethos.

5. Near not Far: For all of the growth in international travel, domestic and regional travel continues to grow, lifting the baseline for destinations. The desire to get out and explore new frontiers, crossing borders, discovering new cultures and communities applies right at home as much as across the globe. This growing trend to discover our own backyards is vital to support local businesses and communities all year round, keeping the tourism economy and value chains active, creating new through-the-year habits with local travellers. The benefits, and opportunities, are immense, the avoidance of logistics of international travel aside.

6. Two To Not Overlook: Finally, there are two trends enjoying growth that, interestingly, can at times have one common bond, namely:

  1. Solo Travel: increased demand for people traveling on their own for various reasons, particularly women, and
  2. Workation / WFA (Work-From-Anywhere) Travel: once shy of showing personal time was being worked into work travel, employees and their employers are now encouraging combing work and play wherever in the world remote network connecting, and therefore working, is possible.

Ultimately, travellers are increasingly comfortable going solo as a planned holiday, or as an extension to work travel. Either alone, or combined, these two trends offer us great opportunity to attract travellers not needing friends or family alongside to fulfil their travel desires.

For all we can anticipate and wait to see, what I am sure of is that in 2024, travel and what we do will grow. There will however be unpredicted times, and unexpected trends. Our travel landscape will be more demanding; requiring us to frequently rebalance our energies and refocus our efforts. Which is why the spirit of flexibility and adaptability we all adopted in 2023 will continue to be a necessity for us, for travelers, and for the travel industry, as together we all navigate this now ever-changing travel landscape.

Whatever changes lie ahead, the constant remains that tourism can and needs to be a significant source of local revenue, stimulating economic growth and job creation. In a world that is becoming increasingly interconnected, travel plays a vital role in fostering global citizenship and promoting tolerance and empathy. And importantly, however and wherever tourism evolves, that it is done so responsibly. These are my givens.

And, as the twists and turns of 2024 unfold as a wonderful year to discover the world, the TTC community will ensure that travel continues to engender cultural exchange and understanding, enabling people from different backgrounds to come together, learn from one another, appreciate one another, and celebrate diversity and MAKE TRAVEL MATTER™ as a force for good, not just in 2024, but importantly for generations to come.

HOW QUICKLY WE FORGET. A CALL TO ACTION.

/ Gavin Tollman / Leave a comment

My questions are simple…

What needs to happen?

What is it going to take?

How much damage needs to be done before we finally stop and say ‘enough’?

I ask these with immense frustration, and sadness.

Last week, on the day I was meeting to review the successes of our Switzerland Tourism, ‘’Swisstainable’’ partnership, the CNN headline ‘This month is this month’s hottest on record’ came across my news feed. With the highest temperatures in the past 120,000 years, its incomprehensible to know that we are watching, in accelerating motion, our shared world burn.

We are leaving a legacy for future generations literally in flames. It is real, it is happening now. It is shameful.

It has been a while since I last wrote, but this advancing unforgiving reality has provoked a visceral reaction to once again re-examine the actions, or better said, inactions within the travel industry to do what it can to arrest the speed of climate change.

I looked back; the last time I wrote my personal reflections on the world reopening to travel after the pandemic and the devastating grounding we all endured, I had hope in my heart. And confidence in a new future. I was confident that we, the world’s travellers and travel industry, would welcome the “new” with our eyes open to the responsibility we all have to ensure that our industry reconnects people and places carefully, thoughtfully and sustainably. I was confident that all the lessons we learnt over the almost 1000 days of global grounding would carry us forward. I was confident we would do better, be better, build forward better, together.

I was wrong. 

How quickly the lessons are forgotten. Think back to a year ago. We all eagerly projected, in a way prayed, that our travel volumes in 2023 would return to those of 2019 when travel dreams were last fulfilled, and bookings were strong. Based on current trends, as well as booking and activity indicators, it is expected that 2023 will not only reach but outperform 2019. This is remarkable, especially considering the worldwide travel ecosystem is still struggling to fill staffing shortages across airlines, airports, restaurants, hotels, and other essential links in the visitor experience chain.

The reasons for the surges vary: pent up demand, past milestones being fulfilled, unspent holiday budgets now being used, the recognition of travel as a vital part of our mental and physical wellbeing, work-from-anywhere lifestyles, new connections. The reasons are numerous, the impact of demand, immense.

