We all love a holiday – but in 2024, the emerging challenge is finding the most ethical means by which to enjoy these experiences. With concerns about the environment and over-tourism on the rise, conscious travellers are looking for places which are kinder to the planet and its people. Now, more than ever, the destinations which are sustainable, accessible and inclusive are in the spotlight.
Several organisations are striving to make a positive impact too, proving how tourism can add to the communities in which it exists. At the forefront of these groups are the people whose own passion for travel developed into an urge to change the industry. From litter-pickers in Copenhagen to safari guides in Tanzania, we spoke to some of our heroes in global tourism about how their inspirational work is paving the way for the future of travel.
The game-changing guide
Mishi Mtili, Singita Grumeti, Tanzania
“Most guests don’t hide their surprise when they see me, and that means a lot.” So says Mishi Mtili, who is blazing a trail as a female guide at Tanzania’s Singita Grumeti, a series of lodges in a 350,000-acre concession known for its privileged access to the great wildebeest migration. Mtili started 16 years ago as a dishwasher at Singita, one of Africa’s most respected safari brands, but over time kept asking the same question: “What if I can do more?” Now, after a two-year training process, she’s one of Singita’s most admired field guides. And she wants to uplift more women wanting to do the same, including teaching guiding at college.
“I recently taught a class, and all the women were hiding at the back,” she says. “I asked them to come to the front. It’s about building confidence and communication skills while showing that female guides can do everything male guides can do.” Her biggest learning? Simply being herself. “It’s about showing your personality; about showing Mishi is Mishi.” It helps that she adores the wilderness and wildlife along the Grumeti River. “I just love driving around,” she says. “Being out in a very quiet place, stopping the engine, making guests listen and meditate for a few minutes. Understanding nature in the bigger picture is what makes the experience amazing. It's a therapy, not only for the guests but also for me.” singita.com/region/grumeti
The waterborne litter-pickers
Oke Carstensen & Tobias Weber-Andersen, GreenKayak, Copenhagen
Less than 24 hours after his kayak company’s yearly clean-up, Tobias Weber-Andersen noticed new rubbish polluting the very places he had just cleared and decided there needed to be a lasting solution. He teamed up with Oke Carstensen, a recent business school graduate, to form GreenKayak in Copenhagen, a rental service which lends kayaks to the public under one condition: that they collect waste from the water while they paddle. Appropriately coloured bright green, the little boats are specially fitted with litter pickers and buckets, and all are available for free. “We’re all responsible for this one planet, and it doesn't care whether you’re rich or not,” explains Carstensen.
Since 2017, the company has grown from a single kayak on the Danish canals to 80 kayaks across 19 European cities, such as Berlin and Stockholm, with volunteers from more than 100 different countries. “We are very aware that GreenKayak will not solve the issue of environmental pollution,” Carstensen says. “For us, it's way more about the people; we want them to experience that their actions really matter. It’s so easy to complain about how dirty it is, but you also need to enable people to be part of the solution. We believe that if people see the problem with their own eyes, it can provoke a change in their mindset. You explore the city, but not only by paddling. It’s a whole scavenger hunt!” greenkayak.org
The outdoor diversity advocate
Joshua Adeyemi, Black Scottish Adventurers, Scotland
Joshua Adeyemi is an award-winning adventurer who developed a fierce enthusiasm for the Scottish outdoors after moving there more than a decade ago. When he noticed a pattern of friends fascinated by his travels, Joshua wondered whether it was the lack of representation which was holding them back from doing the same. Shortly after, Black Scottish Adventurers (BSA) was born, a community group for people to explore the Scottish wilderness together through activities such as hiking, watersports and barbecues.
“People often think you don't see a lot of ethnic minorities outdoors because they don't belong there, and this can create a self-imposed barrier,” he says. “But then once they come out and enjoy themselves, they realise it's for them, and I think that's how we're trying to change the narrative. What makes us different from other organisations is how we use education to help people connect to the space; I want people to understand that they have the right in Scotland to explore the outdoors.” Sustainability is also at the core of what Joshua hopes to achieve. BSA organises carpooling to reduce travel emissions, carefully manages any waste they produce, and teaches members about the surrounding environment during all their excursions. “When I'm outdoors, it's the only time that everything else switches off; it’s just me and the space.” blackscottishadventurers.com
The cultural bridge-builder
Liliana Palma Santos, Zapotec Travel, Oaxaca
Born in Los Angeles in an Oaxacan Zapotec family, Liliana moved back to her hometown of Tlacolula de Matamoros in 2013 and launched Zapotec Travel in 2021. With a small B&B and homely restaurant and tours focused around local artisans and mezcal producers, her mission is to showcase the singular culture of modern Zapotecs (colloquially known as “the Cloud People”) and counterbalance outdated perceptions and tourism models. “I’d love for Indigenous groups like ours to have more of a voice and not be seen as simply an ancient culture,” she says. “And I want us to support small businesses, who often get bypassed by regular travel operators. On our trips we ask guests to bring part of the balance in cash so that we pay fees to local businesses and communities, rather than relying on visitors making purchases.”
It’s also not about sugar-coating or fetishising her culture. “On our mezcal tours, we go to the producers rather than the big brands and go out on pickup trucks to pick agave. There’s fun and cocktails in the producers’ homes, but we also have real conversations about subjects that can be difficult. We want to be a bridge between cultures.” zapotectravel.com
The sustainability obsessives
Valery Joanne Super and Loic Amado, Emboo River Camp, Kenya
For a model of how to run a safari camp sustainably, it’s hard to think of a better example than Emboo, a solar-powered lodge in the heart of the Kenyan Maasai Mara, where innovations include Africa’s first fully electric fleet of safari vehicles. Emboo was opened in 2019 by Belgian-Swiss former human rights lawyer Valery Joanne Super and Belgian-Dutch former Uber executive Loic Amado, who fell in love with a forgotten camp in the forest by the Talek River. “For us, sustainability wasn’t a tag-on,” says Super. “It was entrenched in everything we built and did and part of our DNA. I think the new generation of travellers recognise greenwashing and know when something’s authentic – and we didn’t want to do a traditional safari, which can feel extractive.”
That means granular and often complex solutions, such as using copper ionisation to clean swimming pools without chemicals, using recycled plastic matrices and wetland plants to filter and recycle wastewater, and decking made from recycled cement bags. The near-silent electric Toyota Land Cruisers were converted from diesel versions by Nairobi-based company Roam. Amado and Super are also proud of the makeup of the team they’ve hired, who are all Kenyan and 90 per cent Maasai, with a gender balance. “We’ve got both men and women at all levels,” says Super, referring to the likes of 20-something female Maasai guides Emily Silantoi and Barbrah Naserian Kimongo’o. “We’re not perfect, but we try to be fully transparent in everything we do. And I think Emboo guests can see that we really mean it – and that they can have luxury and fun without compromise when it comes to their impact.” emboo.camp