Ethical Travel

why we travel — By Bob Riel on March 16, 2007 at 8:10 am

Jeff Greenwald directs a program called Ethical Traveler, which promotes the idea that we should all be more aware of how we impact other cultures and communities by the decisions we make when traveling. Or, in Greenwald’s words, to realize that “what we do as travelers really does matter.” The NY Times ran a short profile of Jeff this week in its business travel section.

An excerpt:

When strangers in strange lands impress you with unexpected care and generosity, you start to wonder about your own impact as a traveler: how much your dollars benefit local businesses, what your visit does to the environment and how your behavior – your ability to listen, as well as to speak – affects the world’s impression of who you are.

Ethical travel is the natural outgrowth of these questions. It’s being mindful of what everyone who travels, for business or pleasure, should remember. This includes knowing where your money is going, respecting local customs, bargaining fairly and remembering to pack your sense of humor…

Travel itself is now the biggest industry on earth; even bigger than oil. As a result, travelers have the power to affect global policy in very tangible ways.