But with it, we are witnessing, once again, the increased reality of overtourism. How many times did we say during our COVID-times online meetings, webinars, calls and conversation that we must absolutely, not, find ourselves in that position again? We know that overtourism is an enduring risk to, and a bruise on, the immense good our industry can do. We know it is a result of not only bad management of traveller numbers and bad management of resources by the industry, but also bad manners of travellers. We know how it results in tourists, rightly, being pushed out of the places and spaces locals call ‘home’.

The universal laws tried to help us avoid the risks of falling into the overcrowding, entitlement trap again. Increased alarm about overtourism in 2019 was countered by the emergence of undertourism, and even no tourism, during the COVID-19 pandemic. With the world’s pause, Mother Nature shone the spotlight on the aspects of the industry we knew we needed to focus on, own up to, and correct.

We saw La Serenissima’s waterways of Venice transformed, with a return of blue waters and sea life.  Greenhouse gas emissions fell 10%, leatherback turtles laid their eggs on the Phuket beaches. As the world reopened and the industry recovered, we established the need to change.

Yet today we see that somehow, somewhere over the last year the guiding light has been lost on so many, as the focus, selfishly, on the here and now.

The consequence, all the lessons learned, are rapidly fading into obscurity. Overtourism, driven by my descriptor of the ‘ice cream tourist’, or simple crowd pollution, has once again started to spread. And as expected, the locals are pushing back on the many negative impacts unsettling local economic, social and environmental balance caused by throngs of tourists doing nothing more than stopping to take selfies and leave their litter behind. Just last month Amsterdam took the decision to close its city centre port, effectively banning cruise ships from docking, accepting the economic losses in order to protect the city’s communities, natural spaces and dignity. Amsterdam is not the first. Venice and Dubrovnik are already actively applying their cruise ship policies to ensure very limited arrivals. There will be more, of this I am certain.

The damage of the travel industry must stop. The good intentions of the industry must restart. Tourism can and should be a force for good once more:

  1. Protecting the environment, its natural resources, and wildlife,
  2. Providing socio-economic benefits for communities who live in and outside of tourist destinations,
  3. Conserving cultural heritage and creating authentic tourist experiences, and importantly,
  4. Creating genuine respect and understanding across borders, cultures, religions, ages and communities, for generations to come.

This raises the question: Can the industry innovate and find its place in solving this problem in the future?

Yes, but it requires active thought and action. Tourism itself can be the part of the solution. Beyond merely minimizing harm, but rather a regenerative force with the potential to create positive impacts.

While this concept is said to been uncorroborated, numerous examples illustrate that creative approaches within this transformative journey are achievable. These include initiatives that focus on revegetation, minimizing disturbances to nature and vulnerable species, and promoting a more equitable distribution of economic benefits by redirecting traveller flows off traditional tourist trails and toward year-round travel rather than just peak season. It’s a journey, but as Lao Tzu’s wrote, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step“. This is a crucial reminder of the imperative of taking that first step, regardless of the obstacles that lie ahead.

But importantly, these ideals are not simply ‘we could one day…’ mindsets. They are impacts, required, now. Proudly, I can say, unconditionally, we are proactively advancing with these within TTC, across our brands, our teams and our travellers.

TTC’s recently released second Impact Report shows how transparently we look to where we are making a difference through our operations, projects,  and people across the TTC network, as well as acknowledging where we still have work to do.

Accountability is vital. As an industry we must, absolutely must, think more holistically and develop more sustainable practices and diversify our sector. But it is not easy. Embrace this, know this.  At TTC, we are committed to MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® throughout How We Tread Right (HWTR) 5-year sustainability strategy and our not-for-profit Tread Right foundation.

At the end of 2022, we shifted our focus to prioritise decarbonisation, by both innovating our operations and investing in nature-based solutions projects developed to address climate change as well as the rapid loss of biodiversity. Our Climate Action Plan outlines how we will reach net zero GHG emissions across the value chain by 2050 from a 2019 baseline year. We are the first tour operator to have near-term, long-term and net-zero targets validated by the Science Based Target initiative (SBTi). We understand how critical these steps are in securing the future of our industry.

