Danielle Weiss is the Sustainable Travel Coordinator for G.A.P Adventures, Canada's largest adventure travel company and winner of many distinguished entrepreneurial and travel industry awards. I am also happy to say that G.A.P is also the sponsor of our first travel story contest who has generously provided the top prize for our contest: an amazing adventure expedition cruise through the Amazon.
G.A.P Adventures is a very unique travel company that combines small group adventure tours with concepts of environmental sustainability and social conscience.
Danielle is also one of the main people behind the Planeterra Foundation, a non-profit organization that was developed by G.A.P Adventures as a way to give back to the people and places they visit on our tours. Danielle herself is an avid traveller and in her personal interview she shares her personal stories of how travel changed her life.
I had a chance to ask Danielle about "sustainable tourism" and what all of us can do to minimize our impact on the communities we come in touch with. Here are her insights:
1. Please tell us more about "Sustainable Tourism", what is it?
I would define Sustainable Tourism as tourism that has minimal impact on the environment, respects local people and cultures, offers economic benefit to locally owned businesses and incorporates community-based ecotourism projects.
2. What does it mean to be a "Responsible Tour Operator"?
Being a Responsible tourism means being committed to offering low-impact tours that benefit traveller and host alike. G.A.P Adventures is an example of a company that prides itself on being a responsible operator. We work with local communities, businesses and individuals to develop sustainable tourism opportunities that help local economies while minimizing negative environmental and cultural impacts. We travel in small groups, use local transportation and stay in locally-owned accommodations.
Part of G.A.P's operating philosophy is to respect the communities in which we operate. G.A.P does this by acting in a manner that is environmentally, socially and economically responsible. While our sustainable tourism policies are constantly evolving, our commitment to socially conscious, grassroots style travel has never changed. In recognition of our efforts in the area of social responsibility, G.A.P won the Ethics in Action Award. We are proud of our reputation, the work we do with local communities and the style of travel we offer to our passengers.
3. What are "Ecotourism Operator Standards"?
With the help of Conservation International, G.A.P Adventures developed a set of Ecotourism standards which act as a code-of-conduct to ensure that we act responsibly at all levels of the company. Every year these standards are re-examined and, where appropriate, targets are raised or new standards are added.