Correspondingly, central to our HWTR efforts are our MAKE TRAVEL MATTER® Experiences that as of 2023 are included on 100% of our touring brands trips. When I engage with Tasha and Lucie, the team members who help find these immersive impact experiences for our trips, I’m immensely proud that today each and every one is chosen specifically for the positive social or environmental impact they have on their communities and those who experience them. We use a proprietary assessment tool, endorsed by industry experts and developed exclusively for TTC’s family of brands, to assess our advancement against a robust set of criteria directly tied to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s).

Each experience contributes to improving challenges faced by local people and places in the destinations we visit.

In Brussels, refugees seek access to the labour market as a fundamental core to prospering in their new lives. On our Insight Vacations tours, guests enjoy a dinner at We Exist, a restaurant managed by those who lived through and fled the Syrian war.

Their aim is to share the love of Syrian cuisine and warm hospitality, and create a world based on mutual respect. They facilitate refugee integration and provide training and work opportunities for people who have fled conflict and persecution. This experience advances SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities.

Depopulation of rural villages in Italy is dramatic, entire parts of the Italian culture, crafts, recipes, traditions are disappearing. Grottole, a small Italian village just 20 minutes away from Matera, one of Italy’s most visited sites, has seen a decrease from 2000 to 300 inhabitants in recent years, mostly due to lack of education and work opportunities for young people, aging population, loss of interest for regional cultural heritage. A couple of years ago, the historic centre had over 600 empty homes.

Our Insight Vacations guests enjoy a village visit, organised by a social enterprise to promote urban regeneration, which has helped keep Grottole on the map. We not only create new employment opportunities for the locals to become tour guides, but we’re also creating new economies. The village has now an apiary, a ceramic workshop, a cultural centre, a communal garden and a small wine cellar. This experience advances SDG 11: Responsible Cities and Communities.

Scotland has seen its biodiversity decrease at an alarming rate over the last century and is just about recovering from years of environmental damage caused by sheep, goats and deer gazing, extensive farming, and the accelerated impacts of climate change. This is not only disastrous for the local wildlife and biodiversity, but also taking away a huge part of the Gaelic culture which is deeply rooted in the natural environment, especially in the Highlands. Our not-for-profit TreadRight foundation has invested in Trees For Life as a Nature Based Solution (NBS), which guests can visit on our Trafalgar trips. This investment is the third NBS that TreadRight has invested in, and part of our Climate Action Plan and our efforts to restore the lands to combat global warming.

A visit to the Dundreggan Rewilding Centre supports the active reforestation of the native Caledonian pine forest and reintroducing Scottish animal species that were on the verge of being extinct. Thanks to the close collaboration with the landowners in the area they’ve been able to carry out those rewilding activities in the most organic way, helping the trees to naturally regenerate and using ways that are the least harmful to the habitat. It has not only been bringing the community closer together and educating the locals around preserving the land for future generations, it has also given impetus for the Gaelic culture to be revived and getting engagement from the local community. This experience advances SDG 15: Life on Land.

The power of these experiences is juxtaposed against the fact that our contracting teams, are united, frustrated with the current reality, that many partners continue to operate with short term vision. But I then reflect on this year, one in which we actively looked to see how we can move trips beyond peak season, to spread the tourist dollar to support local livelihoods throughout the year. Today, I have immense pride that our highest percentage growth in 2023 will be in the months of April and October, as we have worked hard to help our guests to see the benefits of traveling in these months, rather than only May and September.

This is the reality, the question is therefore simple, “What difference can we really make”? “What impact can one person, or one company really have”? Whenever I get asked this, whenever someone pushes back on the climate crisis being beyond our control or influence, I always think of a favourite African proverb which says: “If you think you are too small to make a difference you haven’t spent a night with a mosquito.“.

Every person, every business matters because every action matters. Every moment is a chance to change course off the destructive path that we are firmly travelling. The future demands we journey along a new path.

We must never forget the difference that travel can and does make for those people and places that we visit, when we do it right. What does this modest word ‘travel’ define? To me, it’s about learning new things, embracing the unfamiliar, gaining understandings from others, uncovering different realities, shaping fresh thoughts. Travel is living. Travel is fulfilment. We talk about the difference that travel makes to people’s lives. The impact that travel has to travelers, changing perspectives, changing mindsets, changing attitudes, changing opportunities, and changing the excitement that one feels for the future.

We have the opportunity, and the ability, to go far beyond unlocking local pride, as well as critical economic and social activity in communities through our ongoing efforts. I am thrilled to see that demand for travel returned rapidly, strongly, and with the spirit of faith and determination that can only be credited to be the spirit of the travellers. We can unlock a sense of stability, security, and hope.

We can, must, make a difference not only to the economies, but to the homes, hearts and hopes of the people and places we visit. And we must do it now. Not later when we are less busy, not later when we are confident travel recovery is achieved. Now.

The choice is ours. This is a moral issue, not simply an industry issue. This is our call to action, our duty. Mother Nature, a world of travellers, and children of generations to come, are watching.

The time is now. Your time, my time, is now.

DEFINITION OF ‘ESSENTIAL’ – A NEW WORLD AWAITS

/ Gavin Tollman / Leave a comment

 

 

 

Essential.

A word that just a few short weeks ago, we would use as a synonym for ‘required’, ‘necessary’, ‘important’. But that was then, and this is now.

In the weeks since, this singular word has now taken on a whole new, critical, global significance. ‘Essential’ has become a term denoting ‘lifesaving’. It is a term that now reflects care and absolute priority. The word has now become a basis for protocols around the world connected to COVID-19 – the global Coronavirus pandemic that has proven itself merciless, ominous and invisible, yet with the ability to touch each and every one of us.

We have all seen its impact from different parts of the globe, from different parts of our lives, and from different points of view. We are also now entirely connected to one another by the same virus, even if we are having to stand 6ft apart. COVID-19 is a threat that is putting us all of us at risk not just in terms of our physical health, but also our financial and mental health.

It was not that long ago when all of this generation-defining drama began, that the word ‘essential’ initially came into our vocabulary in the context of the Coronavirus. Our first indication of something going wrong was less than 60 days ago, when news from China communicated the spread of a health crisis severe enough that it was literally grounding all travel during a period of mass human migration – Chinese New Year – when over 3 billion trips are estimated to take place as families reunite across the globe.

Come February, as the virus travelled west, rates of spread and concerns rose rapidly. People started to consider what was essential to have at home, especially if they were limited in mobility, and were having to keep fears of this mysterious yet aggressive virus at bay.

One question eclipsed all others: what am I going to need at home?

Suddenly store shelves became completely devoid of hand sanitizer, toilet rolls, paper towels and cleaning products that people believed were going to keep their homes safe. Sadly, this rush for all of these essential products created a retail craziness that resulted in hoarding and aggression, as people tried to get what they thought was necessary to keep themselves free from fear and contagion. In so doing, we actually started to do damage to our global community – its respect of, and responsibility towards, one another.

More rapidly than we can even grasp, soon the word ‘essential’ was imposed on our work, on products, and on services deemed cannot live without as, one by one, lockdowns and stay homes became not just a recommended way of dealing with the Coronavirus, but instead an ‘essential’ mandate. Countries from East to West, have now found themselves in a state of emergency. In Switzerland, my home, this “extraordinary situation” has created a complete state of confusion.

As a result, we are now seeing the astounding news that over 2.6 billion individuals are currently in different forms of lockdown around the world, confined to our homes. Now the word essential has taken on an even wider meeting. It has taken on a more humane meaning, and a more tangible identity.

What is deemed ‘essential’, and who?

The word ‘essential’ has now become a synonym of the word ‘hero’ – the people that so often were overlooked in our society, but who now play a critical role in keeping us strong and moving forward: the vital doctors, the nurses, the drivers, the store stockists and cashiers, and the people working each and every day to help us face the weeks of isolation ahead.

That is our outside world. And then there is our inside world.

As social-distancing and lockdowns now define the immediate future, what has also become essential are the small pleasures we each now recognise we formerly took for granted. The ability to reach out and hug someone we love, the ability to look someone eye as they are standing right beside us. The ability to go out, reach out to the world, to travel, to connect.

We are finding the word ‘essential’ is now reflecting what we also value deeply in our ability to simply move around our world, connect with the world, celebrate our being a valued part of the world. To travel.

For over a month now airlines have been grounding aircrafts, hotels have been turning the lights off as their doors close, and governments have been closing borders. Our world view has become severely curtailed as our passports are put away, our plans put off. Normal life is no more.

And we will never go back to ‘normal’. We will never go back to the way we were. There is no going back.

Instead, we must move forward, and in moving forward we must take this opportunity to look at what truly is ‘essential’ for our lives – to be in a position of wellbeing as individuals. But it no longer stops there. We also now recognise and actively demonstrate the community in which we live with the people right next door, and the global community around the world. Take the time to be grateful for the big things like our health, and the simple things, like the sun on our face. A definite positive to arise from this situation is that with the spread of Covid-19, it is proving that as a society, the commonalities that we share not just as people, but as countries, are far more powerful than what keeps us apart. We are inescapably interconnected, and the more we can come together to solve our problems, the better off we will all be.

To ensure a truly sustainable future – economically, socially, culturally, environmentally, and also spiritually – our sense of community is essential, online and on our doorstep.

In my own definition of ‘essential’, what I am finding as ‘essential’ is my need to continue to keep alive my relentless love of travel. The brands I run have always had, and will always have one sole purpose – to inspire and enable guests to connect to the joy of travel. Whilst I am saddened to see the ‘essential’ action of the worlds borders now being closed, I know it is not matter of ‘if’, but more so one of ‘when’, we will travel again. Giving our guests the opportunity to travel the world, to become stronger people, to become more sensitive people, to become smarter people, more connected and more compassionate. Our hearts and minds need to travel, not just our bodies.

But for now, to be able to travel the world tomorrow, we must stay home today.

That is ‘essential’ to ensure we are ready for our new tomorrow, stronger, smarter, and together.

CELEBRATING GREAT VISIONARIES OF THE LAND

/ Gavin Tollman / 4 Comments

Today is the 4th of July – the day that the United States celebrates its independence. I lived in New York for over 20 years, and I always admired this day, as annually the entire American national stands united and proud as it looks to back on its history. Few people celebrate their love of country like the Americans. Red, white and blue is not just a national colour code, it is a national mindset.

Whenever I look back at history, I try and place myself into the time of those who shaped the world in which we live, and imagine what it must have been like to have had the courage, and vision, to make an impact for generations to come.

In my travels, it is the genius of architects in particular that often fascinates me; their ability to visualize the possibility of the transformation of space and time through design. This is an extraordinary gift.

However, the creation for lifelong inspiration is one thing. To have the foresight to preserve, the discipline to leave things untouched for future generations, is quite another.

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to spend four days with a group of Trafalgar guests travelling through Yellowstone National Park.IMG_1500A I did this to not only because I love meeting Trafalgar guests, but also as it provided the opportunity to honour the 100 year anniversary of the creation of The National Park Service – the nation’s guardians of Mother Nature’s great gifts.

As I stood looking out over the Lower Falls and Grand Canyon of Yellowstone National Park, IMG_0263the only words that came to my mind taking in this moment, one of such immense remarkable beauty, was ‘Thank you’.

That thanks goes to a few of the forefathers of America: Presidents Lincoln, Grant and Roosevelt, who somehow already recognised that our world would organically advance in ways that would see industrialisation and development creep into all corners of the globe, and that to enable man to maintain a connection to nature itself required a strategy that, 100 years ago, must have seemed both unnecessary and a fantasy.

So it was together with great personalities like Don and Nancy from Philadelphia, twin sisters Ashly and Kristen from Nevada, as well Flynn & Fran from as far as Sydney Australia,IMG_1480 that we were able in a matter of a few day to wander through untouched hot springs, see bison ambling through the grasslands, witness mother and baby black bears jesting in front of our hotel, and hear stories of the success of the wolves’ reintroduction into the wild.

IMG_0243Each one a consequence of the decision taken 100 years ago, to protect the majestic natural environments through the creation of the official caretakers of America’s finest natural assets, is credited to the National Park Service.

As I took in my time in this iconic national landscape, this brought to mind: “What if they had not had the vision? What would the landscape look like today? And how would it be shared tomorrow?”

It is moments like these that fill me with a need to look forward, and ensure we are asking the same question as to what will the world look like in 100 years’ time. What more can we do to ensure that we too are being adequately forward thinking in our own actions to preserve and protect the important resources so that future generations will be able to connect to a more meaningful world?

Today, it is far easier for everyone to make a difference. All it requires is individual action. I am therefore inspired by the current vision and care of Brett, The Travel Corporation’s CEO, who had the vision to create the TreadRight Foundation – TTC’s not-for-profit organisation which is working to ensure the sustainability of the environments and communities across the globe. To date, TreadRight has helped to support almost 40 projects. With their guidance, each of TTC’s 20 plus travel brands are able refocus their commitments. Together, they join forces to make a difference to the word we visit today and in the future.

Ultimately, it’s all about the role we each play in fostering truly meaningful, sustainable growth, working and building on the visions of great leaders, for a world and time beyond ourselves.

This is the power of one. One by one by one, for one generation to the next.

*With thanks to Flynn & Fran Henry for the pictures*

SUSTAINABILITY – LIVING THE LANGUAGE, LEAVING A PRICELESS LEGACY

/ Gavin Tollman / 1 Comment

The words ‘sustainable tourism’ are quickly becoming one of the most clichéd and over used in the travel industry. I see this politically correct language being applied superficially. I’m acutely aware that travel (and other) companies all too easily define themselves as sustainable simply because they put ‘Only print if essential – save the environment!’ messages at the bottom of their emails. Because of this, “green washing” is rapidly becoming a synonymous term. This is frustrating for those who are genuinely and legitimately fighting to make a difference for what they know is right, and must be addressed right now.

Technically speaking, the UNWTO defines ‘sustainable tourism’ as: “Tourism that takes full account of its current and future economic, social and environmental impacts, addressing the needs of visitors, the industry, the environment and host communities“.

One of the most exciting aspects of travel to me is the people that I meet along the way. In my recent travels to both Botswana and Myanmar, I had the great fortune of meeting two unique, but like the places they live, very different individuals that stripped away the rhetoric and pomposity of the overused sustainability expression, but through the very essence of their existence are making a difference. They’ve encouraged me. Here’s why:

Map Ives, the Director of Rhino ConservatioMap Ivesn Botswana, is a gentle giant of the African bush, a man who is, without question, a treasure to wildlife conservation in Africa.

Map has always lived in and remained committed to his life’s calling to understand and conserve Africa’s wild places. Today he is leading the charge on rhino conservation in Africa to ensure that our generation is not the last to see African rhino roaming freely. Listening to Map, it is impossible not to get completely absorbed and inspired by in his personal commitment for the African bush and its rhinos. He has been on the forefront of developing new approaches to a previously accelerating Rhinoworsening situation. It was this realisation and establishing systems and new practices behind the re-location of rhino that for the first time there are now a few minor shoots of hope. And he does it without any wish for praise, fame or attention. He does it because he feels in his heart it is the right thing to do. His love for his homeland and its creatures both great and small is his quiet yet powerful legacy.

Similarly whilst discovering Myanmar, fortune enabled me to meet another genuine individual. Myanmar is a remarkable country, rich in spirituality and the most striking smiles of its people. It is here that fortuitously I met meeting Ye Htut Win. He is the son of a Diplomat who has travelled the world, yet his heart never left his homeland. An obvious maverick, he returned home with a vision for success, his passion for food and a desire to make a difference. Sharkey's

He has established a business that showcases Myanmar’s magnificent produce, but with a difference – their produce is inspired by the foods Mr. Ye tasted around the world, and then made better. Crafted using his own Myanmar organic produce and artisanal methods, his fare is true artistry. He has developed and trained a network of artisans as well as farmers who are now growing organic heirloom fruit & vegetables as well as raising animals. Both the plants and local breeds are carefully chosen for those that can become accustomed to Myanmar’s climate and soils. All are cultivated using only sustainable, environmentally friendly methods.

So extraordinarily, whilst in Yangon I found myself in his eatery and unexpectedly savouring some of the most astonishing delicious cheeses (and I live in Switzerland!), breads, chili fondue and heavenly gelato. If your travels take you to Myanmar, ensure that you make a trip to Sharky’s. You will be amazed too. But what will warm you, wont just be the quality and delectableness of the food you eat but understandably the passion and pride in what has been achieved. Sharkey's eaterie

In meeting these two very different but unique individuals, in two completely parts of the world, what I found so enlightening was that through their shared example, sustainable tourism is not about doing what looks good today, it is about doing good for tomorrow regardless of who is looking today. Thank you gentlemen for keeping it real. In doing so, you are leaving a true legacy.